Exhibition Highlights 24/7 Nature of Samaritans’ Voluntary Work

The Samaritans charity held a public exhibition this week to highlight the work that the confidential 24-hour helpline does for people in Ireland.
Exhibition Highlights 24/7 Nature of Samaritans’ Voluntary Work
Alan McDonnell
7/26/2011
Updated:
9/29/2015

The Samaritans charity held a public exhibition this week to highlight the work that the confidential 24-hour helpline does for people in Ireland.


Entitled ‘24/7’, the exhibition brings to light the work the charity does with a display of professional photographs that show that Samaritans’ services are available 24 hours a day, 365 days of the year. It also celebrates the contribution made by Samaritans volunteers: over 2,000 people volunteer with the organisation in Ireland, coming from all walks of life and ranging in age from early 20s upwards.

Speaking at the exhibition launch, Director of Samaritans Ireland, Suzanne Costello, said: “We often get asked questions like ‘Who are the Samaritans?’ and ‘How do you operate?’. In some ways, we’re a focus of curiosity because, traditionally, we have gone about our work discreetly and in a below-the-radar way.

“We have embarked upon this public exhibition in an effort to highlight the extensive nature of our work. Most people are aware that you can phone the Samaritans if you are in need of emotional support, but our programme of work also includes a wide range of proactive engagement with the public: we work in the community, in prisons, and in hospital and school settings, for instance,” said Ms Costello.

“Samaritans’ services are highly professionalised but – unlike so many big, national organisations – they are delivered entirely by volunteers. Our volunteers undertake extensive training before they are permitted to take calls or meet with people who require emotional support. Following initial training, each one of our 2,000 volunteers around the country commits to providing a minimum number of volunteer hours each month, and they must take part in continuous training,” she said.

“The ‘24/7’ exhibition offers an opportunity to recognise the huge commitment that our volunteers make. It also gives the public an opportunity to understand that our volunteers come from all walks of life; are all ages; and live in different parts of the country,” she said.

‘24/7’ captures the varied services provided by Samaritans in Ireland. For the exhibition, volunteers were photographed at work in the Dublin and Sligo branches of the organisation, and at the Oxegen music festival and Wheatfield Prison, delivering some of Samaritans’ outreach services.

Some of the photos also capture volunteers on the streets of Temple Bar for a ‘feet on the street’ initiative.

Each year around the 24th of July, the Samaritans highlight the 24-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week nature of their work. As 2011 is the European Year of Volunteering, the organisation has made a particular effort to mark the date this year.

Further information about the Samaritans is available at www.samaritans.org. Anyone interested in volunteering with the organisation can telephone 01-6710071, or email [email protected].

Samaritans provides confidential, non-judgemental emotional support 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days of the year. The organisation’s services can be accessed by phone, email, text, letter and through face-to-face contact. All services are delivered by fully trained volunteers, located in branches throughout the country. Further information about Samaritans’ work is available at www.samaritans.org. The organisation’s 24-hour helplines are as follows:

Tel: 1850-60-90-90
Text: 087-2609090
Email: [email protected]