Julie Jolly, Former Volunteer
My kids had grown up and I had gone back to Melbourne and was looking for a job. I had been running a neighbourhood house in Mallacoota and I had six volunteers I was working with. I saw an advertisement in Melbourne for a volunteer co-ordinator at 3MBS and I thought I could do that. Every spare space was being used in the Kew building it was very chaotic.
I learnt amazing things at 3MBS. It was the highlight of my professional career. I really enjoyed working with the people there. In amongst the volunteers were two judges, the headmaster of a private school, a heart surgeon all sorts of people I would not have otherwise associated with. One of the women I interviewed to become a volunteer came into the station at Kew.
One of our sponsors was Wildwood Wines. It was during Radiothon, and we had boxes and boxes of wine everywhere in the station as prizes for Radiothon. Some of the boxes were open as people had come to collect their wine. Because of how busy it was I hadn’t realised how it looked to someone just coming in. I got to the kitchen and there were wine bottles all over the kitchen and this woman said to me in a very serious tone ‘You have a lot of wine in this place, don’t you?’ I had to explain they were a sponsor, but the woman never came back.
I remember one day, a guy came barging into the reception at Kew and went up to a young staff member. I don’t know what he said, but he scared the daylight out of her. She went running into David Melzer [Station Manager 1997-2008]. I was trying to talk him out the door, but David just came out with his chest out and marched this guy out the door. He was obviously on something, but I was afraid that David would get stabbed but luckily, he didn’t. He was brave that day, David, as the guy was really twice his size.
The people at 3MBS were amazing, one of the things I noticed about people who volunteer and have a passion for the thing they are volunteering in is that it comes out in their lives. They live their life vibrantly. I liked being around that level of energy with people. I learnt so much about relationships with people at 3MBS.