Articles and Speeches

Volunteer for Volunteer's Week
09-Jun-06, Windsor Express Article.

As a long-term supporter of the Thames Valley Hospice I was delighted to offer some help in their Windsor shop as part of national volunteers’ week.

I also popped into the People’s Dispensary for Sick Animals, where it was good to be of use sweeping and vacuuming the floor after a minor breakage.

All over the country people have turned out to help as volunteers often in some rather interesting ways. Helpers have monitored local bat populations, they have offered services as “Liverpudlian Smilers” (welcoming tourists to Liverpool), and they have acted as sign language museum guides for the hard of hearing.

Whilst my efforts were not quite so exotic it was good to be helping in the local community.

The Thames Valley Hospice provides palliative care for terminally ill patients. The remarkable thing is that their work is 80% funded by charitable donations.

The Peoples Dispensary for Sick Animals provides free veterinary treatment for sick and injured animals and promotes responsible pet ownership. Once again, they rely on charitable donations, and next year will celebrate 90 years of caring for animals.

The staff in the shops perform an absolutely vital role on the front line of fundraising. Without their hard work and dedication, these charities would be unable to provide care on the scale they do now.

So I would like to pay tribute to the volunteers who do so much to raise funds for good causes. Please support the work they do by visiting the shops or offering to help.