Volunteer Stories - Chris

Volunteers' Week 2026

I’m Chris and I volunteer as a mentor with Lochaber Hope. I’ve been volunteering there for just over two years now. I originally got involved because Lochaber Hope had supported me myself during some challenging circumstances, so I already knew how great the organisation was. I’ve always been receptive to volunteering and I’ve also benefitted from other people volunteering throughout my life. A mentoring qualification opportunity came up through them and I just thought, “yeah, I’m gonna do that.”

I’ve always had a positive experience of both volunteers and volunteering. For me, one of the biggest benefits is simply how it makes you feel. You just feel better after doing it. It makes you feel good and it makes the world a better place. I also wanted to give back to the community here and provide the same opportunities I had when I was younger.

One of the memories that means the most to me is seeing my first mentee move into paid employment about a year after I started mentoring them. The positive feedback I received from their parents, teachers and the wider community meant a lot to me as well.

If somebody was thinking about volunteering, I’d say just try it. It’s not a big commitment and volunteer organisations understand that you are choosing to give your time freely to be there, so even just trying is enough.