Volunteer of the Year - Samantha Willis
Our mission is to help each child to reach their full potential through play and we couldn't achieve this without the incredible help and support of the many volunteers that run our Toy Library. So with that in mind we wanted to say a big thank you to you all as part of National Volunteer Week 2018!
We also wanted to make special mention of our 'Volunteer of the Year' Samantha Willis who recently gave so much of her valuable time, energy and enthusiasm to securing a grant for some fantastic new toys and organising the 'Replanting Our Roots' Fun Day which was an incredible success!
Samantha is a committee member, a duty volunteer and busy mum of three beautiful children who all visit our toy library and borrow from the many toys on offer. Read Samantha's story below and find out what her families favourite toys are to inspire your next toy library visit!
Samantha's Story
Hi everyone, my name is Samantha and I am a part of the Toy Library Committee as a general member. My membership allows me access to borrow toys and as a member of the committee I am privileged to be included with decisions and processes that can affect our Toy Library. I try to help where I can, but as a busy mother of three children, ages 6yrs 3yrs and 18 months, I make it to as many meetings and functions that I can. This is one of the very many things that I love about our Emerald community; the flexibility and understanding that comes from a team of Mums and Dads, Grandparents and Friends.
We moved to Cockatoo 3yrs ago after a year in Pakenham and from 7 sunny beautiful years in Townsville Queensland. Maximus, my oldest son was born in Townsville, but we knew something was missing. We have moved down here to allow our children to be with aunties, uncles and cousins (my husband’s family), which we love dearly. I worked as a teacher for a short time before falling pregnant with my daughter, Mia. I decided to become a stay at home Mum for a while and then a year later I became pregnant with my youngest son, Aston. It felt like we went from one child to three within minutes, time flies when you’re having fun, hehe!
So still feeling new to the area, the Toy Library has enabled me a sense of belonging to the community. I love being able to meet new families and friendly faces that come through the doors when I am on duty or just visiting and it’s even better when I see the regular faces who are so happy to stop and chat and catch up on the “kid’s goss!” I’ve enjoyed the admin nights and the cleaning nights which are full of laughs, discussion and sometimes even some prizes!! I get so excited showing new visitors to our Toy Library, especially in our new home at the Children’s centre, a maze full of adventure and imagination. I love rummaging around to find a toy that could stimulate my children’s minds or ignite a passion or perhaps create an explosion of laughter and fun when we get home. What a wonderful way to show our children that you care and you understand, plus as a parent you are able to save money and room in your house. Why wouldn’t you join?
“You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation –Plato”
What toy from the PBTL are you really loving at the moment?
Our favourite family toy so far has been from the construction section in the back room of the library. My son choose this toy and we borrowed it out a few times, however the biggest surprise was to see everyone getting involved. Maxi began using the instructions to build the suggested constructions, that is until Dad got home, then suddenly a giant talking monster truck appeared. Then the challenge was on, the kids went on to build aliens, small cars, tanks etc.
Why do you love it?
I love it because you can make so many different things, very easily and very quickly. The only limitation is your imagination. After making the models that were pictured as ideas, my son thought he had to just make what the instructions said. We explained that anything is possible as long as you can picture it. He then made a racing car, a lawn mower and aliens!! My son loved constructing the car, whilst my daughter enjoyed pushing them around the house, talking to them and of course destroying them when pack up time came. The smiles it made were heart-warming and the learning was priceless!
Do you enjoy visiting the Toy library?
We love it, there is always a different toy to find and always a friendly face inside. My children always ask to stay and play.
What do you enjoy doing when you are at the Toy Library?
We enjoy trying to find new toys and something that will bring us new experiences and therefore learning. I enjoy sorting through puzzles and games that I know will bring chuckles to all the family!!
When you go back to the Toy Library, what Toy are you really excited about borrowing next?
My son can’t wait to borrow the Bob the Builder Lego which is an oldie but a goody and the Paw Patrol puzzles!!
My daughter is now very eager to borrow the recently renovated large wooden dollhouse. A large piece, however oh so impressive to a little girl who is able to manipulate various pieces of wooden furniture for the doll family that comes with it. I could see her sitting down with it for hours, a definite must for our borrowing list and maybe then I could finally get to finish cleaning my windows!
Fun Fact:
“Constructive play is an organized form of play that is, in many ways, goal oriented and thoughtful. Children who are engaged in constructive play use materials to create something, and this increases in complexity as they get older. With its rich capacity to teach children to problem solve, connect, understand and be inquisitive in their play, constructive playis an importantpart of an early learning environment. It uses open-ended materials and allows children to think about the functions of the materials that they are using.”