I’m Jade McCormick, currently studying for a HND Beauty Therapy at Belfast Metropolitan College.

I volunteer with the Northern Health and Social Care Trust to help run Look Good Feel Better workshops for ladies coping with the visible side effects of cancer treatment.   

The workshops take place once a month at Clotworthy House in Antrim.  We talk the twelve ladies who come along through a skincare and make up routine and offer advice on any queries which they have relating to skincare and make up application. 

I decided to look into volunteering following a personal loss in my family due to cancer. I know what a great job the Macmillan Unit and Laurel House in Antrim do and I really wanted to give something back to help the patients there who are going through cancer and its treatments.  As a beauty therapist and self-confessed make up/skin care addict if I was going through the daunting side effects of cancer or its treatment I would greatly appreciate someone showing me how to use my beauty products properly to help me feel that little bit better. 

The feedback we get from the ladies at the end of the workshops is fantastic, it really makes you realise that you are helping in some small way, which is extremely rewarding. I love make-up and skin care, and to share my passion at workshops is something I really enjoy.  I was told by a lady who had attended a workshop that she was able to go about her day with a smile and felt that she had the confidence to walk up to people and ask them how they were, a small task which many of us would take for granted but one which she was greatly struggling with prior to the workshop. It’s these small differences that inspire me to continue working alongside the other fantastic volunteers and all those involved in Look Good Feel Better.

Every single lady attending the workshops is at a different stage in their journey so their needs vary a lot and unfortunately we don’t have endless amounts of time to guide all through every part of a routine.  However being able to send them home with a goody bag which has been donated by cosmetic companies and a list of tips means that I know that they will be able to continue to practise what they have learnt at home.   

I would recommend this type of volunteering to any beauty therapist.  It is undoubtedly one of the most rewarding things I have ever done, and to share my expertise with those who are really in need of a pick-me-up is amazing. Cancer affects so many of us and it’s so gratifying to know that you are making a small change in people’s lives.

I feel that a beauty therapy volunteer should be positive, enthusiastic, passionate and happy.  Attending a workshop makes you realise that there actually is an awful lot to smile about!

The next Look Good Feel Better workshops take place on 6 March, 7 April and 1 May.  If you are currently undergoing cancer treatment and would be interested in attending a workshop please call the Macmillan Unit on 028 94 424394 to book your place. 

Alternatively if you would like to use your time and skills to support people living with cancer please contact:


Macmillan Volunteer Coordinator 
Elma McCracken on 028 94 424394
elma.mccracken@northerntrust.hscni.net or contact the Volunteer Centre.  


Other Volunteer Opportunities with Macmillan

I started my volunteering adventure back in January 2012.  I had signed up for the Duke of Edinburgh Award along with some friends and part  of the programme included volunteering, so I set of on my journey to find a volunteer placement.  This led me to my local Volunteer Centre where I was greeted by Barbara and Roy.  We had an informal chat about my interest and how many hours etc I had to complete.  By the end of the chat I had my placement sorted within the Volunteer Centre itself as they needed help in the office.  So every Monday for a year I had been volunteering with the Magherafelt Centre helping with making volunteer packs, databasing, designing posters and helping where needed.

Over that year I learnt many new skills and met many other volunteers and of course got to know the friendly staff and committee of the Volunteer Centre.  Over that year I also achieved my Millennium Volunteer 50hrs award which was presented to me by my good friend Roy.  In my opinion, volunteering was the best part of my Duke of Ed experience and would thoroughly recommend it to anyone.

Fast forward nearly two years and now I have returned to complete work experience.  I have been given the opportunity to be the first contact for those calling the office, helping with their Student Volunteering Week plans/activities, creating a volunteer stories booklet and generally helping all staff as and when needed.

The simple fact that I joined up as a volunteer for a good year and have learned new skills means I have more detail to write down on a CV when looking for a job.  On my placement I read a quote “73% of 200 leading UK businesses said that they would employ a candidate with volunteering experience over one without” – (source Timebank)

A lot of people would think that volunteering is boring, however I can easily say this: They’re wrong. I’ve met a lot of new friends and picked up new skills and abilities during my time at Magherafelt Volunteer Centre.  I feel the staff at the Volunteer Centre appreciate my work and have always made me feel welcome and part of the team.

To conclude, I would like to give a big thank you to Barbara for helping me find a placement I thoroughly enjoyed and to all the staff and fellow volunteers for keeping me in good chat

I would HIGHLY recommend you signing up to become a volunteer, trust me; it is mighty good fun and a great experience. You won’t believe it ‘till ya try it! –

Nathan

Volunteering in Magherafelt is probably one of the best uses of your spare time available.

Don’t believe me?!

What other activity allows you to use your skills in selling to the public one day and the next, help an organisation catch up on its administration activities?

Okay… admin might not sound like fun. But the people you help are good people and you end up enjoying working with them.  I’ll tell you more on that later.

I’m Chris. At the moment I am a full time carer for my mum. She has a severe form of arthritis and her mobility most days isn’t good. So I’m at home most of the time helping her as much as I can. When we made the decision about her care needs we also discussed that I would need some time to me out of the house, and volunteering offered that ‘escape’.

I have been a volunteer, on and off, for over 10 years. Don’t worry, I won’t tell you about all of my experiences today. It would be too long and you wouldn’t read it. So, I’ll just talk about one role today

On a Wednesday morning I walk into the Magherafelt office of the Cookstown Magherafelt Volunteer Centre and take my seat at the Volunteer’s desk. The staff and volunteers that work here are a committed bunch. Overseeing the volunteers is Barbara. Most of you will know Barbara as she is the Volunteer Recruitment and Placement Officer. There is also Michele the Centre Coordinator, Carolyn (Volunteer Intern), Nathan (work experience student), George (very committed Chairman of the Volunteer Centre) and a whole array of other characters.

Barbara always has a task (or tasks) that need to be completed. There are a lot of volunteers, volunteer organisations and volunteer activities in the area with more new ones all the time. With all this new information the Volunteer Centres’ database needs quite a bit of management.

The source of all your local volunteer news, Volunteer Focus e-news, involves a lot of work. So I help Barbara bring together information from new and ongoing opportunities and other sources for articles for the monthly newsletter, which I’m sure you all read.  If you don’t already read it, follow this link to sign up.

Along with the usual tasks there is always something big happening which requires an extra hand. And these extras are a good time to show off your initiative. Recently I got to help with the Volunteer Recruitment Fair. On the run up to the big day I was given the task of ensuring the social media sphere was aware of it and seeing what other advertising we could get. I’m happy that the shares on Facebook and retweets on Twitter helped the message reach an extra few hundred people. And the event was given a shout out on most of the local radio stations. On the big day we arrived at Meadowbank Arena and started setting up. While everyone else worked on refreshments it was noted that we were short on chairs, extension cables and tables. I went off and asked the arena staff what they could do. The extras were sourced and the crisis was averted. I enjoyed the rest of the day, helping Barbara, Michele, Joanne and Carolyn make the event run as smooth as possible.

I said earlier that the admin may not be fun and it can be intensive, but I have very quickly developed a friendship with the people I work alongside. And that makes the difference, I end up going into the office not just to do the work, which is important, but to have a cuppa and chat and make a difference, especially to someone like me. 


Chris

I am the current Befriending Manager for the Mid-Ulster branch of Alzheimer’s Society. The job advert automatically jumped out at me. A paid job in recruiting and supporting volunteers to befriend service users in the early stages of dementia! What more could you want? I knew immediately that the people I would meet in this job would be extremely special. The timing could not have been more perfect; I was travelling to Belfast working as a graduate for Business in the Community, creating opportunities for business employees to volunteer. Working for BITC has been an invaluable experience in my first few months with Alzheimer’s Society, as I have had confidence in meeting volunteers, liaising with local businesses, community groups and event planning.

Let me tell you first about Befriending. The Alzheimer Society’s Befriending Service in partnership with Cookstown and Magherafelt Volunteer Centre aims to reduce social isolation of older people living with dementia through developing a meaningful befriending relationship. Befrienders are volunteers who visit people with dementia in their homes at least once a week for one or two hours or at a friendship group. Visits usually aim at developing meaningful relationships through conversation and activities such as working on a life book, reminiscing or helping them do something they enjoy. This is a most rewarding post which really enriches the lives of older people living with dementia.

The service has a diverse team of volunteer befrienders who vary in age, gender and background. Befriending matches are based on personality and common ground between befriender and service user. Volunteers take part in the service for a variety of reasons which include: enthusiasm to empower socially isolated individuals; an interest to listen and learn first-hand from the vast experiences of older people who have lived colourful lives; or a desire to put something back into the community. Some volunteers have been previous carers of a person with dementia; using this opportunity to give back to the society and to use their personal experience to help others.

The very fact that our befrienders are volunteers makes our service users feel extremely valued, as opposed to a paid worker visiting; as a volunteer is choosing to spend time with them, rather than being under a professional or family obligation to do so. Qualities that make someone an excellent befriender are; an understanding of the challenges that face a person living with dementia, a calm considerate nature, a time commitment to the role, an enthusiasm to want to make a difference. All volunteers have an enhanced disclosure check completed and appropriate training before the matching process begins.

Every day in this job differs; and the social interaction with the local community is what I love so much about it! We are not always sitting behind a computer screen; from visiting a service user in their home in the morning to manning an information stand at an event in the afternoon is all part of the awareness raising aspect of the role. Our service users and I are extremely excited for our plans in the coming months, including our themed days for St Valentines, St Patrick’s and Easter with some lively local entertainment acts already signed up!

In the short time that I have been Befriending Manager for Mid-Ulster I have developed many great links and I hope this will continue. If anyone is keen to learn more about volunteering opportunities or make a referral to the service I would be more than happy to have a chat; you can get me at katerina.gillen@alzheimers.org.uk or 077 0347 0746.