Willoughby City Council has over 600 volunteers who donate around 26,000 hours each year.
Masako was presented her award by Mayor Gail Giles Gidney at a recent volunteer thank you event and awards ceremony.
Masako talked about why she volunteers and what the award means to her:
Masako Lin Rita Source: Masako Lin Rita
“About 20 years ago , I arrived in this beautiful country with my two children whom I wished to educate through college and university. I knew no one, my English was very limited, yet for the sake of my children, I knew I had to assimilate into society . I had previously done volunteer work in Hong Kong which I personally found to be very satisfying and fulfilling .
Accordingly, and seemingly quite naturally, I decided to look for volunteer opportunities in my new country . I had already enrolled as a student in the MOSAIC Cultural Centre as an English student. I soon learned that there were opportunities through Mosaic to become useful citizens through volunteer work in various fields, in my case as an educator in Mandarin .
Winning the award for volunteer of the year was totally unexpected, because I always so enjoyed what I was doing not only because I felt I was helping others , but because I was making so many friends. I feel winning this award very humbling because I feel so many other people were worthy of this award as well. I hope my contribution will be, in some small way, a catalyst to inspire others to give thought to helping other through volunteering .”
