Through the magic door

I have always wanted to volunteer. Three years ago I went to Medjugorie to help re-build a house for single mother for one week. It was a great experience, and I met some really interesting people.

 

It was an old colleague of mine who told me about Dublin City South Volunteer Centre. I decided to get an appointment and see if there was something I might be interested in and this is how I discovered the small door of Dublin City South Volunteer Centre on Thomas Street, Dublin 8!

 

The services of the volunteer centre are great and there is loads of information on their website. I registered first and had a look at opportunities that interested me. I picked out the soup run with The Simon Community and the Prison Visitors Centre Work in Mountjoy Prison. After the appointment I decided to pursue the Prison Visitors Centre which is operated through the Society of St. Vincent DePaul and met with Margaret in the Prison Visitors Centre.

She invited me to visit the centre, told me the history of it, and informed me of all the rules and regulations that must be followed. I must say it is a special environment and the staff I met on that day made me feel very welcome. The only thing I was worried about was the Garda Vetting because it takes two to three months to be completed. I was worried I might have lost my motivation over such a long wait, but when it came through I was happy to start. It just took a little patience. So I started on Saturday, October 10th 2009 from 2 to 4pm and this would remain my shift every Saturday (except Christmas as they needed more people at that time).

 

There are 3 areas to help in: the reception of the play area where you register any kids that come in and out of the area and help the parents sign in and play with the kids, the tea bar where you provide free tea and coffee for visitors and the floor where you clean the tables, talk to people, make sure they are ok, answer their questions etc.

 

Mainly I volunteer in Mountjoy, but I may be asked to go to St. Pat’s if it’s busy (this is the prison for young offenders). I am now comfortable and confident in my role and enjoy it very much. One aspect I like a lot is that I don’t know which area I will be working on and with who so it’s flexible from week to week. The staff are really nice and we all get on very well.