One of the employees in the Ernst & Young office had this to say about the week:

“… there is a great buzz amongst the people who worked on the job. The satisfaction that comes from doing something like this is hard to match. On behalf of everyone here, could I just take the opportunity to thank you for arranging this opportunity and for all the support that you provided. We are all looking forward to future volunteering opportunities with Serve the City.”

We’re also very grateful to our partnering organisations, like ALONE, the HSE, VCI, and Ballyfermot Social Intervention Initiative, who work so hard on behalf of the people and services they represent and advocate for across Dublin.

In the midst of serving each day, we had the chance to meet and have some great conversations with neighbours, friends, and family members of the people we were serving.  We were reminded that, at the end of the day, people and relationships in our communities are the primary thoroughfares that hope, care, and compassion travel along to strengthen our city.  We anticipate many more opportunities for those thoroughfares to be strengthened by volunteer service in the months to come!

Not only did you serve as couriers of hope, dignity, and compassion, but we’re confident that each one of you were also recipients of those virtues in the very act of serving. It was exceedingly evident in the smiles on your faces as you waved goodbye and turned to walk back to your cars or bus stops.

Our next S3RVE Day will happen on the 18th of June. If you haven’t already signed up to receive each month’s communique with information about the next S3RVE Day initiative, CLICK HERE and type in your details. Also, be sure to let us know if you would like to be ranked amongst the legendary volunteers participating in our Serve Days of Summer initiative during the week of 18-22 of July!

The second weekend in October, we hosted a corporate group of eight volunteers from a large Dublin-based company.  The team did a fantastic job of clearing out an overgrown garden for a needy family in Ballybrack.  They were delighted to help, knowing that their hours of service were also an encouragement to other neighbours who had reached out to support this family in a number of ways.

If you’d like to get involved in our next Third Saturday S3RVE Day, be sure to sign up for our newsletter and respond to that e-mail when it arrives in your inbox.  It’s as easy as clicking “reply” and typing “Count me in!”

At St. Augustines school in Blackrock, we painted the interior of one of the dorm houses while some of our volunteers assisted the Shanganagh Community Development Project with their summer kids’ club.  The rest of our volunteers were scattered across Dublin throughout the week, gardening and painting in areas like Crumlin, Sheriff Street, Beggar’s Bush, and Drumcondra.

We’re grateful for the partnerships with other organizations who helped us find significant opportunities to serve, as well as the volunteers to get the work done.  Here are just a few:

ALONE
St. Augustine’s School
Volunteer Centres Ireland
Shanganagh Summer Proejct

In April, we had a team of 5 paint a front room, kitchen, and entry way in a flat on Pearse St. for a lovely man who is quite ill. On the same day, a team of about 6 did some interior painting for a single mum in Crumlin. This last Saturday, a small team returned to the flat in Pearse St. to put gloss on the doors and paint a small bathroom. Another group helped clean out a house in Ballyfermot that had been neglected for some time due to extended hospital stays for the parents of two young boys.

Our next “Third Saturday SERVE Day” is scheduled for the 19th of June. Be sure if to let us know if you’re interested in joining us!

Painting away in Pearse Street