Rachel volunteers at Romsey shop

Romsey shop

This month I was given the opportunity to experience the day of a volunteer in one of Naomi House’s charity shops. Having already gained a very hands-on volunteering experience with Naomi House at one of their Sibling Support events I was keen to understand volunteering from more of a behind the scenes perspective and this was the perfect opportunity.

On arrival, I was greeted by the store manager Audrey who was going to show me the ropes for the afternoon. I was then given a tour of the neatly presented shop floor and also upstairs where all of the donated items are sorted and prepared for selling. The first part of my afternoon was then spent greeting customers and dealing with any enquiries (if I could!). I really enjoyed this as it gave me a good insight into what happens in the shop, it was also great being able to interact with the customers and get to know the other volunteers a little bit better.

As another volunteer arrived to take over the shop floor this gave me the opportunity to get stuck in with organising some of the donated goods in the sorting room. I was also given the task of finding suitable items of the Valentine’s Day window display. To do this I sifted my way through donations to find items that would make for an eye catching display. This put my visual skills to the test and I really enjoyed piecing together both male and female outfits for the models in the window displays. Once I had completed this task Audrey and I continued to filter through donations, pricing them up and then preparing the clothes to be steamed ready for the shop floor.

One of the first things Audrey said to me when I began my shift was that it would whizz by, and she wasn’t wrong! Being in the shop for the afternoon gave me a better understanding of the hard work and the amount of volunteers that are needed to make the shop successful. It also helped me to fully appreciate the efforts of the all of the dedicated volunteers who work at the shop, without whom running it would not be possible.

Working in the shop for the afternoon was a great opportunity to interact with new people, both customers and the other volunteers. I am also sure that with the variety of tasks required to make the shop work this would ensure never having a dull day. On reflection I really enjoyed my afternoon in the shop and felt as though my contribution was really appreciated. As such I would really recommend this kind of work for anyone who is considering volunteering.