Uther has been volunteering since January to gain work experience in his gap year before further education. He's gained transferrable skills that will help him in his future career.
Uther said: I think there’s scope within shop volunteering where you can either just put the hours in or actually get involved and learn. You can learn a lot and there are transferrable skills that will help you next week and in the future. You can make the most of the time you have when you’re here.
Jenny and Ruth have volunteered at Cockermouth shop since it's opening in 2010. They have been dedicated volunteers at Cockermouth since then, helping out with whatever the shop may need!
Ruth said: I’ve often said who knows when any of us may need Hospice At Home West Cumbria. I feel passionately about the hospice movement, if we had hospices all over the country and excellent palliative care it would be for the best.
Joanna talks about her time volunteering for Hospice At Home West Cumbria doing a variety of roles and giving back to the community.
At the moment, I do the reception on a Wednesday morning, and I also do store collections. I love doing store collections, you’re always talking with someone, it’s great to meet people and people are really generous. I then bag pack at Workington, and help out where I can. Generally, just anything that needs doing, if I’m available to do it, I’ll help do it.
Mark started volunteering with our family and bereavement team in 2023 as a Driver. He collects patients or carers and takes them to our Therapy and Information Centre for complementary therapies or support groups.
I chose to volunteer with Hospice at Home West Cumbria because they do a fantastic job in our community. I enjoy making a difference to a patient or carer's day when they can attend a group or complementary therapy session.
Michelle has volunteered with Hospice at Home West Cumbria for 12 years and before being a Volunteer Retail Assistant, she helped in a role carrying out patient support.
It was a way of reconnecting with the community as I'd been away for 48 years down south. I wanted to interact with people, support them, engaging with the public and people as individuals and listening to them. It also gives me an outlet for two days of the week.
Barbara started volunteering for Hospice at Home West Cumbria when she retired in 2016. Since then, she has taken on a variety of roles in the charity and has helped to support many families in need across West Cumbria.
Being a volunteer is a very rewarding role and it gives me great satisfaction to know I am helping a charity to provide vital services to families in West Cumbria.