The Students’ Union organised a Community Volunteer Fair on Wednesday, 18 October. The event was successful for both the students and the organisations that attended. This year, seventeen charities were present in the College Hall, which is a higher number than in previous years. The success of the event was due largely to the work of this year’s student Community Outreach Officer, Bronagh McCaughan.


Students were able to receive information about how they could contribute to civic society. New contacts and connections were made with charities that had not attended the event before, and positive feedback was received from these new attendees. It was refreshing to see some of the stands led by current and past pupils of St Mary’s, who now work for, or volunteer for, particular charities. Feedback from the fair was extremely positive. Students felt that there was a great range of organisations to choose from and good information about how to volunteer: short-term or long-term, part-time or full-time. The students especially loved a special guest appearance by Debbie the Guide Dog, who received lots of attention.

Attendees included: Friends of Africa; Michaela Foundation; Guide Dogs NI; Disability Action; Suicide Awareness; CAUSE; AGE NI; Lighthouse; Cancer Focus NI; Tools for Solidarity; SPRED; Clic Sargent; Habitat for Humanity; AWARE NI; Sólás; SOS Bus and Trócaire.