Chris volunteers with Crossroads Care South East London as a befriender
Tell us about your volunteering role – how did you get started?
Until recently I worked as a receptionist in a doctor’s surgery. I was amazed at the amount of people who just wanted to come in for a chat. Also, the phones were always ringing with people who didn’t necessarily need a doctor, but just wanted to hear someone on the end of the phone. I soon realised that I was probably the only person that they were going to speak to that day.
Initially, I started up a walking group under the NHS ‘Walking For Health’ scheme. This was very successful and gave people the opportunity to meet others for a chat and was also a good form of exercise. One of my walkers was a partially sighted lady and she was finding it increasingly difficult to attend the walks, and fortunately I then saw the advert in the doctor’s surgery for volunteer “befrienders”. I contacted Crossroads and the lady became my first client.
Over the last 3 years, I have visited 7 clients, 4 of whom I still see on a weekly basis. When I first started it was purely a one hour visit popping in each week for a cuppa and a chat. This soon became a much longer visit, (my choice) going to the shops, garden centres, tea shops, pub lunches, walks, library visits, cinema outings. In fact anything that takes our fancy, we do - depending on the weather!
It is not a problem for me to spare an hour out of my day and the pleasure it gives to a lonely person makes it all worthwhile.
How often do you volunteer?
I allow one hour per week per client and I visit 4 ladies. I usually visit them all on one day. I have taken them to visit each other and they are now friends and occasionally phone each other. If I am in the area where they live, I sometimes pop in for a quick 10 minutes just to say hello. I no longer view them as clients I treat them as I do my own personal friends.
How do you fit in volunteering with your normal routine?
I keep one day a week free and my first visit is at 10.00, and the last is at 5.00 and I fit the other 2 in between. My clients are very flexible and as long as they know the week before which day and what time I will be calling they are happy.
What do you find most rewarding about volunteering?
When I knock on the door and get rewarded with a huge smile it just brightens up my day. I love hearing their stories about the war, their evacuation tales and I just love listening to what they have to say about their lives in general. I have learnt such a lot from them. When I make a cup of tea I notice that they sometimes have a packet of my favourite biscuits in the cupboard which makes me smile and feel appreciated.
From a personal point of view I have made a lot of new friends from meeting up with the other volunteers. If I wake up in the morning feeling a “bit down” I soon forget any problems I may have the minute my visits start. I sometimes feel I get more pleasure out of the visits than my ladies themselves.
What advice would you give to others who might be thinking about becoming a volunteer?
You have to try it to fully appreciate what you can get from volunteering. You cannot put a price on it. All I can say is that it has made my outlook on life very different and I appreciate the simple things much more and I hope to continue my new friendships for many years to come.