St John Ambulance volunteer named Southern Inland Volunteer of the Year

"That connection to something bigger than who you are, and what you do," Mr Armstrong said.

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Mr Armstrong, who is the hub leader of St John's NSW southern central region, has been named the 2022 Southern Inland Volunteer of the Year.

The award is recognition of the thousands of hours he has given over seven years, providing health care support at events and incidents across the region.

Mr Armstrong's wife has volunteered at St John Ambulance since childhood. She was tasked with setting up a cadet division of the organisation at Queanbeyan.

"I wasn't volunteering at the time, so I decided to take the opportunity to join," Mr Armstrong said.

In the seven years since, he has dedicated over 3,300 hours of volunteer support.

"That connection to purpose has been a really strong motivator in my professional and volunteering life," Mr Armstrong said.

"In the St John's space I am able to learn skills, like first aid, and apply them in a confident and competent way to make a difference."

Volunteers at St John have a level of autonomy, which Mr Armstrong enjoys.

"You're able to work with a whole range of different people and decide on the types of events and duties you want to spend your time volunteering on," he said.

The NSW Volunteer of the Year Awards is an annual program run by the Centre for Volunteering to recognise outstanding work by volunteers in NSW.

"Anyone that's interested in volunteer work should take the time to really think about what's driving them," Mr Armstrong said.

"Find the organisation or community group that best fits that core value for you. That's going to be the thing that makes your volunteering experience that much more profound, and so much more valuable to you."