The Caroline Chisholm Volunteer Awards acknowledge the great contributions by extraordinary volunteers in the Federal Electorate of Chisholm. Caroline Chisholm (1808 – 1877), a remarkable volunteer of her time, assisted thousands of Australian immigrants, mainly women and girls, find work and homes.
Congratulations Albert!
Recently, Albert Toet attended the awards ceremony for 2025 at the Mount Waverley Community Centre, following his very well deserved nomination by the KKA. Before award recipients were presented with their certificates by Dr Carina Garland, MP for the federal electorate of Chisholm, a quartet from a youth orchestra played a beautiful piece of music by Mozart. It was energetic, bold, joyful, timeless.
Albert likes to keep himself busy and his voluntary work often involves planting indigenous plants, mulching and weeding, to aid biodiversity. He undertakes very practical jobs in the community every Wednesday, Thursday and Friday morning and during both the morning and afternoon on Sundays. Arriving on foot, on his bicycle or in his electric car to begin work, Albert is inspiring to those around him.
Along with regularly attending several local Friends Groups and Ashburton Community Garden, he has established two new Friends Groups this year: one in Ashburton and one in Glen Iris.
Albert writes:
Each group is different, but they’re all fun and full of positive, selfless volunteers. Never a wasted day in the park!
Throughout 2025, Albert also leads the KKA’s Revegetation sub-committee, has been involved in nature strip conversions (from lawn to indigenous plants), carried out citizen science activities as a member of ACF Malvern and continued an enormous private effort to rewild “the farm”, an 8-hectare piece of land in Beaconsfield!
We, fellow members of the KKA, feel so privileged to work with such an incredibly skilled, energetic, affable and capable colleague ! Such a well-deserved honour!