September, 2010

Welcome

Welcome to our second Volunteering and Fundraising Newsletter jammed full of information on volunteering opportunities and stories from our services, throughout which we work with over 2,000 people experiencing homelessness every year. Please read on, enjoy, and if you have any comments whatsoever, drop us a line.

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Experiences of a Full-Time Volunteer

My name is Richie Stafford and I’ve been working as a full-time volunteer with Dublin Simon for just over 2 months now. I applied to the volunteer office to become a FTV back in April when I decided to get out of investment banking after 4 years. I had studied Social Science in university and had been doing some part-time volunteering ever since. I always enjoyed my voluntary work and never enjoyed my ‘day job’, so the change of career made perfect sense.

I remember my first day quite clearly. I didn’t know what to expect! All I knew was that I would be working in an emergency hostel on Harcourt Street. I met with Aoife the volunteer coordinator and my manager Michelle in the Capel street office. I can’t really remember what we talked about because my mind was so preoccupied with imagining “what will it be like”? When the meeting was over, Sean, a FTV who was coming to the end of his year in Harcourt Street, took me to where I would be spending the next year. As we went in I recall being really excited because I couldn’t wait to get started, but I also had a feeling of trepidation – I could be entering chaos!

Any anxieties or fears I had upon entering Harcourt street were gone within an hour. I was given a tour of the project and met a good few of the residents and felt at ease. By the end of day one, my only worry was forgetting all the names of everyone I’d met throughout the day.

Two months on and the memories of that first day make me laugh because things have changed so much. I have learned an incredible amount and have become quite busy. The staff have been great and have really gone out of their way to train me and share any experience and knowledge they have with me. I am given great encouragement by my manager to develop the service. This has led me to start up a literacy programme for residents. I am also in talks with Street Soccer Ireland to get a team or two from Dublin Simon into the leagues which they organise. Like me, many of the residents are mad about soccer so I’m hoping this will be a great success. I was also lucky enough to be able to organise an art exhibition for a very talented artist who is currently staying with Dublin Simon. That was a very rewarding experience for everyone involved and a concrete example of how with a little help and support, people in the service can improve their situations. None of us knew much about the world of art, but we pulled together a very professional exhibition (if I do say so).

One of the key aspects of volunteering is trying to motivate residents to get involved in activities and use their time with Simon productively. As a volunteer you are encouraged to get involved and develop the life skills side of the service. Each volunteer can bring their own ideas, experiences, and skills into the organisation. If you can use these to the benefits of the residents, you are supported in doing so by management. I would encourage anybody who reads this to think about what they can bring to the project where they work, and if you have any good ideas, speak to your manager.

I have really enjoyed my first 2 months. I didn’t think I would become so involved. The best way to put it is that I thought that as a volunteer, things would be a lot more observational. It’s been the total opposite. It’s been very much hands on. I have plenty of responsibilities and most days I am rushed off my feet to be honest but I’m not complaining. I have loved every minute of it so far. I have had excellent training, both on-site and off. The staff are great and I enjoy my interaction with the residents. I couldn’t have asked for any more from the FTV programme. It has totally exceeded my expectations. My confidence in the role is growing by the day and hopefully the next 10 months will be just as good as the first two.

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Help Us Run the FUN RUN!

The Fun Run returns to the Phoenix Park for the 27th year running this October 9th. The main race is a fun-filled five mile run through the Phoenix Park and there will also be two children’s races; the 800m run for 8-12 year olds and a 200m dash for under 7s, so it’s a great opportunity to get the whole family involved in running!

Participants are encouraged to arrive in fancy dress with spot prizes for the best costume. There promises to be lots of fun and entertainment on the day, goodie bags for everyone participating, face painting by the 98Fm Thunder team and prizes galore.

Every year, we work with over 2,000 individuals who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. This year we aim to have at least 2,000 participants in the Fun Run, that’s one runner to match every person we help! We also hope to raise €100,000 so please show your support by registering at www.funrun.ie

If you’re not up for participating in the event you can volunteer on the day. Without the help of volunteers we could not hold this annual event. We need at least 100 volunteers on the day to help out with;

• Registration
• road closures
• race management
• chicken suit wearers
• Water station
• Clean Up

To volunteer and help make this event successful please contact the Fun Run team on fundraising@dubsimon.ie or phone (01) 6715551
We really appreciate your support.

From the Fun Run Team
www.funrun.ie

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What Volunteers Mean to Us...

Have you ever wondered how much Dublin Simon volunteers mean to our service users? Read one service user’s personal experiences of the volunteers at the Dublin Simon’s Emergency Accommodation and get an insight into the positive impact volunteering has had for them.

My name is Jenna Duff. I have been staying in the Simon in Harcourt Street for 6 months (this time) and have found the volunteers to be a huge help here. Sometimes when I feel down and my project worker isn’t free, the volunteers are always around to offer friendly advice or just a smile. I was very surprised when I first came to learn that some staff volunteers don’t get paid! I think this surprised me as I found that some of these people who volunteer are the very people who I would go to with my problems.

They work just as hard and hands on as any paid worker here. Just this month a volunteer here at the hostel named Richie helped a very talented artist who was a resident put on a professional exhibition in a gallery. It took a lot of extra time and effort on Richie’s part but he didn’t mind at all. He arranged the food and got a photographer for the night. This is only one example of the many ways the volunteers here at the hostel I live in make an impact on our time here. You cannot put down on paper the time they take to help us even by just sitting with us and chatting. Just knowing they are around when we need them is a great comfort.
 

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Flower Festival, October Bank Holiday Weekend

Calling on all Flower Lovers! Dublin Flower festival is taking place in Dublin Central Missions over the October Bank holiday weekend, to raise funds for 2 significant charities, Dublin Simon Community and Dublin Central Mission, that work with the homeless and self-help groups in Dublin City Centre...

The Festival is taking place in the form of a competition for Floral Artists, Florists (with retail businesses) and Floristry students, with the theme being “Dublin”. The official opening takes place on Friday 21st October at 11am. If you are interested in entering the competition please log onto www.dublinflowerfestival.com or if you would be free to help out please contact Jennifer, jenniferdonovan@dubsimon.ie Thanks for all your support!
 

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House of Cards, Company Christmas Appeal

It’s that time of year again when our Corporate Christmas campaign ‘Simon House of Cards Appeal’ kicks off. This is our largest fundraising campaign and supports all the Simon Communities around Ireland so we rely heavily on it. We urgently need to recruit new companies to participate in the Appeal this year so if you work in a company, we need your help!!

The Appeal asks companies to donate to Simon instead of sending corporate Christmas cards and gifts. In exchange The Irish Times give us 2 full pages in the weeks before Christmas to notify the participating companies’ customers that they donated to us instead of sending gifts. Please email hoc@dubsimon.ie or contact Jenny or Kelly in Fundraising (01 671 5551) and help us by putting the Simon Community in touch with your company.

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Help our Church Gate Collections

We need fundraising volunteers for Dublin Simon church gate collections! For over 40 years, Dublin Simon Community has been funding its services with a number of local and community events, including our annual church gate collections. This event in particular is still considered a valuable source of income for our organisation. Last year we raised over €60,000 from our church gate collections. This is a fantastic amount and we are hoping to raise the same again this year. Without the support of volunteers this could not happen.

Unfortunately this is an area we struggle to get volunteers to help out with. We organise the collections with the churches therefore the only requirement from volunteers is to turn up after each mass on a particular weekend and shake a bucket in aid of Dublin Simon. If you would like to help out at this event please email Jennifer, jenniferdonovan@dubsimon.ie Thanks for all your support.
 

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