YMCA Appeal For Volunteers

An appeal for volunteers to become a mentor for a young person

Cobh YMCA has operated the vocational training programme STEP for over 10 years. During this time scores of young people who had been out of work, without sufficient qualifications and without the confidence or motivation to progress in their personal and work lives, have benefitted from the training and support we can provide.

As part of the development of the course and in particular the support mechanisms available after the course we are hoping to develop a mentoring programme. This would link the young person to someone in the community with relevant experience that they could seek information and support from as they pursue the goals and careers that they have identified during STEP.

The programme would be flexible in terms of time and venue and information and support would be given to the mentor by the STEP coordinator. If you feel that you would like to volunteer within this programme or would like further information on volunteering opportunities, please contact the coordinator, James Bilson, on 4814060, or email step@indigo.ie . As little as an hour a week could make a big difference in helping a young person to make the next step. It is hoped to have an information session during December with a view to beginning the mentoring in February 2010.