Peter began his volunteer journey at the young age of 13. He began volunteering with the Order of Malta. He then went on to volunteer with homeless organisations before setting up Drogheda LGBT Support Group in 2015 and in 2019 went on to set up the Meath LGBT Support Group.

Peter is motivated to continue his volunteer journey by the pure passion he has for helping other people and being part of his local community. Peter also likes the fact that by volunteering it gives him the opportunity to connect with different people. “I love meeting with new people. I am a people person.” Peter was motivated to set up Drogheda LGBT support group due to his own experience coming out. “When I was coming out, I was living in a rural part of the community and there was no support there at all.” Peter spent time travelling the world with his friends and attending different Prides and different events and it quickly became clear to him that Drogheda needed something like this.

Drogheda LGBT Support Group registered with Louth Volunteer Centre in 2016. When I asked Peter how he found the support of Louth Volunteer Centre to the organisation he told me “If it wasn’t for Louth Volunteer Centre, we would probably be struggling to get volunteers.” Peter explained to me that they have their own small group of volunteers within their community that are happy to go out and support, but he feels that there can be still a stigma associated with the LGBT community within the LGBT community. “Being with Louth Volunteer Centre has been an amazing asset to the group.”  

Peter feels there is many skills to be gained through volunteering. “I definitely got leadership skills. I have learned to work with people, to understand and to listen to them.” Peter also thinks that volunteering can give you the opportunity to work with people from different backgrounds and walks of life. 

Peter spoke to me about the support they receive from the community. “We have a lot of allies in the community that would support us that are not part of the LGBT community but actually if you are an ally, you are part of the LGBT community. The word community is very important.”

Peter’s favourite moment of his volunteer journey to date has been achieving the title of ‘Mr Gay Louth’. Peter uses his title as ‘Mr Gay Louth’ to create awareness around HIV. Peter himself is non-HIV but is aware that it is something people within the LGBT community may be facing or struggling with. He wants to use his platform to educate people. “Mr Gay Louth is all about education and looking for resources for people and awareness around HIV.”

Peter would strongly encourage everyone to get involved in volunteering. “it’s so fun, it’s a great way to get involved with your community and it’s a really great way to meet new friends.” The theme for pride this year is ‘Pride in our Community’. Peter would encourage everyone to get involved in the pride celebrations this year and remember “you don’t have to be part of the LGBT community to be part of Pride.” 

“It’s good for your community, it’s good to be part of it.”

Jackie has been registered with Louth volunteer Centre since 2017 but has been volunteering since long before then. “I volunteered with Special Olympics before I registered with Louth Volunteer Centre.” Jackie was finding it difficult to continue to volunteer with Special Olympics due to conflicts with her work schedule but still wanted to be involved with volunteering. “I found the database online and thought it was handy as I could see all the new opportunities.” Jackie started her volunteer journey because she wanted to give something back to her community. “You get an awful lot more out of it then you ever have to put into it.”

Jackie has been happy with the support she has received from Louth Volunteer Centre. “The emails and the newsletters are great.” Jackie likes that she gets regular updates from Louth Volunteer Centre and that she can see what the latest volunteer opportunities that are available in her local area. “Anytime I have applied for a role I have got a very quick response.” Jackie also likes the variety of one-off volunteer roles that are available. “If your free that day, you can go give a hand.” Jackie would encourage people to register with Louth Volunteer Centre. “They have a wide variety of roles to choose from.” Jackie also thinks it's a great place for organisations to go who are looking to involve volunteers, as there is a large database of volunteers and a good structure.

When Covid hit Jackie was at home with her mother who is 85 years old. Jackie was able to see the impact that covid was having on her. When she saw the Bubble buddies volunteer role come up with Louth Volunteer Centre she decided to get involved. “I was working from home; I had the time and was able to do it.” Jackie enjoyed the bubble buddy’s role and felt it was a great opportunity to meet someone new. Jackie also felt “it was an opportunity to get out and support in a time that was difficult.”

A moment that has really stood out for Jackie on her volunteer during was her time with Special Olympics. “Seeing them get their medals and the pride them and their families have, that’s a really special day.” Jackie has found that being involved in volunteering “keeps your empathy levels up. It makes me appreciate what I have. My health, my circumstances, I’m glad with my lot.”

Jackie would encourage other people to get involved in volunteering. “Give it a go, we all have something to offer. Whatever your age or the skills that you have we all have an ear to listen or a hand to support.”

“I have to use my hands and my head to help other people.”

Mirriam has recently registered with Louth Volunteer Centre and very quickly got involved in volunteering. Mirriam is originally from Batswana and spent time volunteering there in a variety of different roles. Particularly supporting older people “I volunteered with older people and helped them with what they needed.”

When I spoke to Mirriam about her motivation to volunteer, she told me about how she is new to this country. Mirriam spoke about how she doesn’t want to spend her days sitting around, she is eager to get involved. “I have to show up, be part of the community, show them I am here and that I can work. I will do anything that comes at me” Mirriam has found volunteering a great way to get involved in the community. “I want to explore myself; I want to see this country and how things are done here.” 

Mirriam has been happy with the support she has got from Louth Volunteer Centre. Mirriam likes being able to go onto I-Vol, the national database for volunteering and look at the wide variety of volunteer roles available in the local area. Mirriam discovered her volunteer role with ‘Dundalk Tidy Towns’ through Louth Volunteer Centre and has really enjoyed being part of the group. “We made the place look smart, it was marvellous, I really enjoyed it.” 

Mirriam has found getting involved in volunteering a great way to connect with people. “Everyone here has a smile; people are introducing themselves to me.” Mirriam also enjoys the new skills that she has learned while she is volunteering. “They thought me how to do things. You get to learn different ideas from different people.” Mirriam is keen to get involved with different volunteer roles to learn new skills. “I am so happy with the skills I learn volunteering; I’ve learned more now than when I was young.” Mirriam’s favourite part of volunteering is working with people. “I really like helping people and enjoy working with people. 

Mirriam has found volunteering has helped her with the big transition of moving to a new country and would encourage other people going through a similar transition to get involved in volunteering. “You don’t know what to do or where to go, you can get stuck in your head. It's good to go meet with other people. You can get things out of your head by talking to people." If you would like to connect with your community through volunteering register with Louth Volunteer Centre today. 

“For a window in time, I get to help someone feel a little bit better.”

Karen began her volunteer journey when she was a child inspired by the brilliant work, her grandparents did. “They always did something; they were hugely into the volunteering side of things.” Karen remembers as a young girl helping at flag days for the ‘Lourdes Invalid Fund’ a cause her grandparents regularly supported. In her later teen years, she volunteered with an organisation called ‘Friedreich Ataxia’. She did this for 9 years and would support the members of the organisation to be able to go on holidays as well as social events they had.

Karen registered with Louth Volunteer Centre in 2015. She applied for the role with ‘Childline’ through this. “Louth Volunteer Centre followed up with me to make sure I had heard back from the organisation and things were progressing. I quite liked that. I found it good.” Karen would recommend people register with Louth Volunteer Centre. “it’s a great place to look at all the volunteer roles available.”

When I spoke to Karen about her motivation to continue her volunteering, she told me about her current employment in the IT sector. “There is interaction, but you can end up sitting on your own all day. Volunteering somewhere like ‘Childline’ you’re getting to interact with people on a personal level.” She also felt that “if you are reasonably good at doing something and you enjoy it and you feel like you are contributing something, then you keep doing it.” Karen spoke about the pride she feels being able to support someone is a great motivation. “Even if you just help someone get some information or help them calm a little bit, haven’t you done something good for that person that day.”

Karen loves her role with ‘Childline’ due to the amount she has learned from it. “it's an interesting role as you are always learning.” Karen feels like she has gained a huge number of skills throughout her time volunteering particularly in her role with ‘Childline’. “I have learned a huge amount about how to interact with people and I have learned a huge number of listening skills.” Karen has also become more aware of the assumptions that she can make in her day-to-day life and has learned to recognise that and has learned the importance of not doing this. “You feel your skills improve and develop.” Karen has enjoyed being able to take the skills she has learned in her volunteer role and implement them in her personal and work life. “When I am building something for people now at work, I find I listen more rather than jumping in with my assumptions.”

I spoke to Karen about moments she was proud of during her volunteering journey, and she told me about how the team she is a part of in ‘Childline’ has won team of the year twice in the last few years. An amazing accomplishment that her and the rest of the team are very proud of. She also spoke about her feelings before she started with ‘Childline’. “You're thinking can I do this, am I the type of person that this work is for?” “When I started off, I was so nervous on the phones but after a while I started to become more comfortable. At that point I was thinking I can do this. When that clicks for you, the other awards don’t matter.” “You feel like you're contributing something and that’s a very good feeling.”

It was clear from talking to Karen the passion she has for her volunteer role with ‘Childline’. Karen has enjoyed her volunteer role so much that she has decided to go back to college to study psychology. Register with us today to find your perfect volunteer role at volunteerlouth.ie