This week, as the nation celebrates Volunteer Week and Victoria acknowledges Education Week, Tomorrow Today is recognising more than 100 local people who contribute to positive outcomes for Benalla’s children, young people and families.
Through Tomorrow Today’s Education Benalla Program, around 80 local volunteers directly support education through their work as PEEP Helpers, Community Connectors, Reading Buddies, Kinder Pals, Anganya Assistants and Connect9 Mentors. A further 25 volunteers commit their time as Board Members, Committee Members and general helpers to support the ongoing work of Tomorrow Today.
“At Tomorrow Today we believe that education is a whole-of-community effort and we are incredibly fortunate to live in an area where there are so many people who are willing to contribute to that effort;” said Tomorrow Today Executive Officer, Jen Jackson. “These community-minded people help children feel more confident at school, support early literacy in our preschools, help young people build aspiration and connection and support families to engage with the community.”
Abby Hammond is one of those people. As a Reading Buddy throughout 2025, Abby supported children in Year 2 at Benalla P-12 College two mornings a week.
“In the Reading Buddy program I’d usually work one-on-one with a student for about half an hour, and then I’d stay on in the classroom a bit longer to help just because I wanted to.”
Abby found the most satisfying thing for her was being part of a student’s learning journey. “My experience has been a really positive one; I loved building connections with the students. Seeing their growth and seeing that I was actually making a difference in their learning. And not just their reading, from the start to the end of the year, it improved so much for everything else too. You can see when they sat down with a book, they were learning to enjoy it and their confidence in all areas was growing.”
For Connect9 Mentors, Neville and Linda Scriven (pictured), being involved in the Year 9 mentoring program is a rewarding experience; “There’s a trust that grows during the whole program. I think they know that you’re trying to support them as much as you can;” said Neville.
Linda added; “I like volunteering in our community. This is very local. These are our kids, you know, it is only a small amount of time to give to make a bit of a difference in your community and that is a really lovely thing.”
Jen Jackson summed up what volunteers mean to an organisation like Tomorrow Today; “Volunteers are the lifeblood of community organisations. They are invaluable to Tomorrow Today and play an important role in creating stronger outcomes for our community. We are incredibly grateful for our volunteers and love watching them thrive in their work alongside our program participants.”