Kildare TY volunteers making a difference in their community

TRANSISTION Year students at Kilcullen's Cross & Passion College are helping out a local toddler group as volunteers, and they are described as being 'a big help'.

"Volunteers are always a difficulty for groups like ours," says Niamh Byrne, current chair of the Kilcullen Toddler Group, who manages the operation with fellow mums Aine and Rachel. "While all the children here will have a parent or guardian with them, we also need people to help us run the morning. If we don't have at least two helpers, we can't hold the session." 

The work includes keeping the toddlers amused and safe, organising distribution of toys, and helping with tea and biscuits for the adults through the morning.

The original group was founded by local librarian Julie O'Donoghue in the 1990s, and today it caters for up to 30 little ones every Wednesday morning in Kilcullen Parish Centre. It's the first time that TY students have taken on the helper role, having been asked to volunteer under the Community Initiative module. Groups of three will rotate duties ... and it seems there was no shortage of volunteers when the call was made. 

For Roisin Munnelly, the gig called to her intrinsic love of volunteering. "And I just love going around the room with the children anyway." Luke Duffy was pre-primed for the initiative because "my aunt has two little ones, and they're so cute." 

For Nita Murape it appealed to her "love of kids". "I've had experience of looking after little ones and I just love it, and also I'm doing it for the community."

Niamh Byrne was impressed how the three students "just got stuck in". 

"It was really nice, I even had time for a coffee and not be running around like a lunatic!" She's anxious to get the word out to anyone looking after a toddler to take advantage of the mornings, which are also very social for the grown-ups. "Parents, grandparents, child-minders, all are welcome. The children can play and the adults can chat and have a tea or coffee." She recalls that when she was a first time mother, "I was the first among my own friends to have a child, and the toddler group was a lifeline for me, to get out of the house and meet others like myself."

A grant from the Kildare County Childcare Committee covers acquiring new toys, rent, and insurance. Voluntary donations from those attending keep the tea and biscuits flowing.