Jean is one of our wonderful staff members who has worked with us since 2013 (9 years). She recently shared her experience about working in Church 4 Life Op Shops and what causes her to be passionate about charity work.

“I started working as a retail assistant at a Church 4 Life Op Shop 2 days a week, but I loved it so much that I wanted to volunteer on extra days.
I started to realise early on that many elderly people were coming into our shop, but it wasn’t just so they could buy food or clothes. Through talking and listening to the customers coming in, I realised that there was a high percentage of widows and those who had lost their partners. They would wander around often looking a little lost.

The heartbreaking thing was that you could be the only person they talk to that day. They needed to be noticed and validated- you could see it in their face”

Jean made it a priority to always make people feel welcomed and cared for and because of this she has formed a lot of long term friendships with customers.