Most weekends, when our Angels walk around Guildford’s town centre streets, or when one of our volunteers visits a home or workplace, many people presume that we are employed by someone like the police, a charity or the council, to do the valuable work we undertake. When our volunteers explain that they go out without renumeration and sacrifice their own time to support vulnerable individuals, most enquirers are ‘blown away’. A recurrent phrase Street Angels hear when operating on our streets is “your legends” for doing that. Following that they may even get a ‘high five’ or hug from the individual.
But if you ask our wonderful volunteers what they’ve gained from their experiences with us, their answers often show that volunteering is not only good for the community, but can improve your own personal physical and mental health and wellbeing. Volunteering is known to have many benefits, for some it may be new skills and valuable work experience. For others making new friends or the sense of giving something back or connecting with the community in a useful and valuable way. There is also a sense that by positively contributing to the community you make it a better place to live and work which benefits everyone whether or not you have a need for us. We are blessed to have a good working relationship with Surrey police, Pub-watch, Guildford Borough Council and many other local charities. We have also been delighted when senior community representatives, such as MP’s, Councillors, three of our Mayors and other local dignitaries have come out with us.
We are so pleased that our 100+ volunteers are making a difference to our community week by week and are grateful they have done so for more than 16 years. If you or anyone you know want to find out more about volunteering with us please click on the Street Angel, Community Angel or Volunteer Chaplain tabs to find out more, and then maybe you could become a legend too!
