Drumcondra’s Tennille Busso spends free time volunteering with Delta Therapy Dogs and The Pyjama Foundation. As the foundation calls for more Geelong volunteers, she speaks with Jena Carr about what it means to support people in need.
Tennille Busso, 42, has been looking after people young and old in Geelong ever since she moved to the region close to seven years ago.
The Drumcondra mother of two boys, aged 5 and 11, has been helping people since she was young, with her interests in volunteering and supporting others following her throughout her life.
“I’m an only child and when I was younger, I always wanted to help other kids. I come from a very loving, supportive home and we were financially fine, and there were no issues,” Tennille said.
“Some of my friends or people I socialised with at a young age had different situations in their living arrangements and environments.
“I used to try to help them through that, whether with the financials or making them food. So, I’d work on weekends and then put the money I’d make towards helping my friends.
“There was a girl I went to school with who was fostered out when she was younger, and I always just wanted to foster.
“Fostering comes with some incumbents that you need to work out whether you can manage that with your own children and other children and how that would impact the family dynamic.”
Tennille started working with The Pyjama Foundation as a Pyjama Angel volunteer more than two years ago, and she spent time with children and young people in the foster care system.
As a Pyjama Angel, Tennille meets with a foster child once a week for an hour to do activities like reading, sports, or homework, helping provide a sense of stability and reliability to the child.
“When I came across The Pyjama Foundation, I thought it was such a fantastic way for me to be able to give back,” she said.
“They’ve got great guidance and structure that’s already had a proven history to date, and it allows you to connect whilst not jumping into the deep end.
“You form a network with different people from different walks of life, but everyone’s got that same passion and value-base that they all just want to help one another.
“When you want to get involved in foster care or work with children, and you want to give back, this is a fantastic place to start because all the support mechanisms are there.
“If you jump in completely into foster care full time, you might not be equipped with all the tools you need. But, while you’re doing this, at an hour at a time, you can build your toolkit.”
The Pyjama Foundation is looking for more Geelong volunteers to help children and young people through early intervention, support and mentoring.
Tennille said being a Pyjama Angel allowed her to better relate to her children and encouraged everyone to consider volunteering with the foundation.
“Through the journey of me helping others, it’s helped me in so many other ways that were not actually part of the initial foreseeable future when I started out volunteering,” she said.
“I get to go and spend an hour with two children, and they’re at the same location. The carers can then identify some things they may want me to work on with the children.
“The carers are also getting that support because giving tangible items is one thing, but providing support and creating networks and relationships is invaluable.
“It’s also helped me with my own family dynamic and being able to relate to so many different life skills because through going through this process, I’ve learnt so much.”
Tennille said she had a “huge love for children and people, but dogs in particular” and loved being able to give back to her community.
“My biggest thing is giving back to the community and to others. I find joy in making other people happy and seeing other people happy,” she said.
“We’ve got a Newfoundland dog, which is a breed that is pretty special… and when we take him for a walk, people just light up. He changes that space and vibe wherever he goes.
“They’re a water rescue dog and designed to rescue people. They’re fantastic swimmers and have web feet, but they’re quite striking. Our dog Mack is 85 kilos, so he’s a very big dog.
“He’s just a big fluffy teddy bear, and the breed has the most amazing nature and the kindest soul. So, if the kids, my husband or I have a bad day, the dog brings us so much joy.
“We got Mack registered in Delta Therapy Dogs, a volunteer operation where the dogs go into hospitals, nursing homes, schools and those sorts of affiliations.
“He goes into Bupa Aged Care in Moolap, and they have a dementia unit, so I take him in there once a fortnight, and he spends an hour and a half with the residents.
“I think it is amazing that they’re allowing that because you get to watch the joy that he brings to those residents, it is unbelievable.”
When she is not volunteering and working, Tennille said she loves spending time in Geelong with family and friends.
“Along with my love for family, friends and work, I have a passion for the outdoors and love water sports like water skiing,” she said.
“I love all the older homes and the architecture in Geelong… and there’s plenty of fantastic beaches in and around Geelong and some fantastic restaurants.
“There’s a good family community in Geelong. We really do love that restaurant culture here and there are some great parks around as well for the kids and they really enjoy that too.”
Visit thepyjamafoundation.com to volunteer with The Pyjama Foundation and deltasociety.com.au for more information about Delta Therapy Dogs.
