Giving back is an important part of our Cairns community and underpins so much of what makes this city great. There are so many people here willing to give of their time and their money to see others succeed.
I’m grateful to be in a position to work with many of these people each and every day. As the Far North Region co-ordinator for The Pyjama Foundation, I am forever in awe of the incredible volunteers who come my way so willing and committed to change the life of a child in the foster care system.
Our organisation screens and trains community volunteers who are matched with a child in foster care. These Pyjama Angels become learning mentors and build a strong relationship with the child they are supporting to not only help improve educational outcomes but to also help them build a sense of self-efficacy. Ultimately, their time together is helping to pave the way for better life outcomes for the child.
Currently in Queensland there are more than 9000 children in the foster care system and, of those, 92 per cent fall below the average reading level by age seven. A further 75 per cent will not complete high school. These shocking statistics are the reason we started and continue to provide this vital program, one which we’d love to grow within the Cairns community.
At the moment we have more than 20 children on our waiting list.
These children have been referred to our program by their child safety officer or foster carer but, unfortunately, we are lacking volunteers in their area to support them.
Our community volunteers don’t need any special skills or qualifications, they just need to be caring and compassionate adults (over the age of 18) who are willing to commit to one hour a week with a little person desperately awaiting their arrival. If you think this volunteering opportunity is for you then please get in touch with me via cairns@thepyjamafoundation.com or send through your application.
via www.thepyjamafoundation.com/volunteer.
If this volunteer opportunity isn’t for you but you’d still like to support the work we do, we host numerous events throughout the year of which you can be a part. This includes National Pyjama Day in July and our Battle of the Brains Trivia Night–an incredibly fun night with a best-dressed competition, amazing prizes and feisty, yet healthy, competition between teams. For more information on our events or to get involved please check out our website.
