Dublin Simon Community
For my first week of work experience/community service I spent a week at Simon Community in Dublin. On Monday the 4th of December I went to the Simon Community headquarters in Smithfield. There I met Karla Tumbrey, the woman who organises Transition Year placements in Simon. I learned about the history of Dublin Simon, it was founded by a group of Trinity and UCD students in 1969, and I learned about the code of conduct. On the first day I decided to work at a Simon charity shop on Camden Street. At about midday I walked down to Camden Street, met the staff working at the shop and learned about what I would be doing for the week.
I worked from 10-4 for the week, with an hour break for lunch. I had many roles during the week some of which included working at the till, tagging clothes, taking in donations and cleaning the shop. I really enjoyed my week at Simon.
I liked the independence I got and I felt like I was part of the staff, not just a TY doing work there. All of the staff were very nice. It was amazing to see how all the small purchases added up and reached well over the target of €420 and even twice the target on one day! Interacting with people who were struggling with homelessness/poverty and giving them things such as blankets and socks really made me feel like I was making a difference. I think that working at Simon will definitely benefit me with jobs in the future, I learned how to work at a till and I improved my customer skills.
I worked from 10-4 for the week, with an hour break for lunch. I had many roles during the week some of which included working at the till, tagging clothes, taking in donations and cleaning the shop. I really enjoyed my week at Simon.
I liked the independence I got and I felt like I was part of the staff, not just a TY doing work there. All of the staff were very nice. It was amazing to see how all the small purchases added up and reached well over the target of €420 and even twice the target on one day! Interacting with people who were struggling with homelessness/poverty and giving them things such as blankets and socks really made me feel like I was making a difference. I think that working at Simon will definitely benefit me with jobs in the future, I learned how to work at a till and I improved my customer skills.