Summer 2010/2011

South Australia’s Governor and Patron of Time for Kids praises volunteersIn celebrating its 50th year of providing care for

children of disadvantaged families, Time for Kids

recognises the vital importance of the contribution

made by volunteers and their family members. As

TFK Board President, Philip Scales, says, ’without

our volunteer carers, we don’t have a charity’.

To honour the remarkable contribution of our

volunteer carers, His Excellency Rear Admiral Kevin

Scarce AC CSC RANR, Governor of South Australia

and Patron of Time for Kids, recently hosted a

reception at Government House. (See back page

for photos.)

The Governor thanked the 70 guests by

acknowledging the remarkable contribution

volunteers provide to the South Australian

community. In his speech, His Excellency

highlighted some of the many achievements

Time for Kids has reached during its 50 years of

providing care to young South Australians. Each

year, Time for Kids volunteer families throughout

South Australia contribute more than 20,000

volunteer hours of respect, care, support,

experience and acceptance for over 150 children

involved in the program. Over the last 50 years,

Time for Kids has supported 4,500 children.

According to The Advertiser ealier this year, there

has been a 19% increase in the number of young

people appearing in the State’s youth court. Time

for Kids is a highly effective and proven early

intervention strategy that helps to prevent young

people from becoming involved in criminal or anti-

social behaviour. The organisation was awarded

a 2009 Australian Crime and Violence Prevention

award for its work in this area.

One young person involved with Time for Kids

recently said that he thought it should be called

‘Changing the world one child at a time’.

‘. . .without our volunteer carers, we don’t have a charity.’

Time for Kids was thrilled to nominate our

volunteer, Owen Jones, for the 2010 Man Alive

Awards. With his wife, Debra, Owen Jones has

been a volunteer carer with Time for Kids since

January 2010. Since February, Owen and Debra

have been caring for a 14-year-old young

woman, Julie.

To accommodate Julie’s limited mobility, Owen

and Debra have made structural changes to

their home. The monthly visits Julie enjoys with

Owen and Debra have given her the chance

to try new things, build her confidence and

increase her support network.

As well as sharing time with Julie, since July

2010 Owen has also been mentoring 12-year-

old Andrew. Andrew has a passion for making

things, but had very few tools of his own and

no opportunity to pursue this interest.

Before being matched with Owen, Andrew had

been running away from school and needed

intensive individual attention and friendship.

Owen now picks up Andrew from school

every Thursday afternoon and they have

started a collection of tools for Andrew so he

has a sense of ownership.

A skilled craftsman, Owen recently worked

with Andrew to build a go-kart and they plan

to make all sorts of other things in the future.

They also talk about school, giving Andrew

someone to confide his worries in.

Owen is a very positive male role model who

shows how everyday men can demonstrate

care and respect for young people, just by

sharing their time. He is a great listener,

provides sound advice, helps children to

make good choices and provides children

with reliability, integrity, time and respect.

The ‘Man Alive!’ Festival has been held

annually since 2004 and celebrates the

positive contribution made by men in our

community, while promoting men’s health

and wellbeing.

2010 ‘Man Alive’ AwardsDebra & Owen Jones, with His Excellency Rear Admiral Kevin Scarce AC CSC RANR Governor of South Australia

Finding friendship on the footy field

Summer 2010/2011

Henry and his family have been Time for Kids volunteers since 2005. At the 2010 Royal Adelaide Show, Henry spoke at the Royal Agricultural & Horticultural Society of South Australia ‘Ladies Brunch’ about sharing his time with Stephen. The following is an excerpt from his speech.

Stephen first came to us back in 2005 as a

painfully shy 9-year-old. I had little idea about

the details of his home life – all I knew was that

Stephen was a young boy like I once was, but

with a much less fortunate upbringing.

The first time I spoke to Stephen it was a Friday

afternoon. When mum introduced us I put out

my hand while looking him straight in the eye,

just as my dad had taught me for so many years.

He tentatively put out his hand and shook mine,

his eyes fixed firmly on the ground. In response

to my ‘how are you mate?’, ‘good’ was the only

word he could muster. This was indicative of the

first couple of months with Stephen.

The first half an hour or so would be spent asking

him simple questions with limited response.

The more time I spent with him at one time

the more he would be willing and comfortable

sharing his thoughts and questions. I found that

one-on-one time with Michael was much more

productive than when around everyone else.

Because of this I decided that taking him to

the oval for a kick of the footy might be a good

way to bring him out of his shell, and to help

strengthen our friendship. At first, conversation

was limited, but after half an hour or so the

questions started coming more frequently. By

the time we were walking home from the oval,

he was asking about everything and anything –

with our shared love of footy, we’d finally found

some common ground.

Our regular trips to the oval gradually enabled

me to mentor Stephen in more important

issues, such as his sporadic school attendance.

Due to his situation at home, there was

nobody to encourage him to attend school.

None of his siblings were going, so why should

he?

It was a Friday afternoon when Stephen and I

walked down to the oval with the footy. I made

sure we talked about all the usual stuff – footy,

cars, whether he’d found a girlfriend yet! On

the way home, I brought up his school, asking

whether he enjoyed it. He said it was okay, and

that he had good mates to hang out with. Then

I got to the most important question; one that

I already knew the answer to:

Time for Kids volunteer Henry and his nephew

As a child-focused organisation, Time for Kids is proud to endorse the Office of the Guardian for

Children and Young People’s ‘Charter of Rights for Children and Young People in Care’. The Charter

is a simple and clear statement of the rights that are important to the more than 2000 children and

young people who are under the guardianship or in the custody of the Minister for Families and

Communities in South Australia. For more information about the Charter, visit

www.gcyp.sa.gov.au/charter-of-rights/ or phone the Time for Kids office on 8362 6311.

‘Are you going to school every day?’

‘No,’ he said. ‘Not every day.’

When I tried to explain that finishing year 12

would be a positive and achievable goal, he

looked at me in dismay. ‘Year 12? There won’t be

anyone else left!’

Since that day though, with my support and mum

and dad’s continual encouragement, Stephen has

rarely missed a day of school. I believe he now

values school and more importantly, enjoys it.

Stephen is very reserved when it comes to

sharing the details of his home life. There are

many reasons as to why this might be but it is

clear that he likes to keep his time with us very

separate to his home life. Usually Stephen will

answer my knock on the door and quickly slam

the door behind him, not allowing me to see or

speak to any of his family members.

My family and I have been involved with

Stephen for nearly five years now, and I’m

really proud of the progress we’ve made with

him – whether it’s the way he now looks a

person in the eye when he shakes their hand,

or his much-improved school results. It’s been

extremely rewarding showing him the sort of

opportunities there are outside of the life he

has at home, as well as just sharing good times

and fun.

Kate Ellis visits Time for Kids

The Federal Member for Adelaide, Kate Ellis MP,

recently visited the Time for Kids office to learn

more about the work Time for Kids is doing for

children in South Australia.

An enthusiastic supporter of Time for Kids,

Kate offered her continued support to the

organisation and to the children and young

people in our program.

‘The care and support provided to these

disadvantaged children is invaluable at ensuring

that they have every opportunity to succeed in

life,’ Kate said.

‘In addition, the time spent with these children

and the friendships that are formed with

volunteer mentors and families provide many in

our community with worthwhile experiences

that will be remembered for a lifetime.

‘I have no doubt that our community is stronger

and more supportive as a result of the ongoing

commitment that Time for Kids makes in

investing in our community.’

Summer fun for kidsSummer is a hive of activity in the Time for Kids

office, as staff and volunteers organise holiday

and Christmas activities for the children in

our program. Our talented team of office

volunteers have been busy doing everything

from shopping for Christmas hampers for

families, sending invitations, to designing

flyers for corporate present drives.

Thanks to the wonderful support Time for Kids

receives from the South Australian community,

Time for Kids children are able to enjoy a range

of special activities, including the annual

Christmas Party for Special Children. The Ladies

of Variety have provided movie tickets, United

Way organised a Christmas party at the zoo

and the Rotary Club of Adelaide have provided

tickets to their annual Magic Show.

Young footy fans are being treated to a

Christmas party at the Port Power club rooms,

where they’ll have the chance to meet their

favourite players and watch them train. And the

Adelaide Crows continue their generous support

with a collection of Christmas presents for the

children in our program.

We’re also getting ready for Clipsal 2011, as a

group of lucky Time for Kids children will be

invited to watch the race from the comfort of a

corporate box.

While it can take some time to find the best match

for the children in our program, Time for Kids will

continue to work in partnership with the South

Australian community to make a practical and

positive difference for every child referred to us.

Time for Kids CEO Jo Wickes and Kate Ellis MP

Authors Bunty Parsons and Di Maguire, with Time for Kids President, Philip Scales and Youth Ambassador, Gavin Wanganeen

Sharing storiesThe launch of ‘It’s about time: giving kids a break’

provided a wonderful chance to celebrate

some of the stories of the children, families and

volunteers who have been involved with Time

for Kids.

Authors Bunty Parsons and Di Maguire share

a long association with Time for Kids – Bunty

as a Time for Kids volunteer carer, and Di as

a volunteer Board member. Together, they

have crafted a moving collection of true

stories that illustrate the power of ordinary

people to make a profound difference to the

lives and futures of underprivileged children,

by simply sharing their time with kids doing it

tough.

‘It’s about time’ is available for $30 from Time

for Kids – simply call our office on 8362 6311,

email us at anne@timeforkids.com.au or

download an order form from our website at

www.timeforkids.com.au

Telephone: 08 8362 6311Facsimile: 08 8362 6711

72 Fullarton Road, Norwood SA 5067PO Box 932 Kent Town SA 5071Email: info@timeforkids.com.auWeb: www.timeforkids.com.au

Our office is open Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm. Please give us a call

or call in - we’d love to see you.

Summer 2010/2011

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Over the past 12 months, Time For Kids has

hosted a number of events to celebrate 50

years of service to disadvantaged children

and families in South Australia.

Thanks to the generosity of all those who

have donated money, time or resources to

help us hold these events, our anniversary

year has been a remarkable success.

Time for Kids has been able to reach out to

the South Australian community, making

sure that as many people as possible know

who we are and what we do. Not only does

this help us to raise much-needed funds, it

ensures that those who need us can find us

as easily as possible.

All of us at Time For Kids extend a huge

thank you to all of you who have come along

to celebrate with us, including the wonderful

donors, volunteers, ambassadors and guests

who have helped make 2010 such a success.

Thank you for helping us help children in

South Australia - we couldn’t do it without

you!

1. Peter Joy, Jan Beasley, John Riddell; and Fiona Smithson at ‘Lunch with the Girls’ at the Lion Hotel2. Volunteer carers, Rudi and Gayle Hermsen and Shirlene and Ken Robertson at Government House3. Time for Kids volunteer family, Ruby, Ian, Sandy and Ella Shaw at the lauch of ‘It’s About Time’4. ‘Lunch with the Girls’ table hosts (front) Pangie Findlay, Annabel Hill-Smith, Melinda O’Leary, Fiona Smithson, Kirsty Davies (Back) Kate Kain, Vickianne West, Col Hamilton, Georgina Hardy, Charlotte Moore, Jan Beasley and Jo Wickes5. Volunteer carers, Brenda and Andy Kovaleff at Government House