Beth's Volunteer Experience

To begin with

I was aware of Workaid for a few years before I retired and had often dropped off donations, so when I retired it seemed the obvious place to ask about volunteering and becoming part of the team.

I was lucky in that there was a space in the office to help out on the day when the regular office manager is not in and I soon found out the many levels on which Workaid operates. I do whatever crops up – answering phone calls and emails; sourcing and ordering whatever is needed in the workshop or office.

Some of the folks . . .

Calling the office are offering cherished tools from their parents or even grandparents’ workshops – as a lot of clearing out went on in lockdown! We get donations which present a challenge to work out what a certain tool is, or how we can get a very large piece of equipment to our site.

Each day is different and it can be fairly manic sometimes, but generally, everyone rises to the occasion to cope with unexpected events. The dedication of the various teams on the Workaid site is tremendous – as a lot of the jobs are not glamorous! I have learnt just how much it costs to keep the charity running and how important the fundraising and sales aspects are.

Reading stories . . .

From Workaid projects in Africa is quite humbling, seeing the adverse conditions many of the folks will be working in and how successful they are in achieving their aims.