Volunteering
Fancy a “sidewalk” talk?
In the Autumn of 2014, two San Francisco therapists shared a vision: to help heal that which divides us through the fine art of skilled listening. They gathered 26 of their colleagues, practiced listening skills and came up with a curriculum and model for listening on the sidewalks together.
On May 7th 2015, for 2 hours in 12 locations throughout San Francisco, listeners set up chairs and signs, offering to listen to any passer-by who wanted to be seen and heard. The result was amazing. And soon after a group from Los Angeles asked if they could reproduce it. There was never an intention for this thing to grow. Every person met at Sidewalk Talk is just like you, someone who believes that human connection is the way to create healthy humans, healthy politics, and a healthy world.
Today Sidewalk Talk has 1700 volunteers world-wide. They have groups in 40 cities around the globe. They have grown but remain grassroots by design. The focus is creating an active, engaged community of volunteers who commit to a regular listening practice and who connect with each other, not just the people they listen to.
Is this a way to gather not only people’s thoughts and opinions, but also raise the important of what the man on the “sidewalk” has to say? Would this work in our communities? Worth a thought!
Spare Chair Sunday
Spare Chair Sunday first launched in 2015 as a partnership between national charity Contact the Elderly and Bisto. Expanding on the charity’s model of free monthly Sunday afternoon tea parties for small groups of older people aged over 75 who live alone, Spare Chair Sunday encouraged people to offer a ‘spare chair’ at their Sunday lunch tables to a Contact the Elderly older guest and their volunteer driver, to share a delicious warm lunch all together. The response to the award-winning campaign was amazing, with over 1,600 Spare Chair Sunday volunteers hosting Sunday lunches or becoming regular tea party volunteers in their local community.
Any host homes or venues must have a downstairs toilet and be easily accessible (generally we say no more than three steps where possible).
Any car used must be fully insured and drivers must hold a full driving licence, as well as supplying two references and completing a DBS check. This is for the safety and security of guests and host.
Interested? Click on http://www.contact-the-elderly.org.uk/volunteer to apply to become a volunteer. Applications are dealt with as soon as possible, but please do be patient, all necessary checks must be made. In some cases, there will not be anyone near enough to you, groups may already have as many volunteers as they require, or there may not be a group in your area. It may be the case that your application may enable work to be launched in the area for the first time, enabling more older people to benefit!
Fancy a Trip Underground?
Some beautiful and unusual buildings and land are in community ownership.
A growing number of groups are getting together to rescue much-loved places from redevelopment or demolition – from castles and piers to public toilets.
Could your community take ownership of a local space? To inspire you, over the next few weeks we would like to share with you some of these. First up, The Burrow, Devon. 
The Burrow in Exbourne is a community-owned shop with a difference – it’s underground. Like something from The Hobbit, this little shop, café and post office is built underneath a field in the centre of the village, and is the UK’s only underground shop.
In December 2001 the village shop and post office in the parish of Exbourne with Jacobstowe in rural West Devon closed and was sold as a private dwelling. This meant that villagers would have to make a journey of at least 5 miles each way to reach the nearest town for shops and services.
Early in 2002 following a public meeting to discuss the closure of the community’s only store and post office, the Exbourne Community Initiative Committee was formed. The original mandate of the organisation was to try and re-establish a shop – a community-run shop – possibly with additional facilities alongside it. The great importance of such activities in safeguarding the quality of village life was keenly recognised and the initiative was supported by the vast majority of local residents.
The Association quickly established a temporary shop, cafe and post office in Exbourne’s Village Hall, opening 2 mornings a week and run (with the exception of the Post Office section) by volunteers.
The shop has grown and grown and with the support of local growers, plus a lot of hard work, they have managed to get together an exciting range of products, from fresh vegetables, canned food and even some hardware items. Each shop day freshly baked bread is locally sourced.
One of the most popular features of our current shop in the Village Hall is the café, where local residents and visitors can gather to swap stories and exchange gossip.
The success of the temporary shop/cafe allowed plans to move forward establishing The Burrow. The project raised over £185,000 allowing digging on the underground shop to begin. Upon successful completion the shop/cafe and post office moved underground. Formally opened in 2012, The Burrow continues to flourish and expand its role within the community.
Fancy a trip underground? Visit The burrow at https://theundergroundshop.weebly.com/
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Volunteer with us
Volunteers fulfill a variety of roles within Aberdeenshire Council 
Becoming a volunteer with Aberdeenshire Council is a great way to learn and develop new skills, build confidence and enhance your CV.
There are many opportunities to become a volunteer with Aberdeenshire Council
Want to know more, click on http://jobs.aberdeenshire.gov.uk/volunteer-with-us/
or visit the facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/Move-More-Aberdeenshire-542472342807239/?ref=aymt_homepage_panel where updates will be posted regularly
Community Collection Point Volunteers
About Opportunity 
We are looking for volunteers (age 18+) to help run local collection points for a couple of hours a week to promote and market NESCU, provide information about the services and benefits of Credit Unions/NESCU. A great opportunity to help in the local community, make a positive difference and any help you give will be greatly appreciated. Application form and references will be required. For more details please contact:
Andy Farquhar, Volunteer Coordinator. e-mail: Andy@nescu.co.uk / tel: 01224 899688
About NESCU: North East Scotland Credit Union
NESCU is a financial co-operative. We’re owned and controlled by our local members, as a ‘not-for-profit’ social enterprise. NESCU offer their members an easy and convenient place to save and access to low cost loans. We offer valuable services to everyone, from business people, families, employed and unemployed to young people and those who have retired. Read the rest of this entry »
Volunteer Vacancies
Kincardineshire Development Partnership are introducing ‘Volunteer Vacancies’. Please get in touch with them if you are looking for volunteers, or know of people interested in volunteering opportunities.
KDP Office: officesupport@kincardineshiredp.org
Tel: 01569 763246
North East Scotland Credit Union (NESCU) in Stonehaven.
NESCU will be opening a collection point in The Housing office on Allardice Street, Stonehaven on a Tuesday from 3pm – 4pm. NESCU urgently need volunteers with financial and cash handling skills, providing a great opportunity to help in the local community and make a positive difference. For more details please contact Andy Farquhar, Volunteer Coordinator by e-mail Andy@nescu.co.uk, or telephone 01224 899688.
Mearns Cycle Hub (Formerly Benholm Bikes)
Mearns Cycle Hub are seeking volunteers to run bike maintenance classes one evening a week, and to help keep the Hub open 2-3 hours at the weekend, subject to volunteer availability, so that people can book their bike in for repair, or hire a bike stand so they can do their own repairs. Volunteers will also be responsible for taking bookings, working with children and adults on their bikes, selling spares, dealing with money, keeping the shed tidy, opening up and locking up. Volunteers will potentially be working with children and may therefore need to be disclosed.
Mearns Cycle Hub plans to open in Laurencekirk in Spring 2017. They want to help more people get out on their bikes, and want to help them learn how to repair and maintain their bikes. The hub would like volunteers to have a keen interest in bike mechanics, and preferably some experience of working on bikes. This does not have to be in paid capacity, a bike hobby is perfectly acceptable. They are looking for people who have the capacity to support and mentor others to learn how to maintain bikes. Volunteers are welcome with little or no experience of any of the following but people would be very welcome with experience of cycling/ cycle ride leading/ people with disabilities / older people/ bike mechanics/ events/ fundraising/ good communication skills, particularly face-to-face/ and a good role model.
For more details on this opportunity contact: mearnscyclehub@gmail.com. The hub are planning to hold a volunteer meeting in early 2017 as part of their preparation for the Spring launch.
Marie Curie Helper service
The Marie Curie Helper service is provided by trained volunteers who offer
one – to – one support to people with a terminal illness (cancer and other illnesses), completely free of charge. This support may also continue for their carers and families after bereavement. The service was launched in Grampian last August and is now operational with over 30 volunteers across Grampian now trained and ready to offer support.
Marie Curie Helper volunteers support people in their homes, offering a few hours of their time each week to provide a listening ear and companionship;
give families and carers a short break from their caring role; offer practical support, such as accompanying individuals to appointments or simply going out for a coffee; or help with sourcing information on other available support.
A Marie Curie Helper does not provide any nursing or medical care or advice.
Our Helper volunteers are provided with training and support to enable them to undertake their roles.
There are trained volunteers available now in Aberdeen City, Aberdeenshire and Moray.
If you are interested in finding out a little more about this service or know someone who might benefit from some support please contact:
Ingrid Penny, Helper Service Manager for Grampian on 0800 304 7024
Email: grampianhelper@mariecurie.org.uk
The Marie Curie Helper Service
is funded by Text Santa
K&M Communities 