We really appreciate all of our wonderful volunteers here at the Gatehouse but it's particularly special when one of them gets wider recognition for the support they provide to charities like ours. That's what has just happened to Sarah, one of our volunteer team, who recently received the King's Coronation Champion Award, together with an invitation to attend the spectacular Coronation Concert.
Here is Sarah's story in her own words:
“I was nominated as a Coronation Champion for the various bits of voluntary work I do: I've been coming to the Gatehouse since September and I've loved every session I've been involved in.
I'm a listening volunteer at Samaritans and I jointly look after all the IT hardware and software at the Oxford branch.
At Kidlington Baptist church, I've been involved in youth work for many years, and I help set up and run a wellbeing cafe. I'm also involved in a lot of IT support for the church, and I run the ladies group.
I also help with a youth group as part of Youth Challenge Oxfordshire, where a dozen young people in our group are on an 18-month program to complete personal challenges, ultimately to go on an overseas trip to help others.
I started helping with the homeless when I was a teenager living in outer London - I was part of a team taking a van into central London to a couple of places to hand out food - I remember bananas were so popular with the people we met!
When I moved to Oxford, I was recommended to help with The Porch - I volunteered there for three years before having children, just before Porch moved to Stepping Stones. I enjoyed chatting with the regulars and hearing their stories.
Recently, our daughters have left for university, and I had some spare time to do different voluntary roles - I always knew I would return to help vulnerably housed people. I'm so grateful to the team of regular volunteers I spend time with - I've felt so welcome since the start and enjoy the chats I have with the volunteers and guests. I love being able to offer practical help, when I see so many people begging on the streets of Oxford.
The Coronation Concert was fabulous! 20,000 people made such a party atmosphere. I was kinda close to the Royal Box, certainly close enough to see the Royals dancing along. There was such an assortment of acts, and I was blown away by the scale and speed of the drones creating animals in the sky. Windsor Castle was a beautiful backdrop for the projected lights. Fantastic to hear stories of other volunteers in the area I was seated.”
