In this issue:
- Parishioner Profile: Lyn Boal
- Curry Night fellowship
- Stuff we do – Candlemass
- Getting our bible on!
Good things at Pandora’s Op Shop
Lyn Boal reaches out to those in need at Pandora’s. No, she’s not a shop assistant at a high end boutique! Lyn regularly volunteers at Bayside’s best op shop… Pandora’s, a ministry of St Peter’s community at Wynnum. The frocks, frills, sensible pants and other stuff is all there but it’s all to assist those who need a bargain or a helping hand.
Q and A Session – Grilled by the Vicar
How long have you been involved in Pandora’s?
- 18 months to two years… I never keep check of these things
How often do you come over?
- Once a fortnight
How does Pandoras work? Where do they get their stock from?
- Just donations…people drop things in when they are cleaning up or wanting to sort through their clothes or a lot of times there’s people leaving the area and they just bring everything in
What do you do while you are here?
- Sometimes I’m out the front on the counter…serving there… other times I’m in the back here with all the clothes when they bring them in and see if they are ok to put out and price them and put a stapled price on them. And then we take them back out the front and put them out on display.
Are there any guidelines about what you have to do with the clothes? Are there some that you have to get rid of or not use?
- We have to yes. We often take them down to Silky Oaks.
So you work in partnership with them?
- Yes and others. At Christmas time we had a big clean out here because we just got overloaded and took a lot down to one of the big recycle places at Capalaba. A couple of truck loads.
How often is Pandora’s open??
- Three days a week… Monday Wednesday and Friday 9-12
What’s the best thing about coming and working here for you?
- Oh I think its providing something for the community that’s really needed … people are doing it tough. I get a lot of enjoyment out of it and meeting lots of lovely people here and in the church… getting to know other people from St Peter’s and beyond. Working together with others is good.
And you do some other volunteering as well?
- I do go to the sailing group at Capalaba… they take the children out sailing especially with recent arrivals free sailing at weekends… I only go helping with serving the sausages for lunch. I belong to a few other groups.. the Mother’s Union and Tatters and Chatters and the craft and games… cup of tea and lunch etc.
Is there a memory or something that happened here and you thought that was a really lovely thing? A nice story or something that you noticed?
- The people that come in… a lot are lonely and want a chat… wander in for an hour or two sometimes… they might buy one or two things … nothing too expensive and we have some really good stuff. It’s good to chat to all the people and I get a lot out it. I’m more than happy to come. I saw something somewhere that they needed people to help and together with our church and Wynnum… So, I though why not get to know other people who belong to this area and to the church too.
What does it add to your belonging to St Paul’s?
- Just to integrate with all the other people and get to know the other people and how things work with them. I love it here as they have the pantry and all the other helping things too. It’s a great service for so many doing it tough.
It’s a nice practical living out your faith!
- Yes! And you know you are helping other people. We’d hate to be in that situation. We think we live in Australia and its all great but there’s a lot of people doing without a lot of things. I’m one of the fortunate ones and got a good family but not everyone is that fortunate.More volunteers are needed. Have a chat to Lyn if you have some time to spare.
Download the full newsletter below: