The Reason I Became A Volunteer
I decided to become a volunteer because children having a voice was important to me. I believed strongly in children rights and advocacy.
I loved working with children and young people and when I turned eighteen, I got in contact with the Cork office and I haven’t looked back since.
I’ve been a volunteer now for just over 8 years!
How Being A Volunteer Has Impacted My Life
Being a Childline volunteer has changed my life.
I have made some great friends and learned much about myself and others. I love to support new volunteers taking their first call.
I love being a Childline volunteer, I love building rapport with our callers and I feel honoured to be brought into a young person’s life, whether it’s for just 3 or 4 minutes or an hour.
It has changed my life in more ways than I could have ever imagined
The Biggest Issues Facing Children Today
Being anxious, having negative self image and feeling the pressure at home are the biggest issues at the moment.
Young people and children are anxious about a lot of different issues they are facing in their lives. Some children are dealing with very adult issues such as money worries, children living in hotel rooms and not having anywhere to play outside, rape and sexual assault leading to pregnancy in some cases and much more.
School and friends are a big factor for children and their wellbeing is being tarnished because of their insecurities.
At the moment also, Online Learning and Covid-19 are big big issues for young people. The loss of friendships is a big one.
I feel we’ve barely seen the tip of the iceberg when it comes to issues for young people in Ireland due to Covid-19.
My Best Moment As A Childline Volunteer
I gave this a lot of thought and, in all honesty, it’s every time I pick up the phone and say, ‘Hello, you’re through to Childline’.
I love talking to the children that call us and hearing them say thank you at the end of a call. I love training the new volunteers and getting to know them during the training sessions and then being there with them when they take their first call.
I love being part of the team in the Cork office.
