"I'm a Muslim person, of course Christmas religiously doesn't have any significant meaning for me but volunteering is a good way to show that we are together"
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As a Muslim woman Junaina Jalil believes in giving and she will be donating her time to gift wrap for Canberrans this Christmas.
The Vision Australia volunteer will be part of a nation-wide team of about 700 lending a helping hand between December 11 and December 24 at Myer stores in Victoria, New South Wales and the capital.
All funds raised from the Myer Gift Wrap will go directly to Vision Australia Canberra who support people who are blind or have low vision live comfortably within their community.
Myer gift-wrap project co-ordinator Kylie Morris said Canberra is lagging behind Sydney and Melbourne in number of volunteers.
"I think you always have problems in getting people volunteering. We didn't run the gift-wrap in Canberra last year and Belconnen has a few shifts that need filling but there is always a problem with the smaller areas," Ms Morris said.
The shifts are conducted in groups of three run from three to four hours.
Ms Morris highlighted the importance of fundraising initiatives like the gift wrap.
"Last year we raised almost $70,000 and that money went to children services such as library services, devices and equipment and the orientation and mobility programs that assist kids with low vision," she said.
Mrs Jalil said that volunteering for causes like this is important to bridge the gap between cultures, especially since the rise of extremists groups like ISIS.
"There are extremes in every religion and people have to understand that we're not all like that, we are just normal people," she said.
The retired IT professional of 30 years said fundraising activities are important for people in need, which could be herself in the future- the annual fundraiser raised almost $70,000 last year
"I'm respecting other people and their cultures and their celebrations and at the same time doing a good service to the community like raising funds for a good purpose," she said.
Mrs Jalil who will volunteer on December 12 said she is also studying to be a qualified English teacher.
"You're never too old [to study], I'm doing a certificate IV in teaching English as a second language and I have applied to teach in Japan, so hopefully I can go," Mrs Jalil said.
Registrations are open until December 9 though the Vision Australia website and wrapping starts December 11.
