Its not a traditional form of volunteering, but Bec Tanseys work online has had tangible benefits - for over 10,000 women.
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A community group she started on Facebook four years ago has delivered meals to people in need, backed charity events, and fulfilled the Black Hill residents original goal: to connect Newcastle and Hunter mothers with each other.
Ms Tansey started the online group with ten members. This year, the Facebook group has cracked 13,000.
At the outset, the mother-of-three was just looking for friends.
I started it in 2015 when I moved to Newcastle and I didnt know any other mums, or anyone really, she said.
"I was pregnant with my third child, three months off giving birth to my littlest.
I messaged a very small Facebook group of 200 women in the area. I put a post up in the group saying I wanted to start a mothers' group that catches up weekly.
Ms Tansey kept up the face-to-face meetings with the mums she met online. But she also watched the Facebook group she had made to keep in contact with them grow into a different beast.
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By late 2016 "Newcastle Hunter Mums" had 3000 members, and its users were doing a lot more than organising coffee dates.
Weve got a few sub-groups. So there are still meet-up groups, so those girls still will meet up weekly," Ms Tansey said.
Then theres posts asking for pest control recommendations or recommendations for builders or people asking whats this rash on my child?
"Then there's mothers who reach out for support because of domestic violence or have financial difficulties. We offer a lot of access to resources now," she said.
"The group is really giving and charitable in a crisis. We've raised funds for mothers. One time we had a food drive for a lady. We've had meal drives and placed meals on doorsteps."
Ms Tansey also hosts an annual trivia night with the huge mothers' group. The majority of her volunteering, however, is still done online.
Ms Tansey monitors the conversation on the Facebook page, with the help of five other volunteers, between working full-time and studying.
"It is a bit of work but it's fun," she said.
The most rewarding aspect of running the region's biggest online mothers group, she said, is seeing women create new friendships.
"I think being a mother can be quite isolating, if you've had a baby and quit work, or you've just gone back to work.
"I have made some of the best friends I could have ever asked for through NHM. It pushes me to keep allowing others to have that ability."
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