There’s no better way to celebrate one of COTA Victoria’s longest-serving volunteers, Chris Friday, than on the Friday of National Volunteer Week 2023.
COTA Victoria celebrated Chris’ twentieth year of service with a special morning tea earlier in the week. Chris and her fellow volunteers Alicia Maclan and Meena Lalwani were awarded with certificates from COTA Victoria and Seniors Rights Victoria CEO, Chris Potaris, and also met the Hon Amanda Rishworth MP, Federal Minister for Social Services, who was also touring our offices.
Chris is no stranger to a COTA Victoria office, first starting as a volunteer at our Block Arcade office in Melbourne’s CBD. There, she assisted with Seniors Week and played an integral role in sorting internal archival material. Chris has followed COTA Victoria to its Little Lonsdale office, and now our St Kilda Road headquarters.
2019 was a specifically big year for Chris. Throughout that time, she took on the task of sorting over 70 boxes worth of COTA Victoria history!
“I found that task large, but most interesting,” Chris said whilst reflecting on the work, demonstrating her constant optimism in the face of an enormous and daunting task.
It’s that attitude that makes Chris “headhunted” (her words, not ours); her renowned organisational skills and can-do attitude are a testament to that. For years, Chris has contributed her valuable time entering pages and pages worth of information into our data systems, sorting through and deleting dated material, arranging archive boxes, and helping with the overall efficiency of COTA Victoria.
“It has been a very interesting and enjoyable few years, and I am pleased that there should now be order in the history of this organisation,” said Chris.
Chris’ generosity seemingly knows no bounds; she established the Chris Friday and Kathleen Pooley Sub-Fund with the Trustees of the Victorian Women’s Benevolent Trust (VWBT) to provide philanthropic support for Aboriginal women and girls.
COTA Victoria is so grateful to have such a generous and humble woman volunteer for all these years.
