Before I came to Treasure Seekers I was really very bitter towards others and struggling to cope with daily life because of some things that had happened to me in the past. I found it very difficult to come to terms with these and wasn’t really doing anything in my life. My nurse suggested that I start setting some goals for myself so I decided to start doing the art group in Treasure Seekers Hub. I was told about a senior citizens coffee morning in what was then Chuckaboos tea room so I decided to start going to that as well. The staff running this group thought I should meet Pam and Andrea from the Lighthouse so they arranged a meeting for me and I started to open up to them about my life. They began to help me move forward. Pam and Andrea let me talk about everything and helped me come to terms with it. Then I started to volunteer at Chuckaboos, making drinks and serving customers as well as playing games with people and helping when the Lighthouse students came down to play. When Chuckaboos closed Pam and Andrea brought me into the Lighthouse as a volunteer in their department. I started to get to know all of the students and started to play games with them and become part of the lighthouse. The students have all bonded with me and everyone shouts hello and gets excited when I arrive. This makes me feel good in myself, and gives me a lot of confidence. 

Without the work that I’ve done with Treasure Seekers and the staff that have helped me I don’t know where I would be in my life or if I would even be here. I was slowly turning back to my old ways of handling things which were not good. I remember what it was like before I joined their community and I’m grateful for all of the help that they gave me. I feel part of the community now and I’m living my life and enjoying it instead of just trying to get through it every day. 

I have tried to get volunteer work before with other places but nobody seemed to want to know. I enjoy working with the students. I have some learning difficulties myself and the Lighthouse is helping me to learn new skills and gain even more confidence by teaching me how to help the students learn. 

I am very grateful to my nurse for encouraging me to get into something worthwhile and to Pam and Andrea for putting their trust in me, bringing me into the Lighthouse and helping me on my journey. I have come a long way and I hope to continue in the Lighthouse for as long as I can.