By Bronwyn Hastings

Horsham’s Red Cross branch members were acknowledged for time served and community contribution through knitting trauma teddies, at an afternoon tea last week.

Jo Johns, who has volunteered for about 40 years – 10 of those assisting Junior Red Cross – said she enjoyed helping others.

“It’s just the fact that you’re helping people, meeting people, and when it comes to crisis, especially in different countries, at least you feel you are doing something,” she said.

“I hope Junior Red Cross members remember their time and support Red Cross as they’re growing up and maybe join Red Cross when they’re older – that’s what I encourage them to do.”

Red Cross community manager Nathan Brown said the organisation was the largest humanitarian movement in the world.

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“I just think this is fabulous, that we’ve got so many people today with the Red Cross that do such important work in our community,” he said.

“I think sometimes we can feel that what we do doesn’t matter, that what we do is pretty ordinary and pretty small, but in the context of collective work, what it actually is, is something pretty extraordinary. 

“We should all be really, really proud about the work that we do.” Mr Brown acknowledged the contribution three Horsham members had made to the Trauma Teddy program; Trish Venn, Gail Zordan, and Jen Doolan.

Mrs Doolan said she had been knitting the teddies for more than two decades, starting after taking her grandson to a medical appointment.

“I had to take my grandson for a blood test to pathology 21 years ago, and they gave him a trauma teddy,” she said.

“I looked at it and thought, I love knitting, I reckon I could knit those. I got the pattern, and I haven’t stopped.”

Mrs Doolan said she had spent her evenings making ‘hundreds and hundreds’ of teddies, mostly from donated wool.

Co-ordinator Rhonda Hender ensures the delivery of the teddies to centres including pathology, the hospital’s children’s ward, support groups, dentist and doctors’ surgeries and Goolum Goolum Aboriginal Co-operative. 

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