Farewell to volunteer Dianne Park

Kitchen Garden Program School Collingwood College has the great benefit of a team of long-term, dedicated volunteers helping with garden and kitchen classes. One such volunteer, Dianne Park, is saying goodbye. Kitchen Specialist Desley Insall has penned this heartfelt message …

Our much loved Dianne Park, volunteer of around 13+ years, has decided to hang up her apron. Dianne, as you all know, is an amazing, vibrant, generous and loyal kitchen garden volunteer, who has bought her unflappable zest for life and her innate kindness to every class and all the students. I cannot really fathom kitchen class without her warmness and of course her weekly roses, craft and material donations, beautiful cakes and slices! I will personally miss her enormously. 

Dianne started volunteering right at the beginning of the pilot Kitchen Garden Program and many staff will have formed friendships with her over the years. Dianne’s two grandsons, Zac and Liam Park, were in primary school at Collingwood College, they were the initial reason she joined our team, they are now men in their 20s! Dianne had told me often that her day in the Kitchen Garden Program was the highlight of her week and she thought all the children she assisted over the years were as special to her as her own grandchildren are. She spoke about her volunteering role and our school community with much love to all her friends and thought our school was “just brilliant”.

Like all our kitchen garden volunteers past and present, Dianne always bought bucket-loads of support, good humour, interest and their personal skills and passions to our students and myself, and therefore our kitchen garden classroom is that much richer for the students’ benefit.

Our Collingwood College community wishes Dianne and her husband Mike all the best for the future,

Desley.

Interested in volunteering at a Kitchen Garden Program school?  Contact one near you.