Most sport and fitness clubs and groups wouldn't be able to function without volunteers like these. Their get-up-and-go helps others stay healthy, make friends, enter competitions and more. Read on to find out what inspires them to make it happen for others.

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Wednesday Oct 25, 2006

The big move

Well it seems even adventurers grind to a halt and cannot be blessed with good luck all the time. I wonder if Sir Ranulph Fiennes has ever been told ‘can’t do the trip now, it’s the wrong kind of snow’ or ‘sorry mate but the poles need to be relocated.’

There I am practicing my people folding skills (yoga to the uninitiated) and drafting out my lesson plans to render ultimate bendiness on my currently unbendy neighbours when a letter hit my doormat with an ominous thud. It detailed the findings of the official looking men with clipboards that had recently surveyed my flat.

These findings were not good

Major structural work was needed. Urgently.

Extremely major structural work.

We (and we being my whole road) were being decanted (a euphemistic spin term to quell the rising discontent) at the height of summer into alternative accommodation for 3-4 months so builders could attack our properties with much vehemence.

A little disquieting.

And so with as much as 3 weeks notice before the off my well intended healing circle plans were hurriedly disregarded in favour of bubble wrap, tea chests and multiple rolls of brown packing tape (as half the roll is always wasted by bunching itself into annoyingly around my fingers).

Having moved I entered a telecommunications vacuum whereupon I was quickly made to realize my acute techno-dependence. A certain phone company (so ‘good’ it named itself twice) lived up to the reputation that earned them a prime slot on BBC1’s Watchdog. Another phone company proved that whilst it is good to talk an ‘ology’ is needed to convert the myriad phone sockets in my house (one for each cable company that had an offer on that month) and that a day off is needed for the engineer’s visit every 2nd Wednesday of the month. 3 of these visits are needed on average and multiple 60 minute phone calls to customer services requiring navigation through assorted automated menu options and assorted global call centres should also be scheduled into your to-do list.

It proved to be the ultimate test of tenacity. Who needs hiking to the pole in sub-zero temperatures when getting your phone and broadband activated requires equal endurance. Sir Ranulph would be proud.

10 weeks after my move I had a landline.

6 weeks after that I was online – dial up granted (getting my MAC number was too hard), which took some adjustment, but it’s a small mercy.

And so with the bubble wrap long since stuffed into recycling sacks, a mountain of boxes long since unpacked and the floor long since unearthed and conquered I returned my attention once more to my healing circle and the now evident problem of its scattered members who are across town also packing, unpacking, hollering at phone companies and having other much more pressing matters to deal with.

This was placing much strain on the group and the collective decision taken was to disband.

A replacement therefore is required and an action is placed at the top of my To-Do list.

I will keep you posted (if you pardon the pun) on the recruiting campaign.

Until then blessings and smiles.

Posted by Jane ( 2:48 PM )
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Tuesday Oct 17, 2006

Swim club activities

So what goes on at my club?

Last year three of the other volunteers were funded to get a swim teacher qualification.  This was amazing especially as one of the volunteers now has a job as a lifeguard and swim teacher.  She has recently had a daughter but still finds the time to come down and ocassionally help out.

The club is on a Friday night 6-7pm. When I volunteer I take any of the groups that does not have my son in it.  His confidence in water is amazing.  Sometimes even terrifying!

At six monthly intervals the club has badge night where children are actively encouraged to see what sort of distances they can swim. My son swam six lenghths no stopping.  This was a real feat as last year he could not manage one without stopping.

In a totally different league is a boy of ten years old - his confidence and belief in himself is fantastic.  At the same badge night he was allowed to forfeit the swim and he swam the next day.  Only one hundred lenghths, he had been sponsored and raised a nice sum for a local charity.

I see friday evenings as fun.  Even if we have had a bad week at home their is a positive energy at the club. It has been a valuable source for my son to get rid of his excess energy and for me to remain in contact with some really wonderful people.

Posted by Louise ( 10:21 AM )
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How I became a volunteer

Hi, my name is louise and I have an eight year old son.
We live near a local swimming pool that used to be run by the local council.  The pool is now privately run. Surprised? no neither am I.

Basically at the pool is a swimming club that is run by two females with attitude.  A good attitude that is.  I started going to the club when I was approx ten years old until I was sixteen years old.  

I had my son at the age of eighteen and when he had had all his baby jabs I started to take him swimming.  We did not immediately start out at the local pool because cold is not the right word to describe the temperature.  Freezing is!

The two females who run the club had heard the news that I had my son and were interested to know if I was interested in taking him along.

When he was approx three years old I started taking him to the club and had to go in the pool with him for insurance reasons.  When he reached the grand age of five I no longer needed to go in the pool with him.  

The session is only an hour long and the price parents are charged for their child to attend the club has not gone up majorly since when I first started.

The people who help run the sessions are all volunteers. I am one of the volunteers, which I will be telling you more about in this blog.

Bye for now :-)

Posted by Louise ( 10:15 AM )
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