"Eye-opening and enlightening": Georgia's first 6 months of volunteering

Please note: this post is 92 months old and The Cares Family is no longer operational. This post is shared for information only

I want to be honest here. After living in London for nearly six years, I found myself in the same position as many young professionals. I was taking advantage of all the city has to offer and living a fast paced lifestyle. Yet when people asked me what I did in my spare time, I was embarrassed that ‘eating, drinking and meeting friends’ were my only responses. I wanted to find something that felt more worthwhile with the opportunity to get involved in the local community.

While searching through the unending list of charities online, it became clear that I really needed to evaluate what causes were close to my heart. That was when I found South London Cares.

I lost my last grandparent, my fabulous grandmother, seven years ago so an organisation who could connect me with older neighbours in my community was exactly what I was looking for. My grandmother was surrounded by a big, loving family when she died, but I often wonder what it would be like to feel lonely and isolated in my later years.

I emailed a few charities to find out how I could help. South London Cares offered by far the simplest process to get involved (sign up for a volunteering induction, meet the team and go from there) and seemed genuinely excited to have me on board.

The people I have met through volunteering with South London Cares may be older in their years, but they are still young at heart and often just looking for someone different to talk to, for a bit of variety in their daily lives. They have made me realise that when you retire, opportunities to meet new people and learn new things don’t come up that easily, you have to go looking for them. South London Cares makes this process a lot easier for people.

Volunteering with this community of people isn’t just about that warm, fuzzy feeling of doing good, it’s eye-opening and enlightening. London has been a diverse community for many years and learning our older neighbour’s stories of how and why they became Londoners has been fascinating. 

I cannot advocate enough how great it is to volunteer with South London Cares. It’s not your average set up, where you perhaps make a donation that disappears into the depths of an organisation. It’s local, personal and the dedicated team of staff know the older neighbours by name. You really feel like you’re contributing to your new friend’s wellbeing. Plus, you’ll learn a lot! With age comes wisdom that our older neighbours have in spades. We shouldn’t take that for granted.