Bill Brown volunteers for the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust
I HAVE been involved in voluntary roles throughout my adult life, mainly through churches that I have attended. These included youth work, construction and activities with children at an orphanage in Bulgaria and various leadership roles. This was all in addition to working full-time and bringing up a family.
When I stopped working full-time, I was keen to give something within the charity sector a try. I set up a human resources consultancy and worked with a couple of charities, including a children’s cancer charity. One day in 2016 when my wife and myself were having lunch at Largs Marina, I noticed a poster looking for volunteers for the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust and, as I had recently taken up sailing, I contacted them and started volunteering on sailing trips with young people recovering from cancer. I saw this as a great opportunity to combine my newly discovered interest in sailing with doing something significant in the lives of young people.
The purpose of the Trust is to help young people rebuild their confidence after cancer and look towards a positive future. The trips take place after treatment ends and help the young people rebuild their lives. The Trust provides the bridge between treatment and a young person seizing the future they may never have imagined possible.
We run two types of sailing trips. Our four-day trips are a gentle introduction to sailing onboard 38-48ft yachts, whilst encouraging teamwork, enjoying an adventure with new friends and having fun. Our five-day “return to sail” trips take the sailing part a little further and allow the young people to gain more confidence, attain qualifications and develop practical and life skills to put on their CVs.
Shortly after I started volunteering, I realised that sailing is only the means used to achieve significant changes in the lives of the young people who come on trips. It is the conversations on the trip and the activities which bring
them together that have a significant impact on helping them to start rebuilding their confidence.
All logistics are taken care of, including travel to the marinas, in either Largs or Cowes on the Isle of Wight, with a volunteer and others from their hospital, so before they even arrive they have the chance to get to know each other.
After each trip we debrief as a group and share our “best bit, worst bit and funniest bit”. The feedback given includes the sailing, the beautiful scenery, the water fight between the boats, the banter, the games, the laughs and the opportunity to share with people who have gone through the same trauma that they have. I constantly see a marked increase in confidence in many of the young people who come on these trips.
As a volunteer I get so much out of playing a small part in something that is so significant in the journey that young people are undertaking in rebuilding their life after cancer. It is both humbling and satisfying for me personally.
To find out more visit www.ellenmacarthurcancertrust.org/get-involved/volunteer/
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here