Charity Celebrates Essential Contribution of Inspirational Stirling Volunteers

Volunteers support Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland in retail, driving, kindness, administration and event fundraising roles to help CHSS provide support for those with chest, heart and stroke conditions as well as Long Covid. Together, volunteers help to ensure there is no life half lived in Scotland.

Those selfless volunteers include people like Eileen Stewart and Louise Gill.

Eileen recently completed her training to become an Enhanced Support Volunteer at CHSS’ Bridge of Allan shop. The 71-year-old has worked in healthcare and was Head of Healthcare at Edinburgh and Glenochil prison.

Eileen said: “When I retired I researched volunteering and realised there was a CHSS shop in Stirling.

“I wanted something that was connected to healthcare and after one week I was hooked and asked for more hours.

“I have been volunteering for almost eight years and I love ensuring the shop is inviting and working on displays to encourage customers to come in and see what we have for sale. There are many regular customers and I enjoy getting to know them.

“I believe whether you are paid or a volunteer it is important to give your best.

“Volunteers are most likely the first person a customer sees when coming into a store and it is important to engage and be approachable.

I love my role and encourage prospective volunteers when I am speaking about the role to them as it is extremely rewarding knowing your contribution is making a difference to someone’s life in their time of need.”

Louise’s Story

Generous psychology student Louise Gill is a communications support volunteer with CHSS in Stirling, working with people living with the communication disorder, aphasia, which affects one in three people after a stroke.

Louise, 21, said: “I volunteer with Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland in Stirling supporting a small group of individuals with aphasia.

“I support different tasks and help service users come to terms with their conditions and how to set goals for their recovery.

“I’ve just finished university and I was doing my undergrad and one of our modules was to get a placement. I saw the post with CHSS and researched the whole organisation, saw what they were about and I liked the whole idea of it.

“I feel like I’ve helped people and I feel I’ve been a part of something good and part of a team that comes together and it’s been very rewarding.

“I’ve seen people improve as they go along. Some people are more open in chatting with us. A lot of them say they want to improve their speech. This takes time, and not everyone will see the same results, but we will do everything in our power to give them a better quality of life.

“Some service users’ outlooks seem a lot more positive now than when they first came in and that makes you feel good as well.

“I’d definitely recommend volunteering to anyone.”

Volunteers’ Week is a UK wide campaign that takes place in the first week of June every year. It’s a time when volunteering involving organisations and groups are encouraged to thank their volunteers, past and present and celebrate and recognise volunteering efforts.

Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland Chief Executive Jane-Claire Judson commented: “I want to say a huge thank you to all our volunteering heroes at Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland.

“Their commitment and dedication to volunteering with CHSS allows us to support the 1 in 5 people living with chest, heart and stroke conditions across Scotland to live their lives to the full.

“Their contribution to our charity cannot be overstated. Last year our volunteers gave a total of 183,439 hours and the estimated value of their volunteering time is worth £2.7 million to the charity.

“But volunteering is about more than monetary value. Volunteers bring human connection and understanding when it is most needed, often when people are at their most vulnerable and lonely, and bring this to all the work we do.

“By giving us their time, our volunteers enable us to run our retail stores, support groups, Kindness call service, fundraising events and much more. Quite simply, we couldn’t do what we do without them.”

Volunteering even just a couple of hours a week can have a huge impact, not only for charities and their service users, but also for the volunteer, improving mental health, fostering friendships, and helping with social isolation.

Find out more about volunteering opportunities with Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland.

Volunteering