This month's Directors Chair comes from Chair of Trustees, Tom Howard
"Welcome to Volunteers Week!
This week The Door is celebrating all the amazing volunteers who's contributions enable us to impact the lives of so many young people and their families every single week.
Volunteers Week is a national initiative highlighting the value that volunteering brings to charities like ours up and down the country, and I'm delighted that The Door is joining in. Over the coming week we will be sharing some stories from our teams, finding out about what they do, why they do it, and the difference it makes.
Volunteering is such an important part of the work of The Door. Since our beginnings in 1991 we have been blessed with hundreds of people prepared to give up a few hours each week to be part of the team and more importantly, to be a part of the vision of Unlocking Potential and Opening Opportunity.
Volunteer Mentors provide a listening ear to young people needing extra support; Volunteer Assistants ensure our Shop keeps providing good quality second hand clothes and toys to those who need it; Volunteer Youthworkers work alongside our trained staff to deliver hours of youth clubs sessions every week; Volunteer Family Support Workers give parents space to off-load and unwind; Volunteer Fundraisers run marathons, hold collection buckets, organise cake stalls, and many other great events; Volunteers from local businesses provide man-power when we need something re-decorated or clearing out; and my fellow Trustees volunteer their time to ensure the governance, structure and finances of The Door are of the highest standards.
Every year over 100 people volunteer at The Door, and to each one of them we are truly grateful. I want to say a massive THANK YOU to each and every of them for all their hard work and dedication to their work. It was a great honour in 2017 when we were awarded the Queen's Award for Voluntary Services - the MBE for charities - in recognition of our volunteers and the work they do, and it's a privileged to watch the volunteer teams going from strength the strength.
Do keep an eye out on our website, Facebook page and other social media for inspirational stories from our volunteers. And maybe you might be inspired enough to consider joining them and becoming a volunteer for The Door too!"
Tom Howard
Chair of Trustees
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Find out more about volunteering at thedoor.org.uk/volunteer
Directors Chair – Tom Howard