At the Hunter Breast Cancer Foundation, our volunteers are at the heart of everything we do.
This National Volunteers Week, we had the privilege of welcoming some of our incredible volunteers, fundraisers and supporters into the HBCF office for a special morning tea—a chance to pause, connect, say thank you, and celebrate the people who give so much of themselves to our community every single day.
Filling Your Cup First
One of the highlights of the morning was hearing from the wonderful Chloe Blake, who led an insightful and empowering session focused on mental fitness, burnout prevention, and the importance of “filling your own cup first” — or as Chloe so beautifully put it, putting your own oxygen mask on before helping others.
For a group of people who spend so much time caring for others, it was such an important reminder.
Many of our volunteers support people through some of the most challenging moments of their lives. Whether it’s driving clients to treatment appointments, helping at events, making phone calls or simply offering a listening ear, they carry not just the practical load—but often the emotional one too.
Chloe shared practical tools, strategies and “system reset” techniques to help our volunteers better manage stress, process difficult conversations, and protect their own wellbeing while continuing to support others with such compassion and care.
A Story That Started It All
It was also incredibly special to hear from one of HBCF’s founding members, Jane Harris—who, 27 years later, is still volunteering with the Foundation today.
Jane shared the story of how our Transport to Treatment Program first began.
After learning about a local woman undergoing breast cancer treatment who had to catch two buses at 6am to make her chemotherapy appointments—and then two buses home again afterwards—the HBCF Board decided that simply wasn’t good enough.
And so, our volunteer-led Transport Program was born.
Today, that same program delivers more than 1,400 patient transports each year for local people facing breast cancer across the Hunter.
The Heart of HBCF
That’s the power of community.
That’s the power of volunteers.
And that’s the heart of HBCF.
To every one of our volunteers—thank you.
HBCF simply would not exist without you.
