Chris has always held to the maxim that ‘if you don’t use it, you lose it’, so when he reached retirement 15 years ago, he began volunteering. Over the years he’s spoken to over 5,000 carers.
“In the time since I’ve been making calls, I’ve arranged helpline callbacks for about 400 carers. About 50 of these were people in a desperate situation and weren’t sure they could carry on caring. I’m proud to have played a part in getting carers the support they need.
Carers tend to get on with things without asking for help. I spoke to one lady who started our call saying she was ok and didn’t need any help. She went on to mention she had cancer and was caring for two people! I gently suggested she could do with some support.
I would most definitely recommend volunteering for Carers First. They’ve always respected my experience and allowed me to share my ideas to improve processes. They also make me feel very valued - I visited the Head office a couple of years ago and they made me feel like a celebrity. Everyone seemed to know who I was and thanked me.”
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