Stories of Impact: Honouring our Volunteers

This June we had the delight of hosting our annual Volunteer Celebration. This is an event we look forward to all year because not only do we get to show our appreciation for all the time and effort of our volunteers, but we also get to hear about the impact being made by volunteers throughout many of our different programmes.

A big thank you the Liberties Hyatt Centric Hotel for hosting us this year; they are a brilliant example of the ways both individuals and organisations in the community support us, as many of their team have volunteered with our Solas@School Business programme and over the past few years have hired several of our young people at the hotel.

One of the things we value most is the wide range of skills and life experience our volunteers bring to their roles. During the evening, we had the chance to hear powerful stories from volunteers involved in our Early Intervention & Schools, Community-Based Youth Work, and Youth Justice programmes.

EARLY INTERVENTION & SCHOOLS

Each year we are grateful to have three European Solidarity Corps volunteers helping in our After Schools Clubs. Klara from Germany shared one of her highlights from the Juniors Club:

“I am happy whenever I see a (sometimes cheeky) smile on their little faces and their excitement about the little things and when they are curious and want to know everything, are just honest or share what they are interested in or very good at. And sometimes they come up to you, take your hand and walk away with you to play or show you something.” - Klara, ESC Volunteer

Another student on placement with us shared about her experience:

“I loved building trust and friendship with the kids and earning their trust! Feeling like you made their day a little bit better is the best thing ever. Besides that, the warm organisation that Solas Project is, it feels like a little family, especially when you’re living abroad!” - Celine, Student Volunteer

COMMUNITY-BASED YOUTH WORK

From our Liberate team, we heard from Carol, a volunteer mentor with the Step Up mentorship programme. Carol was interviewed by her mentee and gave a lovely glimpse into what a typical evening looks like for them—from baking and board games to heartfelt chats and space to vent and reflect. When asked what the best part of getting to know her mentee has been, she shared:

“Everything. The best part about getting to know you is seeing how much you’ve grown. And apart from that, all the fun we have!”

This sentiment was echoed in the feedback and stories from some of our other volunteer mentors:  

 “My highlights are the wide and varied conversations that we have, the persistence and ability to reset and reimagine when things don’t go quite as planned, and seeing a once shy and quiet mentee take to confiding in, or slagging his mentor!” - Ciarán, Step Up Mentor

YOUTH JUSTICE PROGRAMMES

This year our TRY programme piloted a new Peer Leadership programme, a 12 week course that gave participants an inside look at what youth work really involves. From day-to-day responsibilities to broader topics like child protection, drug awareness, and leadership development, the course covered a wide range of skills and knowledge.

As part of the programme, participants also gained hands-on volunteer experience across different projects. This opened up exciting opportunities for cross-programme collaboration, including when Mason, one of the Peer Leadership participants, joined the Liberate Transition Group as a volunteer—putting his learning into practice in a meaningful way. In his own words:

“All the kids were fantastic! I had only planned to be a part of the group for a few weeks to teach a bit of music but now I’m planning to go to college in September to study Youth Work and Community Development and I’m staying on with Solas Project to volunteer with the same kids for their summer projects.”

VOLUNTEER MILESTONES

The evening also celebrated some incredible volunteer milestones. We honoured Vinny for over 10 years of dedicated support in our After Schools programme, and acknowledged the contributions of volunteers stepping into new roles, contributing to our Compass prison programme and bringing fresh energy and enthusiasm to Solas@School Sports.

It was a powerful reminder of the lasting impact of volunteering, not only on the lives of the young people we work with, but also on the volunteers themselves, who often find great purpose, joy, and connection through giving back to their community.

A heartfelt thank you once again to all our amazing volunteers. Keep an eye out for upcoming opportunities to get involved—we’d love to welcome more of you to the team!