Skanda Vale Hospice is run entirely by volunteers. Members of the monastic community at Skanda Vale form the nucleus of the team together with committed and qualified volunteers. Nobody is paid a wage.

Working as a volunteer is a great way to make a positive contribution and is exceedingly rewarding.

To become a volunteer doesn't require any specific skills – simply plenty of energy and enthusiasm!
 

You could be helping with the care, in the garden, with cleaning, entertaining, fundraising...........

One of our Volunteers Eve Selli who sadly passed away last year wrote this article about volunteering.
My name is Eve and I am a Volunteer – practically professional by now. The trouble is I like being useful, so when someone asks for a helping hand, and I think I have the time and can do it, then I am there. Volunteering is a bit like alcoholism. Obviously not as detrimental to health and your nearest and dearest – on the contrary, very beneficial, but the trouble is you can’t stop and end up becoming a “voluntrolic”.

In early 2002 the Tivyside Countrywomen’s Association, of which I am the treasurer, had a talk given by Br. Michael, Br. Simon and Sr. Francesca about Skanda Vale Hospice, during which it was mentioned that volunteers would be very welcome when it was up and running. A few of us went one afternoon and visited the site while still under construction, and Br. Simon showed us around and explained about the aims and what might be useful for them.

And that’s what started it. I have some computer skills and my first task was to write fund-raising letters to go out before the fete, help preparing items and things for sale there, manned a stall selling raffle tickets and haven’t looked back since. I now come about twice a week, do a bit of typing, answer the phone if required, do a bit of this and a bit of that and enjoy myself in the company of lovely people, being spoilt and pampered left, right and centre.

This is a wonderful place and I hope to see the Residential Hospice in full swing in the not too distant future and that people around the area will really get to know the place and learn to appreciate what they have got.