Bank of Ireland staff volunteering on a high!
The staff of Bank of Ireland undertook the single biggest “Give Together” Volunteer Day on Wednesday 30 November 2016.
“Give Together”, the Bank’s charity and community investment initiative in operation since 2007, is employee-led and is supported by the Bank through the provision of one day’s paid volunteer leave annually, matched fundraising and payroll-giving.
For this volunteering event, over 80 Bank of Ireland colleagues from its Group Finance Division came together to give of their time to volunteer in 10 charity shops and warehouses across Dublin city for the Bank’s flagship charity partners, St. Vincent de Paul, Barnardos and Irish Cancer Society.
At a time of year when charity shops are particularly busy, this type of volunteering is very much welcomed by the charities, helping them to ensure that the shops monitor and control the quality of their merchandise, as well as stock take. Colleagues spent the day sorting through the various donations to the charities, which included adult and children’s clothing, jewellery, furniture, DVDs, books and trinkets, readying them for sale, as well as helping customers in-store.
Speaking about the volunteers, Daniel Alvey, National Fundraising Team, St Vincent de Paul said: “Our sincere thank you to all at Bank of Ireland for organising their biggest ever day of volunteering at St Vincent de Paul. We really appreciate everyone who contributed their time and enthusiasm during this, the busiest period of our year. Whether it was helping with sales in shops throughout Dublin or sorting donations at the warehouse in SVP House, we were so grateful for the support. Your thoughtful actions will make a real difference for individuals and families struggling to make ends meet here in Dublin and around Ireland this Christmas.”
Barnardos’ Aisling Andrews, Head of Corporate & Events, said: “We were delighted with the support of Bank of Ireland staff today who generously volunteered their time to work in our Barnardos Shop. By sorting through clothes donations and assisting our wonderful customers in the Rathmines community they have helped to raise vital funds to support our work with children and families across Ireland. We are very grateful to all volunteers who supported charity shops in their local communities today and to Bank of Ireland for their continued support of the work of Barnardos”.
The event was a huge success. Colleagues thoroughly enjoyed the experience, gaining a new perspective on the work of our flagship charity partners, and working hard in the process!
