May 23, 2022
ECH volunteer Malcolm Levy Keeping busy and making new friends are among the reasons Malcolm Levy enjoys giving up his time to help others. Malcolm Levy, 85, of Lockleys, has lived at ECH independent retirement living village David Read Lodge with his wife June, for 10 years, and is the organisation’s oldest volunteer. The aged care service provider is celebrating its volunteers with a special thank you event on May 19, coinciding with National Volunteer Week. ECH has 117 volunteers, who assist with tasks including arts, gardening, music and social groups, but more are needed. Malcolm started volunteering for the organisation by accident. In his working life he worked as an accountant, financial planner and a tax agent and retired in 2003, when he was about 65 years old. In 1999 he attended what was called a ‘conversation café’. “We were set up in tables of four and the host initiated a subject which we would discuss on our tables. Later the host would welcome someone from each table to stand up and present to the wider group what had been discussed. This really appealed to me,” he said. Fast forward to 2012, he moved into the Lodge, had a conversation with an ECH staff member, started volunteering with ECH, and introduced the café concept. “I delivered about 400 brochures in letterboxes, promoting the conversation café and then I started to welcome participants. I had always been willing to do my…