It was a surprise for Vanessa when she received the email letting her know she would be heading to Wagga Wagga, on August 14, as a 2025 NSW Volunteer of the Year nominee.
“It’s a mystery who nominated me,” she said with a laugh.
“It was definitely a surprise. I feel there's a lot of other people in the community who do a lot as well.”
Mrs Kydd has volunteered for the Royal Children’s Hospital (RCH) for a number of years, particularly working on the Good Friday Appeal.
“I enjoy volunteering with the Royal Children's Hospital Good Friday initiative. It also helps out a lot of local hospitals as well.”
This year’s Good Friday Appeal effort from Finley raised $10,000 for RCH.
Mrs Kydd’s involvement with the Good Friday Appeal came after she and husband Daniel lost their son in 2016.
Allister was only six months old when he died as a result of a rare genetic condition called Spinal Muscular Atrophy (Type 1).
It’s in his honour that she works so hard to raise money to support other children and families.
As well as leading the Finley Good Friday Appeal, Mrs Kydd is also the coordinator of Finley play group, a local community run event where mums can bring their kids and socialise.
She is also on the Finley Little Athletics committee.
It is Mrs Kydd’s hope that her nomination will encourage others to inspire local young people to get involved in volunteering.
“Not a lot of young people are volunteering, so I hope I might inspire some young people to volunteer and join some of the local committees,” she said.
“It helps the community, and you meet some amazing people and really feel like you're giving back.”
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