Think "small and local" for National Volunteering Week

National Volunteering Week takes place next week (May 17 to 23) and this year the theme of the event is: Small Actions, Big Impact.The Week celebrates the immense impact of volunteers throughout the county, inspiring others to volunteer along the way and showcasing the many small ways people can make a big difference, both to their local community and their own well-being.

"This National Volunteering Week, we're asking people to think small and local! Whether it's an action you can take to support your community like picking up litter or just being there for someone in your community that’s not feeling great about the current restrictions, even the smallest acts can have a big impact. The last year has been hard on us all, but there are small things we can do for ourselves, and for each other, that make a big difference," explains Offaly Volunteer Centre Manager, Deirdre Fox.

The programme of events, run by Volunteer Ireland and the network of Volunteer Centres, will take place across the week.

"This is a week-long celebration of volunteering and it's our chance to say thank you to volunteers across the county. Offaly would be a much different place if it weren't for the wonderful volunteers who give their time each year. This has never been more obvious than throughout the pandemic," adds Offaly Volunteer Centre Chairperson and community volunteer Martin Buckley.

"We want to say thank you to each and every volunteer for everything that they do, to inspire others to do the same and to encourage volunteers to join an event and take a moment to step back and recognise the positive impact they have, made" says Deirdre Fox.

The events calendar is now live on www.volunteer.ie with volunteers and volunteer managers encouraged to sign up to free events across the week. Volunteer Ireland are also inviting organisations to think about how they can thank their volunteers with lots of ideas to get started on the Volunteer Ireland website.