Be Yourself, Make A Difference
GwirForce: "The X Factor of Volunteering"
Volunteering: a word which means a lot to quite a few people, and yet means very little to some. GwirForce is a Youth Led Panel which basically signposts and drives foward Youth Volunteering in Wales. We work a lot with Youth Volunteering Advisors, Welsh Assembly Government and Young People from across the country. We are the Youth Led Panel which sits on the GwirVol Partnership, which is made up of Organisations from all over Wales who come together and make important decisions on Volunteering in Wales.
I know this is probably going to be the most boring introduction ever written, but words just can't describe what we actually do. (Imagine Friends mixed in with My Family and Amanda and you'll get what we are about).
By joining GwirForce you become a part of a family, and you do stuff you'd never imagine doing. I'm the newly elected Chairperson of GwirForce and when I joined I was unsure of myself, really not a people person and frankly hated life. Since then, I have been all over Wales talking to Young People about what makes them volunteer. But it's not all doom and gloom. Whether it be Bushcraft Survival Skills (lighting a fire, water purification, fish gutting), Conflict Management, Orienteering, Rifle Shooting (learning to control your emotions and anger), First Aid Skills.
You name it, we do it. It's not just about having fun, we do something amazing as well. We have written a Youth Volunteering Charter, which could help safeguard Young Volunteers in Wales.
Our slogan "Young Volunteers, Paid With Respect". It kind of says it all really.
So why not join GwirForce and see what it's all about. I have come a long way now and have gone from being shy to speaking in front of the Welsh Assembly Government, pitching an idea to a group of strangers or just promoting the group in Rhyl. I have come a long way.
I owe a lot to GwirForce and I truly believe that we are making a diference. At the moment in Carmarthenshire there are 12-14 Young People on the Panel which makes up 1/3 of the overall totall.
So why not join today and just see where you end up.
You can contact gwir.force@rathboneuk.org or add us on Facebook.
"Volunteers are not paid, not because they are worthless, but because they are priceless."
