When Lynne Schreurs joined St John WA in the farming community of Boyup Brook in 2001, she was 46 and raising a family.
But her town was crying out for help.
The local ambulance service needed volunteers and Lynne, who started her volunteering journey in aged care as a teenager, knew she could step up.
Twenty-five years later, that decision has grown into an extraordinary record of service and commitment to her community.
Lynne first completed her Patient Ambulance Care qualification in 2002 and continued to build her clinical skills over the years, eventually becoming an Emergency Medical Technician.
In 2005, she took further steps to help equip other volunteers with the skills and confidence to serve their communities with St John WA too.
Her contribution has extended well beyond her on-road experience.
Lynne first became chair of the Boyup Brook Sub Centre in 2002, a position she held for nine years. After periods away from the committee, she returned as chair in 2023 and continues in the role today.
Over the years, Lynne has taken on almost every job that helps keep a sub centre running – coordinating rosters and events, inducting new volunteers, looking after uniforms and supporting events throughout Boyup Brook and across the South West of WA.
That willingness to step up wherever needed helped Boyup Brook achieve St John WA’s Sub Centre of the Year in 2021, while more recently Lynne and her fellow volunteers introduced a free key lock box initiative to help ambulance crews quickly access the homes of vulnerable residents in their town during an emergency.
Most recently, Lynne was promoted to Officer of the Order of St John, recognising her exceptional service over 25 years.
Her message to the next generation of St John women is that neither age, nor gender, is a barrier to helping your community and making a difference. Family and work can come first and volunteering can fit around life.
It is never too late to put your hand up and help.
St John Ambulance Australia acknowledges the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and communities on the Traditional Lands on which we work Australia wide. We acknowledge the Ngunnawal and Ngambri peoples, the Traditional Custodians of the Canberra region, where our Australian Office is based. We pay our respects to elders past and present. At St John Ambulance, we are an inclusive organisation. We welcome and respect people that come from all backgrounds, cultures, religions, genders, sexualities, bodies, and abilities. Access to First Aid and its knowledge are fundamental human rights. Every person deserves access to life saving support, no matter who they are.
St John Ambulance Australia’s nationally recognised accredited courses are delivered by way of third-party arrangement with other organisations (for example, with our St John States and Territories). These St John states and territories (except WA) are authorised to deliver nationally recognised and accredited training on behalf of St John Ambulance Australia Ltd (RTO 88041).
St John Ambulance Australia acknowledges the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and communities on the Traditional Lands on which we work Australia wide. We acknowledge the Ngunnawal and Ngambri peoples, the Traditional Custodians of the Canberra region, where our Australian Office is based. We pay our respects to elders past and present. At St John Ambulance, we are an inclusive organisation. We welcome and respect people that come from all backgrounds, cultures, religions, genders, sexualities, bodies, and abilities. Access to First Aid and its knowledge are fundamental human rights. Every person deserves access to life saving support, no matter who they are.
St John Ambulance Australia’s nationally recognised accredited courses are delivered by way of third-party arrangement with other organisations (for example, with our St John State and Territory agents). These agents (except WA) are authorised to deliver nationally recognised and accredited training on behalf of St John Ambulance Australia Ltd (RTO 88041).
