With a little help from my friends

Have you ever considered volunteering but weren’t sure how to get started? Perhaps you already are a volunteer without knowing it! The range of opportunities out there for anyone wanting to get involved is huge, and you won’t just be helping a good cause – you’ll open up a whole new world of experience for yourself too!  

Whether a school governor, a helpline assistant or someone who does a bit of shopping for an elderly neighbour, volunteers all have one thing in common: they help others. Volunteers make an enormous contribution to society, supporting many of our best-loved institutions and charities. And, there are other, more unusual volunteering roles that may appeal to people who wouldn’t normally consider themselves the ‘volunteering type’. Meet the people whose lives have been enriched by their volunteer work.

Sue Williams, 61, is Chairman of the East Hants Disability Forum and was a founder member of the South Downs Association of Disabled People.  At the height of her nursing career, Sue developed progressive Multiple Sclerosis. Her condition deteriorated rapidly and she was soon in a wheelchair. “Having been a fairly confident person with a very active lifestyle, and a four-year-old son, suddenly finding myself with my disability was an enormous shock,” she says. “I wanted to make a difference and share my experiences. Volunteering gave me back the feeling of belonging.    From organising Shopmobility in Petersfield, to advising a school on adapting to accommodate disabled pupils, Sue’s life has never been busier.

Eric Blyth, 60, uses his boyhood sailing experiences at Eling Creek near Totton to help people with a whole range of disabilities to enjoy the thrill of getting out on the water. Diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in 1989, he was eventually forced to give up his job in the transport industry. He came across New Forest Sailability, a club that provides fully supervised dinghy sailing for disabled people, based at the Spinnaker Sailing Club near Ringwood, back in 2001. Eric is now chairman of the club’s committee, and he loves it. “It’s great to get involved,” he says. “I feel I’m lucky to be a volunteer. and I’m doing something I love.  We’re always looking for new volunteers, too – so if you love sailing, give us a call!”

Chris Cullingham is 37. He studied IT at college and had always been interested in desktop publishing. In 2001, wanting something to fill in the time when he was between jobs, Chris contacted his local Volunteer Centre. “Since then, I haven’t looked back,” he says.    “My work for the Volunteer Centre is varied – designing posters, leaflets, and doing some database work. But mostly I’m involved in designing and maintaining websites. The biggest of these is for the Friends of the Willis Museum (www.friendsofwillis.org.uk).  I get a lot of pleasure from volunteering. I have a lot of knowledge and I can use it to help people, which has to be a good thing.”

Susan Barton, 48, is a school governor at Siskin Junior School, Gosport. A busy professional who has brought up her son on her own, she became a governor when her son started school: “I was soon invited to join Siskin as a govenor, and soon became Chair of Governors. At the time it was the eighth most deprived school in Hampshire, and under threat of closure, but the staff at Siskin and a new head teacher have really turned it around. Being a governor is not difficult or demanding – all you need is life experience and an interest in children. Hampshire’s Governor Services provides all the training and support you’ll need.”

If you have a little time to spare, please consider volunteering. to find out more, contact Hampshire Volunteer Centres, you can call 08444 994088 or text 07982 810140

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