Alcoa volunteers support Vinnies in WA and VIC

Alcoa Australia employees continue to make a difference in the local communities where we operate, rolling up their sleeves in support of volunteering efforts for St Vincent de Paul Society (Vinnies) in Mandurah and Bunbury, WA, and Portland, Victoria.

Recently, more than 60 Alcoa employees donated their time to lend a hand, supporting activities including receiving and unpacking donations, sorting and categorising donated items, and displaying stock such as clothing, accessories, books, household goods and bric-a-brac.

Each year the Alcoa Foundation Community Impact Campaign provides support and funding to charitable organisations around the world. This year in Australia, that support was provided to Vinnies, an international organisation of members and volunteers who give their time, care and compassion to assist the most vulnerable in our communities.

Alcoa Australia President and Alcoa Foundation Board member Elsabe Muller attended the volunteering events and said it was wonderful to have so many Alcoans lending a hand to Vinnies, a well-known organisation which helps people experiencing hardship, poverty, and homelessness.

"Volunteering in the communities where we live, work and operate is incredibly important to our employees and amplifies the impacts of our contributions," Muller said. "This important behind-the-scenes work directly supports people in need, as proceeds from Vinnies op shop sales fund services such as emergency relief, accommodation and support programs."

In addition to the organised volunteering, the Alcoa Foundation Community Impact Campaign is making charitable donations.

This year, Vinnies WA will receive nearly $130,000 to Vinnies' Passages Youth Engagement Hub in Peel. The hub offers a safe, welcoming space where vulnerable young people (aged 12-25) can access essential services such as food, showers, laundry, internet, clothing, and phone charging.

Roberta O'Connor, Vinnies WA Manager of Homelessness Services, said Vinnies WA was grateful for Alcoa's support.

"Located in Perth and in the Peel region, Passages Youth Engagement Hub is a vital weekday service run by Vinnies WA's dedicated team of youth workers to provide a safe, non-judgmental and engaging space for young people experiencing or at risk of homelessness," O'Connor said. "Over the past year, 718 young people accessed Vinnies' Passages hubs, having engaged in more than 7,600 sessions.

"The Passages team is extremely grateful to Alcoa for this generous contribution, which will support the vital work Vinnies WA does to support vulnerable young people in the region."

In addition to fulfilling basic needs, the hub runs engaging workshops and activities designed to improve social, emotional, mental, and physical wellbeing. Twenty per cent of WA's homeless population are youths, but despite this, there are very few holistic and flexible youth-specific homelessness services in WA.

In Victoria, we are donating $30,000 which will be specifically directed to support services in the Shire of Glenelg where our Portland smelter is located.

The Alcoa Foundation Community Impact Campaign proudly contributed over $400,000 to charitable locations across 27 locations globally in 2024.