Volunteers' Week - Andrew's story
It’s Volunteers’ Week and this year is about celebrating and thanking those who give up their time to make a difference.
The past 13 months have been challenging for us all – and particularly for those volunteer groups who have had to adapt to new ways of working during the pandemic.
Andrew Anthony from our IT team is here to talk about his passion for volunteering with St John Ambulance.
“I have been involved with St John Ambulance for coming up to 21 years now. My mum had been involved for some time and had to drag me along to a meeting for new recruits. I just thought it was a good way for me to get in to watch some football games for free! I enjoyed it because I got to learn new skills and meet new people – I really grew into the role and it became quite addictive.
“The first few years I spent volunteering covering sporting events - everything from hockey and judo, to being present at Molyneux when Wolves play. I loved the fact I was able to give something back and make a difference to people’s lives
“In 2005, I took over the running of the Pendeford Unit. I am a big advocate for working with children and young people and really enjoy this element of volunteering with St John. I have responsibility for all volunteers from the age of 10 onwards. I also work closely with the Pendeford Badgers Unit which caters for youth members ages 7-10 years.
“For the past four years, I have been supporting the Youth function of St John Ambulance across the Shropshire, Staffordshire and Wolverhampton. We have 650 young volunteers across these areas - I want to inspire them like I was inspired all those years ago.
“Like many organisations, we’ve come across some challenges during the pandemic. We used to undertake our training in community centres and other local hubs, but we had to move our youth training online. I am proud of the way our volunteers have stepped up during the pandemic – many have given their time to local hospitals to help in A&E- freeing up other medical staff to help with the Covid-response.
“St John Ambulance have also been proud to work with the country’s vaccine programme. I am the Volunteer Site Lead working with NHS England at the Telford International Centre, coordinating and St John Ambulance volunteer vaccinators to help give people their jabs.
“One of the most inspiring things is seeing the young people I have helped mentor and train move on to become paramedics, doctors and nurses. I like to think the skills they have picked up here have inspired them in some way.
“I would encourage anyone to volunteer with their local St John Ambulance service. A lot of people think it’s just about sticking a plaster on or administering first aid – but we need volunteers to help with all sorts. We have volunteers who help with everything from logistics, to ensuring our fleet of vehicles are serviced.”
3rd June 2021