Galway Volunteer Centre has just launched an exciting new campaign to encourage the citizens of Galway City and County to think about helping out in their local community.  The ‘I DO IT – Volunteer This Year!’ campaign was formally launched by the Mayor of Galway City, Councillor Declan Mc Donnell.

The new campaign reaches out to members of the public and promotes the benefits of volunteering such as making new friends, developing new skills and personal well being. 

Speaking at the launch, the Mayor welcomed the campaign, and encouraged everyone to give volunteering a try as he believed they would enjoy and benefit from the experience as well as enhance the quality of life for all in Galway.

“Part of the attraction of living in Galway city is the vitality that volunteers bring to the arts, social services, sports and many other activities that would not happen otherwise. Volunteers should feel a great sense of pride and satisfaction about their commitment to their community”

The aim of the ‘I DO IT!’ campaign is to highlight the fact that volunteers come from a wide variety of backgrounds representing all sections of society.  People volunteer for different reasons, including being interested in a particular issue, wanting to develop new skills, and meet new people.  The campaign will be distributing posters and leaflets across Galway City and County to get this message across.

As part of the campaign, Galway Volunteer Centre is also distributing stickers with the slogan ‘I DO IT – Volunteer This Year!’ to people who are currently volunteering.  The Centre wants volunteers to place this sticker on car windows or elsewhere to encourage others to think about giving it a go also. “Volunteering can often be invisible to the general public, though they may be benefitting from it throughout the year, for example through being able to access services or participate in festivals.  People from all walks of life enjoy volunteering and we would love if they helped to encourage others who haven’t had the opportunity yet” said Linda Keane, Chairperson of Galway Volunteer Centre.

Anyone interested in volunteering can call to the office can call to the office or register online at www.volunteergalway.ie.  “We usually have around 100 vacancies available at any one time and we meet with as many people as possible to identify suitable opportunities for them. You do not have to make an immediate commitment when you visit our centre and the service is free,” stated Linda.

Since opening in 2006, over 3,500 people have registered with Galway Volunteer Centre seeking volunteer work.  The Centre estimates that people finding volunteer work through the GVC have contributed almost 70,000 hours of their time to their local community.

The promotional campaign has been developed with the assistance of National Lottery Funding.

Anyone who would like any posters, leaflets or stickers can call to the GVC office on 17/18 Mill Street, contact the office at 091 539930 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Galway Volunteer Centre is a one-stop shop for voluntary activity, providing volunteering opportunities for the public, sourcing much needed volunteers for organisations and providing support for organisations in managing volunteers.