Louth Volunteer Centre engages next generation of enthusiastic volunteers

Louth Volunteer Centre hosted its 5th annual County Louth Schools Volunteering Conference in the Fairways Hotel on 8th October 2024.

The fair was an opportunity for secondary school transition year students to meet a wide variety of Louth community and voluntary groups and charities, all in the one place.  At the event, the young adults learned about available volunteer roles and how they can get involved.  

Secondary schools from across the county were invited and Louth Volunteer Centre staff had been busy for months planning and coordinating this complex event. A staggering 632 students attended on the day.

A spokesperson said: "There are many reasons for us to encourage, support and engage young volunteers. Studies have shown that a staggering 79% of volunteers would say their confidence increased through volunteering and 76% increased their interpersonal skills.

"Furthermore, 75% of employers would choose someone with volunteering on their CV. That’s to say nothing of the numerous benefits to the voluntary, community or charitable groups involved and the individuals, families and communities they support.

"As Louth has well over 700 voluntary, community and charitable groups, the choice of volunteer roles might seem endless.The volunteer fair provides the ideal opportunity to chat in person, with a number of different organisations and get a better sense of the variety of opportunities and explore young volunteers can contribute their skills, time and energy."

Along with a many organisations highlighting their volunteer opportunities on the day, Louth Volunteer Centre were there to provide information and support the students in registering as a volunteer. This gives access to I-VOL, the national volunteering database and opens up access to both current roles and future opportunities. 

The event had a very popular special guest speaker Mike McNicholas aka local musician Geansaí. Geansaí is making waves in the Irish music scene with a unique fusion of political insights, humor, and raw vulnerability. He had penned a special song for the event and performed it live to the crowd, as well as speaking from his own experience of overcoming mental health struggles through setting challenges and volunteering. 

Breakout rooms and interactive workshops were held throughout the event, allowing students to engage and brainstorm in smaller groups. Topics were designed specifically for this age group and included Five Ways to Wellbeing Through Volunteering, and Building your CV - Getting the Most out of Volunteering for Employment Prospects.

A panel discussion was held on ‘Volunteering as a Route to Personal and Professional Growth’.  Dundalk Institute of Technology were valuable contributors, providing some key speakers including Margaret Ward, Digital Skills Learning Advisor who spoke about the fantastic achievements of DkIT students through their Elevate programme that awards students for volunteering.

Bronagh McGrane, the  Sports and Societies Officer gave insight on the value of engaging and volunteering throughout an academic year. Two of DkIT’s Marketing & Communications Volunteers, Mariela Machuca and Dieu Anh Dinh spoke from their personal experience of volunteering and the benefits it has afforded them.

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 Cosmos Addor spoke about his experience of volunteering after moving here from Wicklow, where he was active with Wicklow Volunteer Centre.

Sarah McEneaney of Parkrun Dundalk shared her own personal volunteering experience and encouraged young people to get involved in their local event.

Kayleigh Mulligan, Manager of Louth Volunteer Centre said: “We are delighted that the future of volunteering is safe and sound in the hands of our enthusiastic young people. We are lucky to have such interest in the conference from local schools and excellent feedback from the students with attendance growing year on year, from 200 students that attended a conference online in 2020.

"We appreciate the time that was given to this event by our fantastic Louth Community Volunteers who packed the goodie bags, our panelists and speakers and the voluntary groups that came along on the day. I also wish to extend our gratitude to Louth County Council, who co-funded the event and several local elected representatives that supported it”.

Participants also learned about the Louth Community Volunteer program which supports pop-up events and urgent community needs. Goodies were given out on the day and students of course met and networked with other like-minded young minds.