CEO, Volunteering Gold Coast.
CEO, Volunteering Gold Coast.
Brad Cooper is a man with a mission. As CEO of Volunteering Gold Coast, the Gold Coast’s only Volunteer Resource Centre, he is committed to connecting and supporting local Not-For-Profits and people in the community wanting to give back. We chatted to Brad about the journey that led him to Volunteering Gold Coast and how we can all get involved.
How long have you been a Gold Coast local?
I settled on the Gold Coast in 2019 having left Melbourne after 25 years, travelling around Australia in a caravan (2 adults and boys aged 8 and 11)
What do you love the most about the Gold Coast?
Gold Coast is a great place to raise a family – easy to get around on foot / bicycle, something always on / events, a mix of people from everywhere that might come for the climate / beach, tree change
Tell us a bit about yourself.
I come from a working class family from southern NSW, trained as a nurse then moved to Melbourne, where I worked in a hospital, then at Melbourne University. I took one of the first online courses in the late 1990s then became Course Coordinator. Took a role in community aged care, building a team supporting older people to stay at home with support and grew this into one of the largest programs in the country – recognised as Aged Care Employee of the Year for Victoria and Australia. Moved into executive roles in Aged Care and the Homeless and Community Housing before leaving Melbourne. I’m married to Rachel (who is also a nurse, now a Teacher Aid on the Gold Coast) with two sons Angus (15) and Levi (12).
For those who don’t know what is Volunteering Gold Coast?
Volunteering Gold Coast is a charitable organisation serving isolated and vulnerable members of the community through our services. We recruit volunteers (now more than 50,000!) for member organisations (around 115 currently) who rely on volunteers to deliver their mission. We also run community transport services that assist people to access the community; operate a visitor program into aged care sites on the Gold Coast and roll out the blue mats on our beaches in the surf life saving season to assist people with a disability and those with mobility needs to access the water.
What does a typical day being Volunteering Gold Coast’s CEO look like?
Days usually kick off with an optimistic view of the impact VGC will have. A handful of our drivers will have left our Miami site before 7am and there is a steady amount of activity getting our 34 vehicles on the road. I have a great team around me that bring our mission to life each day. The office is a busy place with volunteers and a handful of paid staff coming together. Up to 180 volunteers assist VGC each week – some on the frontline with customers, many more behind the scenes helping to find volunteers, skill up volunteers and embed volunteers into our teams. You will often see a volunteer coming back after some time away on holidays and there is a good sense of community amongst the group. Each day brings a focus on achieving our strategy and ensuring our offerings continue to meet the expectations of our customers. Much of my focus for the last 12 months has been on ensuring that volunteering is valued by the community and financially supported by governments. We help the community overcome some major challenges and deliver some events that make the Gold Coast a desirable place to visit and live.
What has Volunteering Gold Coast’s impact been like here on the Gold Coast?
It’s easy to give the headlines as numbers 50,000th volunteer last year, (year 24), 1.2M KM per year in our vehicles, 65,000 trips – behind each event of service is a person we support that is able to manage their own shopping and eat well, access health care and medications and remain at home and active in the community, was lonely before engaging in social outings with other people, was an onlooker at the beach but now is able to be in the water, lacked confidence but is gaining new skills to serve the community, wanted to give back and finds happiness in the gift of giving their time. This is our 25th year. One of the largest Volunteer Recruitment Centres in Australia
Do you have a favourite memory or moment that comes to mind since you started working with Volunteering Gold Coast?
I have two. The first is when I volunteered on weekends for VGC to assist with the Lismore Flood Recovery. I was part of a team of people I had never met before who came together to help in the post-flood clean up. You worked hard on some of the physical activity and would debrief about the day on the way home, and you knew you had made things better for someone going through one of the hardest times in their life. My second favourite moment has been the Volunteering Gold Coast Awards in conjunction with International Volunteer Day. I’ve been part of two events and this is an absolute showcase of the volunteering spirit and the impact it delivers on the Gold Coast. For many in volunteering there are few accolades that match the magnitude of this event.
How can locals get involved?
If you can give some time to volunteer then I would encourage people to pay it forward and give your time freely to help everyone on the Gold Coast feel connected, valued, healthy and happy. Don’t feel like this needs to be a forever commitment – we can help you pick an experience or opportunity. 4hrs of time would be enough to get started. For those who don’t have the capacity to be able to give their time freely, I would encourage them to become a regular donor that supports Volunteering Gold Coast. Our efforts require vehicles, fuel, insurance, offices/desks, and training. People might wrongly assume that volunteering has no costs – we are essentially a people recruitment and development business. Donations allow us to extend our reach, and create an inclusive Gold Coast.
What are your Gold Coast favourites…
Café/coffee spot: Parkway at Robina. Great food, great coffee, outdoor garden seating
Restaurant: Bunnath Kitchen. Go in a group and have the banquet, enjoy modern Cambodian dishes
Bar or place for a drink: Precinct Brewing in Miami
Beach: Greenmount
How do you choose to spend your days off?
Days off are usually outside – riding bikes with kids, the beach, fishing (help please), catching up with friends for a drink or meal. I hope to get back into recreational flying when the time is right.
A COVID success story, Serving Our People (SOP) first opened its doors in March 2020 as a complimentary delivery service for those who could not leave their homes to purchase essential items such as groceries, baby formula and medications, providing comfort and convenience to those who need it most.
Now, more than two years on, the organisation has helped more than 52,000 people across Southeast Queensland and Northern New South Wales, delivering more than 25,000 meals to those in need with a registered volunteer base surpassing 1,100.
This December, Serving Our People’s headquarters will be transformed into a modern community hub that will offer Queensland’s first ‘Free Supermarket’ – a place when members of the community can collect essential non-perishable grocery items they need but are unable to afford.
“We want to make sure that everyone in the Gold Coast community and across Australia is aware of the services that we provide,” said Yas Matbouly, Founder of Serving Our People (SOP).
Tell us a bit about yourself.
Over the past 18 years, I have lived and worked in some of the world’s most exciting cities – Dubai, Doha, London, New York and Australia. I have a significant career leading major transactions for governments and global brands such as IBM, Omnicom and Dolce & Gabbana. Additionally, my experience as an advisor for a Middle Eastern Royal Family Private Affairs office gave me unique insights into how to restructure financial institutions and pursue international investment opportunities. In particular, real estate, energy, finance, agriculture and technology are all areas where there is significant potential for growth. I also worked with the Sunland Group, an ASX listed property developer, before I founded Serving Our People. Sitting on the Bond University’s MBA alumni committee is another one of my many passions. My Executive MBA is from Bond University, Australia, and Stanford Executive Education Graduate School of Business, Stanford University, CA, USA.
How long have you been a Gold Coast local?
I have been back on the Gold Coast and living here for the last 6 years. I was in Brisbane for a year before moving back to Australia from New York.
What do you love about the Gold Coast?
It is the best city in the world. I have travelled all over the world and by far the Gold Coast is magical, it has everything to offer from family life to the best nature escapes, great education and entrepreneurial hub, amazing weather and very healthy environment, it is a great environment to be relaxed and happy, which is the best.
You are the founder of Serving our People (SOP). Can you tell us about this charity?
Serving Our People (SOP) is a complimentary delivery service born from the adverse global pandemic of COVID-19. We are a logistics, delivery, and emergency relief service. Our mission at Serving Our People is simple: to serve those in need. We were founded in 2020 with the goal of helping as many people as possible, and we now operate in Brisbane, Logan, the Gold Coast, and Northern New South Wales. Our vision is “to deliver to anyone, at any time, in any place”. At a time when many are feeling uncertain, we remain committed to serving all Australians, no matter their need or circumstances.
You’re currently building Queensland’s First Free Supermarket. What an amazing initiative. Can you tell us about this project?
We are excited to announce our plans to transform Serving Our People’s headquarters, a 45-year-old warehouse in Mermaid Beach, into a modern community hub that will offer Queensland’s first ‘Free Supermarket’ for those in need. This will be a place where members of the community can come and collect essential non-perishable grocery items, relieving the cost of living pressures they are facing. Set to open in December this year, with a half size basketball court, electric bicycles and plenty of space for community activities and fundraising events, this will be a hub for everyone to enjoy.
How will the free supermarket work? Where will the food come from & who can access the supermarket?
Non-perishable goods are already being collected from donation boxes stationed in leading supermarkets across the Gold Coast. Each box is used to stock the shelves of Serving Our People’s “pop-up supermarket” or fill “bags of love” to deliver to those who cannot ‘shop’ in-person. No matter who you are or what your circumstances may be, you are welcome to come and collect items at our supermarket. We are dedicated to helping anyone in Australia who needs it, and we will do everything we can to make their lives better. Whether you are a family, an elderly person, displaced persons or disadvantaged communities, carers, victims of disasters or people living with disabilities, we are here for you.
When can we expect the supermarket to be up and running?
Our grand opening is set for 22 December 2022, and to launch our opening event, we’ll be inviting our local homeless community to join us for a Christmas lunch at the new headquarters.
Are you looking for donations of food, money or time?
We’re looking for all the above! Our volunteers are working hard to collect food boxes every week. Each box provides enough food for 40 families, which means we can help feed 2000 families each year. However, with the new supermarket open, we hope to support even more people in need.
What is the most valuable way for locals to get involved?
There are many ways to help those in need, and one easy way is to donate items through our donation boxes. You can find these boxes in supermarkets across Gold Coast and Brisbane. Just purchase some extra items to donate, and you’ll be making a difference in the lives of others. Once the boxes are full, volunteers from SOP collect the items and create ‘bags of love’, which include items such as non-perishable food, and essentials such as toothpaste, bottled water, and sanitary items for the free supermarket.
What are you most looking forward to in the next 12 months?
As we move into the new year, we are committed to continuing our work serving those in need with compassion and integrity. We are proud to be known as a collaborative charity that works closely with other charities and organisations to meet the needs of our community. We look forward to continuing this important work in the coming year and beyond.
What are your Gold Coast favourites…
Café/Coffee spot: Le Cafe Gourmand in Mermaid Beach & The Salt Mill in Currumbin
Beach: Currumbin
How do you choose to spend your weekends?
Enjoying time with my family or at various Serving Our People activations with the family.
If you read our interview with Yas Matbouly, visionary Founder and President of Australia’s fastest growing charity Serving Our People (SOP), you know a little somethin’ somethin’ about this story. Based on the Gold Coast, SOP are excited to launch SERVED., the country’s first charity-owned, not-for-profit coffee shop…and so are we! Although it’s not exactly hard to coax us into trying a new coffee haunt, this hole in the wall at the charity’s Mermaid Beach headquarters serves your long black with a side of feel-good-factor. Just the way we like it.
SERVED. is an extra spesh initiative as 100% of profits will go directly to support SOP’s work across South East Queensland. It enables us, the local community, to help those who are struggling without spending more moolah than we normally would. In our humble opinions, this is #genius and we love that our enduring love affair with caffeine will now support a worthy cause – other than the quest for more energy.
Coffee snobs breathe a sigh of relief as SERVED. will use Melbourne-based ethically sourced St Remio coffee beans to please both your palette and your conscience. And if you’re not into coffee firstly, just huh?, and secondly, in addition to serving ‘The People’s Coffee’, there’s also refreshing juices and ‘The People’s Water’. So there is literally no excuse not to swing in on your AM stroll or drive to work for your morning refreshment and good deed for the day.
Funds raised will be used to prop up a range of the organisation’s projects, like their supermarket donation boxes, plenty more SERVED. outlets across our ‘hood and beyond, and various other growth ventures. Delivering anything to anyone in need, SOP has supported over 55,000 people in various capacities during their time of crisis.
Obviously COVID brought anything but good fortune for many businesses, but SOP is the ultimate feel-good COVID success story. Opening its doors in March 2020 as a logistics, delivery and emergency relief not-for-profit organisation, it has gone from strength to strength. Blossoming into a mobilised team of more than 2,100 volunteers across South East Queensland and New South Wales, they have delivered 19,000 meals, and more than 1,000 food packages; ‘bags of love’. We all know karma keeps her receipts so we reckon these outstanding individuals should buy lotto tickets, like immediately.
Another exciting SOP project is the launch of Queensland’s first ‘free supermarket. Here members of the community can collect essential non-perishable grocery items they need but are unable to afford #howgood. The supermarket is located at the organisation’s Mermaid Beach headquarters, which recently underwent a transformation into a modern community hub with a half-size basketball court, electric bicycles, and space for community activities and fundraising events.
And because these do-gooders just keep on keeping on, SOP are hosting a Christmas toy drive and pop-up gift-wrapping shop at Pacific Fair, with the public encouraged to purchase and donate gifts to those in need. Then, Christmas hampers and Pac Fair gift vouchers will be distributed to over 100 deserving peeps across the Gold Coast and we literally just got goosebumps.
So watch this space for more info on SOP’s amazing work and in the meantime, look for the bright blue and white awning and smiling faces at SERVED when you’re in Mermaid. Grab a coffee or refreshment and feel all the feels knowing that you’re doing your bit to help the less fortunate.
Where: 2582-2584 Gold Coast Highway, Mermaid Beach (entrance via 4-6 Seaview Avenue)
When: 5am – 2pm, Monday to Sunday
Words by Bianca Trathen.
