ROSIES Youth Mission will have its youngest ever volunteer helping out at this year’s Schoolies Week on the Gold Coast from November 20-28.
Four month-old Lucy Dougherty, the daughter of Rosies general manager John Dougherty, will be part of the week-long event with her parents.
‘She will be responsible for moral support of staff and volunteers during the week,’ Mr Dougherty joked.
He said it can be a pretty long and exhausting week for the volunteers and Lucy thought she would help by providing moral support.
‘Of course she isn’t speaking yet, but Felicity and I both thought Lucy would love to give the volunteers a cuddle.’
Mr Dougherty met his wife, Felicity (nee Andrew), when they both volunteered with Rosies for Schoolies Week in 1999.
They married two years later, and in November 2002, John was appointed general manager of Rosies.
‘It’s pretty fair to say that Rosies has played a big part in our life,’ he said.
It’s not the first ‘Rosies wedding’ nor is Lucy the first ‘Rosies baby’.
‘We are not sure how many people have met through Rosies or how many have married and had children,’ Mr Dougherty said.
‘But it is no surprise, given you meet a lot of great, like-minded people in Rosies who are committed to bringing their faith into action.
‘God somehow has a knack of bringing them together.’
Schoolies Week will be another big week for Rosies, with the charity having one of its biggest full-time teams in years.
It means Rosies could offer more support to schoolies, providing a strong safety net throughout the week-long festivities.
The group is looking for people who may have met their husband or wife through Rosies to share their story with current and future volunteers.
E-mail Rosies at admin@rosies.org.au or phone 1300 767 437.
