When Jo first visited the WA Seniors Card Centre with her husband, she did not expect to walk out as a volunteer.

“One of the staff asked if I’d like to help out, and I thought, why not?” she laughs. “I’ve never looked back. It’s been the best part of my life since I retired.”

Over a year later, Jo remains one of the friendly faces who warmly greet seniors visiting the WASC office. She says volunteering has given her a new sense of connection and purpose. “I love knowing Monday night means I’ll be back here Tuesday morning,” she says. “The staff are always smiling, and it feels special to know I’m helping others.”

Outside her volunteer work, Jo carries a special piece of her family’s history — the intricate art of tatting, a traditional form of lacemaking she learned from her mother, Francesca.

“I was about six when I first watched her,” Jo recalls. “We would sit by the woodstove on cold nights in Bayswater, and after dinner, she would start tatting. I could not understand how something so beautiful could come from a single thread of cotton.”

By the time she was eight or nine, Jo had taken up the craft herself. Her mother, who emigrated from Italy in her twenties, taught her with patience and care, passing down not just a skill, but a piece of heritage.

Francesca went on to win awards at local senior’s competitions and Over 50s clubs, and her delicate doilies were admired in homes across North Perth.

“Tatting is a precise and patient art. There is no room for mistakes. If you mess up, you start again,” Jo explains. “It was once used to make collars, bedspreads, and coasters, things only the well-off could afford because thread was expensive. Today, it is a rare craft, but I still keep some of my mother’s pieces as keepsakes.”

While Jo treasures the art form as a connection to her past, she also sees it as a reminder to slow down and appreciate detail.

“Most people today do not have the patience for it,” she says. “But I always tell others, try to learn and hold onto the old arts. They are part of who we are, and they will be lost if no one keeps them alive.”