This article is from page 25 of the 2010-01-26 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 25 JPG
ANYONE interested in joining one of Ireland’s largest voluntary organi- sations is being urged to attend two upcoming Samaritans information evenings in Ennis.
The Ennis branch of the Samaritans are holding two information and se- lections evenings at the Old Ground Hotel on Thursday, January 28, and Monday, February 1, at 8pm.
The events will give potential vol- unteers an opportunity to learn about the service provided by the Samari- tans. The organisation is looking for
open-minded, non-judgmental peo- ple to get involved.
The Samaritans provide confiden- tial, non-judgmental emotional sup- port for members of the public who are experiencing feelings of distress or despair, including feelings that may lead to suicide. The service is provided by telephone and email, as well as through face-to-face con- tacts.
A Samaritans spokesperson said the branch are looking for people to commit a few hours a week to the Service.
“Our volunteers come from a wide
variety of age groups and _ back- grounds. What’s important is that people would be able to commit a few hours each week to help provide the service,” said the spokesperson.
All volunteers who join the Sa- maritans will take part in a compre- hensive training programme and are also shown how to develop listening skills.
A spokesperson explained, “It’s very important that volunteers would be able to give that commitment and that they would be able to listen to people without being judgemental. All those who do go on to join the
organisation will take part in a very comprehensive training programme which will equip them to offer emo- tional support to callers.”
The Samaritans vision is for a soci- ety where fewer people die by suicide and its core values include confiden- tiality and being non-judgemental. For further information on volunteer- ing please call 065 6829777 or come along to one of information/selection evenings.
In 2009, the Samaritans received more than 375,000 calls from the Republic of Ireland alone.