Before volunteering my background was in the financial services industry where I worked as an Accountant for over 30 years. I retired in 2011 and continued to work in the accountancy field on a part-time basis. However despite having a good career I was very aware that I had the life experience, skills and motivation which could make a real difference to people experiencing challenges who often had nowhere to turn to for advice.
I was drawn to volunteering with the Citizens Advice Bureau (the predecessor of Advice Space in Belfast) and started out my volunteering journey in 2013 in the Springfield Road office after completing my Advisor Training course.
After a break to complete work commitments, I returned to Advice Space in 2019 at the age of 63 and completed my training again to update this. I volunteered in the City Centre office as a generalist Volunteering Advisor and am now volunteering remotely two days per week during the pandemic on our telephone triage service.
I really enjoy volunteering as it makes a real difference in supporting our clients to guide them in improving their situation and making a positive impact on their lives.