Ekka Strawberry
Sundaes

VOLUNTEERING FOR THE COMMON GOOD

Serve up some iconic Strawberry Sundaes for life-saving medical research!

For over 35 years, The Prince Charles Hospital Foundation through its initiative The Common Good has been the proud custodian of the iconic Ekka Strawberry Sundaes..

Every year, more than 2,000 volunteers help power these stalls and serve over 120,000 sundaes across the nine-day show. That’s an incredible amount of scooping, chopping, and topping!

It’s not just a treat! Every Strawberry Sundae sold helps to fund life-changing medical research to help our community live healthier for longer.

Why volunteer at our Strawberry Sundae stalls?

We can’t satisfy the strawberry sundae lovers of Brisbane without the help of selfless volunteers. We need generous people like you to dedicate their time to scoop up the iconic desserts and help us create more time for researchers striving to create medical breakthroughs.

When you pick a volunteer shift at the show, you’ll make a difference for an incredibly worthy cause. Plus, it really is a fantastic outing surrounded by great people, good vibes and happy customers who can’t wait to indulge in their sundaes.

We appreciate your support and can’t wait to bring this iconic treat to the Ekka in 2024!

How it works

The Ekka is our biggest volunteering event of the year, and we rely on your support to fill the tummies of showgoers and raise awareness and funds for all-important medical research!

Each day there are three shifts available (morning, afternoon, and evening), and we would really appreciate it if you could join us to lend a hand at one of those times!  Each shift last 4.5+ hours.

There is a volunteer role to suit everyone!  

Volunteer Roles

Super Scooper

You will be whipping up iconic Strawberry Sundaes for all to enjoy! Specifically, your shift will include scooping ice cream, chopping strawberries, topping and serving the treats, plus cleaning and stocking.

Cashier

Cashiers are the first smiling faces our customers see. Your shift will include serving customers at the tills, taking orders, handling payments, providing customers with drink orders, and assisting with strawberry and sundae preparation.

Gate Keeper

This person is stationed at designated check-in gates to check the IDs of fellow volunteers, sign them in, hand them their entry tickets and sundae voucher, and assist with administrative tasks.

The impact of your volunteering

Strawberry Sundaes aren’t just a regular sweet treat; they are mouth-wateringly good AND help power medical research that can change lives. 

At The Common Good, we exist to help people live healthier for longer. The support we generate throughout the year, including that from selling Strawberry Sundaes, allows us to facilitate the work of researchers dedicated to making breakthroughs in the areas of heart disease, lung disease, mental health, and ageing.

These are conditions that affect up to 90% of people, so that means we all know someone who can benefit from funding research into these areas. Those funds don’t just lead to medical breakthroughs; they also offer hope for those suffering today and those who may suffer in the future.

Get Involved

Do you love iconic Strawberry Sundaes and understand the importance of enabling medical research?

We need passionate and energetic individual and corporate volunteers like you to help us serve up these delectable, life-saving treats at the Ekka. 

VOLUNTEER WITH US

Volunteer as a Corporate team

Are you searching for a team-building activity that will boost workplace culture, promote your business, AND make a difference for medical research? Look no further!

Selecting a shift (or a few) at the Ekka to serve up delectable Strawberry Sundaes really is a great day out of the office and a wonderful way to give back to the community.

Are you ready to learn more about this fun and fast-paced corporate volunteering opportunity for a fantastic cause? Corporate Volunteering opportunities open in March 2024!

VOLUNTEER WITH US

Public Volunteering

Whether you’re looking to make new friends, or to learn a new skill, volunteering at the Ekka’s Strawberry Sundae stalls will dish up those benefits and more.

There are plenty of roles to play to help bring the iconic and delectable treats to the people of Brisbane. You could step into a super scooper spot to whip up some sundaes, serve customers as a cashier, or help fellow volunteers check in to their shifts.

All our volunteers are vital to the success of the Strawberry Sundae stalls, and we hope to see your smiling face at the show!

JOIN THE TEAM

Paid Positions

Want to be part of something #iconic? Maybe you have always dreamed of buying an ice cream van, spreading joy and serving ice cream to the city of Brisbane? Well, here’s your chance!

VOLUNTEER TESTIMONIALS

Hear from our Ekka Strawberry Sundae volunteers

My overall experience volunteering at the Ekka 2022 for The Common Good was very rewarding. The other Volunteers were all lovely and super keen to be helping with this project. I will definitely be signing up again and spreading the word to my network of friends to also get involved in the future.

June

I was thrilled to help raise well needed funds, to support The Common Good, at the Ekka Strawberry Sundae stand the past few years. Not only is it a fun experience, the proceeds raised from the EKKA Strawberry Sundaes go towards medical research tackling the chronic diseases facing 90% of all Australians.

Jonathan

Ekka volunteer as it provides a sense of purpose, of giving something good back to my community. I am a nurse myself so I know that the funds raised for The Common Good go to a good cause, to medical research.

Kelly

Past Corporate Volunteering Teams

Volunteering FAQs

Want to join our team of Super Scoopers? That’s great! You can sign up to our Volunteer Portal.

In our Volunteer Portal, you will be able to pick from all of our different volunteer roles at Ekka, and select the perfect Super Scooper shift for you.

Remember, if you have any problems you can email us at events@thecommongood.org.au

Of course! Corporate teams can register their group volunteering experience from March 2024. Your team will be provided with a specialised team link and specific shift to volunteer together.

If you are volunteering as a friend group, you can volunteer together by registering individually and selecting the same shift and stall. Spaces fill quick, so make sure you all register quickly to secure shifts together!

Don’t worry, it’s super easy! If you have finished your training, you can go to your Volunteer Portal and scroll down to “Upcoming Shifts”. Next to the shift, you’ll see a drop-down where you can select “Withdraw”. This will remove you from this shift.

If you haven’t completed your training, you will need to contact us via the Help Centre so we can cancel your shift for you.

Once you have cancelled the shift you cannot attend, you can go back and pick an available shift that suits you!

All volunteers must complete training relevant to their role. For example, we teach all our stall volunteers how to make the perfect Strawberry Sundae (a trick you can recreate to really show-off to your family and friends!).

This training takes between 5 – 10 minutes, and usually includes a short video and a few quick questions. All of our training is online, and can be done completely within our Volunteer Portal. We ask all our volunteers that they try to do their training within a week of signing up to their volunteering shift. Volunteers who do not complete their training within a week will be removed from their selected shift.

If you have any trouble with your training, we are here to help! You can call us on 1800 501 269 between 9:00am-4:00pm, or email us anytime at events@thecommongood.org.au.

We are so delighted to see our iconic Strawberry Sundaes returning to the Ekka. As you will be able to buy this yummy ice cream treat at Ekka we are not doing DIY packs for home or businesses this year. We would like to thank all of those who supported our Strawberry Sundae initiatives in the past.

We were so grateful to the people of Brisbane getting behind The Common Good, to raise funds for medical research. We hope to serve you a Strawberry Sundae at the Ekka this year.

No, the sale of Strawberry Sundaes is not permitted. The Strawberry Sundae is a licenced product and can only be sold at the Ekka. This iconic product that has been sold for over 30 years with all products supporting The Prince Charles Hospital Foundation.

For safety reasons, individuals must be 18 or older to volunteer at our Ekka Strawberry Sundae stalls.

If you are between the ages of 16 – 18, you can also volunteer, but will need a guardian to volunteer with you. When you register, you will be asked to provide their name and email so we can send them a special invitation to volunteer with you. You will need to select the same shift and stall so you can volunteer together.

Students between the age of 16 – 18 are able to volunteer, but will need a guardian to supervise them. We recommend a ratio of 1 supervisor to 2 students.

Our Strawberry Sundae stalls can get a bit busy during peak times, so we recommend that student volunteers have some experience in food service or other fast-paced environments.

Simply log into your Volunteer Portal and select the shifts you would like to volunteer for. Please note, if you have already received your training you will need to complete this before you can select additional shifts. You can volunteer for a maximum of 3 shifts on separate dates.

Volunteering together is easy! Just make sure to all select the same shift, date and stall when registering. Make sure when selecting the shift that there is enough space for you all. If there is not enough spots for you all to volunteer together, you will need to choose another shift.

Each team member is required to register individually. This ensures they agree to the volunteering terms and conditions, and that they have each completed the required training and safety waivers. Every volunteer must also provide us with important information, such as emergency contact and any relevant medical information.

A team member CANNOT enter the Ekka without prior registration.

Have a question about volunteering?

Email our team events@thecommongood.org.au and one of our event team will be in contact with you. Due to the large volume of enquires our team receive, please allow up to 48 hours for a response.

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Contact Us

Have a question, or need help with volunteering?

The Common Good Events team

Email: events@thecommongood.org.au

Phone: (07) 3139 4118

Contact us

Media Enquiries

For media inquiries, contact

Isabella Zaini (nee Robinson), Communications and Media Officer

Email: isabella.zaini@tpchfoundation.org.au

Phone: (07) 31394915