To Popeyes and Beyond: Adventures with Step Up
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Our Step Up programme provides one-to-one mentorship that offers support and encouragement for young people’s personal development. Our volunteer mentors not only provide a listening ear, but also strive to help their mentees learn new skills and work towards their goals.
During the Step Up Christmas party, some of the young people mentioned wanting to visit a Popeyes restaurant—only to discover that the closest one was in Belfast. This sparked an idea: why not turn it into a trip? With that, the planning began.
From Idea to Itinerary
The Step Up group met at the Solas Project offices to plan the trip together, learning valuable life skills along the way. They discussed everything that goes into organising a trip, including booking train tickets, exchanging currency, and researching activities to make the most of their visit. In addition to Popeyes, they decided to explore Belfast’s history with a visit to the Titanic Museum and a Black Taxi Tour, which highlights key moments in the city's past.
A Trip to Remember:
An important lesson of trip planning is that sometimes things surprise you and expectations can change once you experience it firsthand. Here’s what some of the young people had to say:
“When we got to Belfast, we had breakfast at Café Red—it was banging. Then we exchanged currency and walked to the Titanic Museum, taking pictures along the way.
The Titanic Museum was mid. We were disappointed there weren’t a lot of artifacts or a tour guide, but we liked the gift shop and the cart ride.
After Titanic, we went straight to the Black Cab Tour. The murals were good, and we learned about the walls and the gates.
Finally, we went to Popeyes and Sainsbury’s. Popeyes was great—we liked the chicken but didn’t like the American biscuits. Sainsbury’s was cool and cheap.”
Step Up Mentor Nicole shared her perspective on the experience:
“Going to Belfast with Step Up was an incredible experience. The young people did so much work in planning our travels and activities. Getting to experience the trip with them and hear their thoughts about what we learned was an awesome bonding experience. To me, it really represented what Step Up is all about.”
More Than Just a Trip
In the end, what started as a fun idea to try Popeyes became something much more. The young people gained hands-on experience in planning, budgeting, and decision-making, while also learning about history and strengthening their connections with mentors.
As Youth Worker Keren puts it:
“Although the trip started because they wanted to try Popeyes, it grew into something bigger—just like so many things in youth work. A special shoutout to the mentors for their commitment to supporting their young people and their big ideas!”
Now that they’ve successfully planned their first trip, the group is continuing to dream big—talks of visiting Cork or even London are already underway. We can’t wait to see where their next adventure takes them!
