Starting his journey in 2014…

Greg’s journey with Allowah began in 2014 as he decided he wanted to use his retirement to spend time doing something that helped children. When his daughter told him about Allowah, a children’s hospital that her church supported, Greg looked into volunteering opportunities.

Reflecting on his initial steps into the community, Greg recounts the uncertainty he felt, admitting, “I didn’t find it easy.” Yet, in those early stages of learning to communicate with the children, seeds of connection were sown.

“I remember feeling a bit daunted, feeling like I was just having a one-way conversation with the kids.” Recounting his first shift, Greg shares about how he sat down with one girl and spent the afternoon attempting to connect with her. He admits that after about 15 minutes just talking to her, he didn’t really know what to say. “I wasn’t sure what I was doing, but after an hour one of the nurses came to me and said, ‘She really likes you.’”

Greg asked the nurse how she knew, and was told the child he was with would usually be complaining or whining about things, but instead she was sitting there quietly next to him. That was how the staff could tell the girl’s feelings.

“I learnt that there’s a different dimension to the children than just a straightforward conversation.” Greg says. With eyes open to a new way of communicating, Greg continued to grow. “Some of the kids taught me a lot really about how to converse with them or how to interact with them and so it was just a slow learning curve, I suppose, of just being with the kids. You start doing things like singing, making animal noises that sort of thing – seeing what makes a particular child smile.”