Barbara Gibb inside the Warilla op shop that has become a lifeline for many. Photo: Kellie O’Brien.
In a small op shop tucked away in a quiet Warilla backstreet, Barbara Gibb starts her day long before most by sifting through bags of donations left overnight, restocking racks and pushing a vacuum across a well-worn floor.
For Barbara though, the Born Again Boutique Op Shop has become more than a workplace — it’s a lifeline for many, and a second home for her.
And she’s been volunteering there for the past 26 years, a commitment that has now earned her the title of 2026 NSW Local Senior Person of the Year for Shellharbour.
“I don’t do it to get recognised. I don’t do it for awards and things like that,” she said.
“I just love doing what I do, and I love my community.
“And like, it’s not a community, it’s a family. Most of my customers who come in here, they’re like family.”
In fact, that bond and care for her customers is so strong that if she hasn’t seen someone in a couple of days, she’ll message to check they’re OK.
“That’s what we do. We’re here for each other,” she said.
As a mother of eight, it was when her youngest started at Warilla North Public School across the street that she suddenly found herself at a loose end after years of full-time parenting.
“I was at a loss, wondering what I was going to do,” she said.
“I was sitting out there one day when they used to have the church service here. I was lost and the pastor came out and said, ‘Would you like to come in, grab some morning tea and have a coffee?’”
Once inside the church, she discovered the op shop run by Assist Shellharbour since 1998 and began visiting daily.
“I would drop the children off, then come in here and talk to the ladies, because we had a table over there where we used to sit and have a chat,” she said, pointing to a corner of the room now loaded with racks of clothes.
After talking to some of the customers, a staff member asked if she’d like to become a volunteer and, within a year, she was asked to step up to the manager’s role.
“She said, ‘I’ve watched you, you’ve got a thing with the customers and you know a lot of people in Warilla,’” she said.
“That was 26 years ago. I just love it. It’s not like going to work for me.”
Her role involves managing donations, supervising volunteers, maintaining the shop, and ensuring everything runs smoothly each day.
But it’s easy to see the work is about more than simply selling clothes for $1 and $2.
Barbara Gibb outside the Born Again Boutique Op Shop where clothes are often $1 and $2 each. Photo: Kellie O’Brien.
Barbara’s been described as having a gift for remembering people’s names, their stories, and taking the time to check in with genuine care.
“After you’ve seen someone so many times, you can normally read their body language when they come in,” she said.
“One lady, she used to come in, and I’d say, “Come and have a cuppa with me’ and she’d say, ‘No, no, no, I’m right’.
“About a year or so later she came in, and I knew she was struggling.”
Barbara encouraged her to sit and share her challenges, which led to Barbara connecting her with support services.
“A lot of people, all they want to do is have someone to talk to,” she said.
“She came in a fortnight later and said, ‘I’ve made a few phone calls and my problem is solved.’”
Barbara said another lady had moved from the country to escape domestic violence and walked in with her son and only what she could fit into her station wagon.
“She got a house down here and kept coming in. Each week she’d buy something different for the house,” she said.
“I said, ‘You can go down to our offices and get help’ and she said, ‘No, I want to do it myself’.
“About a year later, she walked in with a bunch of flowers and a box of chocolates. She said, ‘My house is now my home, thanks to you ladies’.
“That is worth more than anything.”
Barbara encouraged others to become volunteers not only because of the rewards it provided, but due to the need increasing in recent years.
“Nowadays, the need is getting more and more,” she said.
“You’re seeing more people from all walks of life, even workers who are often feeling the pinch the hardest.”
Barbara said every cent raised in the op shop went to Assist Shellharbour, which provided programs and support for people to live financially, socially and spiritually responsible lives.
Born Again Boutique Op Shop is run through Assist Shellharbour and located at 2 Hill Street, Warilla.
