Thanks, Frank!
This Wednesday is a sad day for us at Sycamore, as one of our most valued volunteers, Frank Peters will be attending his last youth club. Frank has been volunteering for almost five years and is extremely popular among our young people and our staff. We're going to miss him! Here's his view of volunteering with Sycamore Trust.
Frank (right) pictured at Stubbers in 2018 (photo: Taylor Kearney)
As I approached retirement age I found myself in a situation that allowed me to reduce the number of hours I needed to work giving me much more free time. This gave me the opportunity to look at a few things that I had wanted to do for a long time but working full time I couldn’t manage to fit in.
Volunteering was right there at the top of my list and so I looked into various options that were open to see where I could be of use. I decided that one of the areas I wanted to help with was young people who are on the autistic spectrum. This is a particular area of interest to me because although I have never been diagnosed as being on the spectrum myself I believe this is purely down to the generation into which I was born.
When I was a child I don’t think anyone knew about autism. It certainly wasn’t ever considered as far as I can remember. Having said that I believe that had I been born in this time I probably would have been classified as "being on the spectrum”. Looking back and knowing what I know now I can easily identify with traits associated with autism and had I known about it when younger it would certainly have helped me understand a lot of things during my school years and early life which perhaps would have made my life easier.
Young autistic people can feel very lonely and different. They can find it hard to make friends, and struggle with school and relationships. This is where I wanted to try and be of some help to others who found themselves in a similar or more distressing position to me when I was young. Of course as I grew up I found ways of coping with and accepting the way my brain functions. In fact, I think sometimes the focused, singular way my mind is able to work allows me to solve problems and make decisions in a more stable way. Not having to deal with a lot of the emotional stuff that other people get bogged down with allows me to quickly see the logical, uncluttered, direct way forwards. But I do still have issues with communication and social interaction that - and I understand this completely - may seem to others that I am bored in their company or uninterested in what they are saying, which is not the case at all. So this is why I chose to devote some of my free time to young autistic people.
I have found volunteering very satisfying. Knowing that in some tiny way I have helped others is in itself rewarding it gives a warm feeling inside that is payment enough. I have found it an extremely positive experience working with the staff and volunteers at the Sycamore Trust, especially with the Alpha Club and of course Sue Cornell who gave me the opportunity to help out. Thank you to everyone at Sycamore Trust and a special thank you to all the young people who I have been privileged to have met and worked with. I wish you all, past and present a wonderful life. You have helped me to understand myself in a way that I would never have been able to do without this experience. Volunteering is a wonderfully fulfilling, rewarding way to help others and contribute to society, to give a bit back and I would recommend it to anyone who has some free time and a desire to help others.
Activities co-ordinator Sue Cornell had this to say;
"Within the youth groups , we are very lucky to have good, high quality volunteers and without their support, we wouldn’t be able to provide such an amazing service. Frank joined our team in 2017 and had an instant rapport with the members, staff and other volunteers. He is kind, empathic and always enthusiastic to support the young people and a hugely valued member of the group.
Volunteering with us a wonderful and rewarding way to spend your spare time. To find out more, click here; http://www.sycamoretrust.org.uk/get-involved/volunteer-with-us
