Volunteers of Cork: Without this service people would go hungry

THIS week, I caught up with Bernadette Kenny, who lives in Montenotte and works as a Finance Manager in an engineering company, EDC Ltd, in Blackpool.

She went in to help with their accounts three mornings a week for three months in November, 2012, and is still there - but planning on retiring soon.

She currently volunteers with Homeless Help and Support Cork. However, Bernadette has also been volunteering with ‘Consider it Cakes’, the ISPCC, and also gives her time as a driver with the Irish Cancer Society, where she drives people to and from their appointments.

Homeless Help and Support Cork was formed in 2018 with an aim to provide direct support to individuals in the situation of homelessness, along with offering emotional and counselling support to those at risk of sleeping rough.

Each Tuesday and every second Friday at 8.30pm, a group of volunteers provide an outreach food and clothing programme outside Ulster Bank on Patrick Street in Cork city. 

They assist up to 80 individuals per night on these runs.

They provide a soup kitchen, hygiene-packs, clothing and sleeping bags to those who are in desperate need of support. The streets of Cork can be an extremely cold place late at night and the provisions and support provided by Homeless Help and Support Cork could literally be life-saving to some.

Bernadette regularly volunteers on these evenings and here gives us an insight into her volunteering experience.

How did your volunteering journey begin?

I started my volunteering journey in 2020 – I joined a group called ‘Consider it Cakes’, which provides home-made Birthday & Celebration cakes for the Direct Provision Centres all over Ireland and now also the Homeless Distribution Centres.

I had volunteered to bake for the Homeless Help & Support Distribution on the Tuesday night and when I brought in the individually wrapped Brownies & Fruit Cake, I stayed to help, and was so touched by the clients I met that I signed up there and then and have been going every Tuesday and second Friday since.

A couple of months later, I spotted a post on Facebook that the Irish Cancer Society were looking for volunteer drivers so I applied and completed the training course and have been driving clients to and from their appointments when I can get some time off work. 

My hope is to be able to do at least one drive a week when I retire very soon.

While volunteering as a driver, you get to meet the most courageous people and help to make their journey through treatment that little bit easier. It is an incredible service and really well run and supported by the Irish Cancer Society. As a driver, you are made to feel part of a team.

My newest volunteer role is with the ISPCC – which, having completed a training course on June 22, I now do four hours a week for Childline – they are currently looking for more volunteers so if anyone has four hours to spare in the week, I have to say that this is an incredibly rewarding role.

The best thing for me about my volunteering work has to be the lovely people I have met along the way, both clients and the people I work with.

Tell us about what you do when volunteering with Homeless Help and Support Cork?

On a typical Tuesday night, I arrive down to Patrick Street around 8.15pm having collected cakes, which are kindly donated from the Metropole Hotel every Tuesday for the distribution. We then set up our tables and food for distribution. I make the teas and coffees and usually give out the soup to our clients. It can be very busy at the start as there is always a group of clients waiting patiently for whatever we have on offer.

What impact does this service have on the clients?

The service we provide impacts hugely on the lives of the clients that call to our table. 

We are told regularly that without the service they would not have enough food to eat and would go hungry.

During the winter, it can mean the difference between sleeping in the rain with no tent or sleeping bag. When possible, we try and provide these.

We have regular clients that come and there is always time to chat to them and hear how their week is going and see if there is anything we can give them to help make it better.

Has volunteering changed your outlook in any way?

My volunteer work has certainly changed how I look at life now. I had a very busy life rearing five children, working part-time, and didn’t have a lot of time to stop and think. This has now changed, and I like to think that I am taking time to consider how hard life can be when you are dealt a different hand, and then about how I can help make things better for even one person.

I am embarrassed to say that I really don’t know much about politics, but I feel there is something really wrong when you see so many people homeless and in need of our service.

What kind of interactions do you have when volunteering?

So, there are lots of different interactions with our clients. We have fun times where we make each other laugh and then we might have to listen to something awful that happened and there will be tears. We also have a client that likes to sing to us sometimes. There can be some scary times when you feel a fight may be about to break out, but the crew I work with are excellent at dealing with all situations.

With so much going on, at work and volunteering, how do you unwind?

Playing doubles tennis with my best friends, and also my favourite would be listening to the musicians in the Bellevue Bar with my family and the friends I have met up there.

Shout Outs

Honestly, I have met so many amazing people whilst volunteering. I couldn’t single out any one person, they are such a lovely group of people to work with.

Plans for the Future?

As I am hoping to take early retirement shortly, my aim is to have at least 15 hours per week volunteering in my various roles.

I hope to continue on Tuesdays and Fridays and do at least one drive a week for the Irish Cancer Society and four hours with Childline.

I am also registered with the Cork Community Volunteers so my aim would be to get more involved here too.

How would someone get involved with

volunteering with Cork Homeless Help and Support Cork?

It is really easy to get involved, it’s as simple as calling down to the table any Tuesday night and taking it from there.

Or you can visit https://homelesshelpcork.com/volunteer/ to find more information about what they do and how to get involved.