Katrina Breen

Volunteering can be a fun, sociable and rewarding experience. It also provides important help to other people. Many different kinds of organisations use volunteers. One of my volunteer roles is working as a mentor with people with mental illness. The program is called Connecting Mentors and Mates and is organised by Doutta Galla Community Health. As a mentor, I am paired with participants who want to work on improving their connections in the community. My role is to support this person in working towards a goal of their choice.

It can sometimes take a lot of planning to find where you can go out when you have a disability. But a new tool will now make this planning easier. It is a free app called Out & About. It can be used on an iPhone or iPad. Out & About finds accessible venues and events in Melbourne for people with a disability. It lists accessible places such as parks, beaches, restaurants and cafes. You can review and rate the accessibility of the places you visit. You can also add accessible venues. The app is by Villa Maria.

People with disabilities often have legal problems. One of these problems is that people often break the law by not treating us as they should. People with disabilities often find that doctors do not look after us properly, people do not treat us as equals, and landlords, neighbours, government organisations and police may treat us unfairly. A recent survey shows that people with disabilities and single parents are twice as likely as other people to have legal problems. The survey looks at why some people have a lot of legal problems, and what can be done to help those affected.

People have always lived in groups, or communities. Being part of a community is important for people. I like being involved in different communities. They are about connecting with each other. I belong to a yoga group and a mental health support group. It is an opportunity to make friends, have interesting discussions and help one another. There are community programs people can join. In the Street by Street program you can volunteer to help people in your neighbourhood. In The Sharehood program you share your time, skills and equipment to people nearby. I would like to start my own neighbourhood community.