Parish Pastoral Care Program Coordinators and Volunteers were recently celebrated by Catholic Outreach in conjunction with National Volunteers Week.

Catholic Outreach Director Marietta Russo told The Record that the Immaculate Heart Care program at Scarborough Parish is the perfect example of those who offer their time, energy and talents to help those in the community in need of assistance.

Just like his human owners, Ocean Reef canine, Bob, has discovered the joys of volunteering, forging lasting bonds with people in his local community. In the lead-up to a Mass for National Volunteering Week, The Record speaks to a family forever changed by the giving of themselves.

The volunteering spirit is alive and well in Willetton where John Paul Care gardening volunteers Elisabeth and Neil Macpherson have been helping their community for nearly 30 years.

The Archdiocese of Perth established Catholic Outreach in 1990 with the objective of promoting, developing and implementing pastoral care programmes within parishes.
Catholic Outreach has this year marked its 30th year, inviting its many programme coordinators to a landmark Mass celebrated by Applecross Parish Priest Father Nelson Po at the Catholic Pastoral Centre chapel in Highgate on 15 August 2020, the Solemnity of the Assumption of Mary.

Despite the impact of COVID-19 (with its virtual shut-down of all Church activity throughout the middle of the year) Catholic Social Services Western Australia (CSSWA) has forged ahead with the Catholic Volunteer Hub, an initiative that looks set to dramatically increase the potential for ordinary Catholics to get involved with performing the Good Works of the Church. The Catholic Volunteer Hub creates an opportunity for adults who are seeking to volunteer in a parish setting or for an agency, inviting everyone to participate in performing the Good Works of the Church and realise the objectives outlined in the Archdiocesan Plan 2016 – 2021.