Year 12 learner Olive Harris has recently earnt her Student Volunteer Army gold badge for contributing over 500 hours of volunteer work.

Olive got into volunteering by originally working with SPCA foster dogs and knitting blankets for NICU babies. This inspired her to continue volunteering and helping around in the community. 

Olive has been involved in many different types of volunteering from fundraising for the RSA Poppy Appeal and the Assistance Dog Trust. Alongside fundraising, she also boards and trains the assistance dog puppies by bringing them through a wide range of places.

In the local community, Olive has volunteered for the local swim club, Selwyn Swim Club, and Bellyful Selwyn. She has also done a large amount of work helping her elderly neighbour as he required the help and being there for company.

Olive also uses her creative abilities to volunteer as well by knitting blankets for NICU babies and sewing cuddle hearts. Olive has also done a wide range of volunteering during her time as a Ngahuru whānau ambassador this year, such as Children's Day and open night.

Olive’s volunteering in the community has many benefits as assistance dogs help children with disabilities navigate everyday life by providing a comforting presence and help where the client needs it. The knitting blankets and sewing Cuddlehearts give premature babies comfort in smelling their mother's scent. The things that Olive does for the community has major benefits that help many people with their day-to-day lives, giving them the chance to find purpose and happiness in life.

One experience that stands out for Olive is watching the assistance dogs that she has boarded and trained move onto formal training to further hone the dogs' skills and teach the specific skills for the client that the dog had been matched with. She finds it an amazing thing to experience, and see them graduate after watching their journey through training, knowing that she had a part in their success. 

Motivated by the feeling of giving back to the community and giving service to the people in the community, Olive's motivation also comes from the ability to learn many different skills that are able to translate to any sort of situation. Volunteering also helps Olive to grow in herself.

"Getting into volunteering may be scary, but the reward at the end is massive," says Olive.

"You feel amazing after helping the community. Start small and learn what you find is fun and rewarding for you. Volunteering can help you gain any skills that look good on your CV, and these skills translate into real world situations."

On behalf of SVA and Rolleston College, we would like to congratulate Olive Harris for volunteering over 500 hours to earn her gold SVA badge – this is a huge accomplishment; you should be extremely proud of Olive!