Scott Cameron.. Solas Project Intern

At Solas Project, we are very fortunate to have some amazing long term volunteers who come and intern with us. Scott joined us in January 2015 and will be here until the end of the year. 

We sat down to have a chat and catch up with Scott:

Where are you from?

 I'm from a small Welsh town called Chepstow.

What brought you to Ireland?

 In November 2013, I had a motorbike crash in which I fractured my neck. That lead me to take a year off work, and that meant a lot of time to think! I wanted to make a difference in life, to be the change I wanted to see in the world, and when I was ready to return to work a friend suggested this internship with Solas Project.

What’s the best bit about your role?

 The variety! You never know what the kids will do next, what challenges you will face or what skills you will need to call upon to help solve a situation!

What were your concerns before arriving?

 Honestly, I was terrified of the prospect of working with children! Although I've worked with kids before, I stayed firmly in the background, avoiding any face to face time with them, it's not something I thought would change but, look where I am now!

How has your time here impacted your life?

In the short time I have worked for Solas Project, I have learned that I love kids! There is so much joy to be had when a child learns to swim, finally understands how to tell the time, wants a hug or just for you to listen to them talk about the day. Being there as a role model has impacted me in such a profound way that I am even considering setting up a similar project at home in Wales!

Would you encourage others to volunteer and why?

Absolutely!! It is life changing, both for the kids and for you. The time you can give these kids really matters, and often we will never know how much!

We are delighted Scott has been enjoying his time working with us here at Solas Project and look forward to what the next 6 months bring for him!

If you are interested in volunteering with Solas Project - check out our volunteering page

Celebrating Volunteers!

This week, we are celebrating all of our wonderful volunteers for National Volunteering Week. 

Yesterday, Clodagh had the chance to go out to Intel to celebrate the work of one of our amazing volunteers, Derek Murphy. Derek, not only has a busy full-time job at Intel and is dad to 3 gorgeous little ones - he also finds time to volunteer weekly at The Yard. 

Derek provides support to our young people, mentoring and teaching bike maintenance skills on a weekly basis. Derek works full time at Intel, who provide a generous employee giving scheme for volunteering, whereby they donate $10 for every hour volunteered by employees. We were delighted to be there yesterday to receive a cheque for $2,200 from Minister Alan Kelly (Dept Environment, Community and Local Government) and Eamonn Sinnott (Vice President, Technology and Manufacturing Group and General Manager of Intel Ireland) for Dereks volunteer hours.

Thank you so much Derek and all our amazing volunteers - you are all legends!!

Solas Project go to the zoo!

As part of The Club, Solas Project run a Transition After School programme for students in 5th and 6th class.

This club has a special emphasis on helping primary school students with the transition in to secondary school and to get them comfortable with the idea of moving forward. 

The Transition After School Club recently completed a workshop in Dublin Zoo and loved their time spent there. They completed a four week long workshop, learning loads about all of the animals at the zoo under the guidance of their wonderful teacher Emma, from the Education Centre. 

Social Entrepreneurs Ireland - Building an Inclusive Recovery

Last week, our Head Gardener (CEO) - Graham Jones had the opportunity to speak at Social Entrepreneurs Ireland Impact Series on 'Building an Inclusive Recovery'.

Graham highlighted how 'We are calling for investment in education, the widest definition of education'.

Along with Sr Stan (Focus Ireland), Elizabeth Waters (Virtual Community College), Lynn Ruane (President Elect TCD Students' Union) and TD Kevin Humphreys in the beautiful surroundings of Smock Alley, Darren Ryan (CEO of SEI) hosted a healthy debate on how we can ensure recovery in Ireland means recovery for all.

Check out the highlights below; We look forward to sharing Grahams full talk shortly!