Integrated College Dungannon student’s selfless volunteering with multiple charities is recognised in national awards programme
Katharine Paisley, 18, of Dungannon, Co. Tyrone, a year-14 student at Integrated College, Dungannon, has been named on the list of top 20 youth volunteers of 2014.
Katharine is a volunteer with Dungannon Special Olympics Swimming Club, Castlecaulfield Guides, Castlecaulfield Presbyterian Sunday School and Kilnaslee Community Development Group. The award judges called her efforts “remarkable and inspiring.”
The Pramerica Spirit of Community Awards is the only programme in Ireland that honours and celebrates youth volunteerism.
Senior Managing Director and CIO of Pramerica Systems Ireland Ltd., Caroline Faulkner, says, “Katharine is a youth leader of today and will certainly be a leader of tomorrow. Her volunteerism is quite remarkable and her motivation is quite simple – to give back, to make a difference. I congratulate her for being one of the top youth volunteers in Ireland.”
Katharine has won an engraved silver medallion and €500. She will also be invited to a gala awards ceremony on 26 March in Solis Lough Eske Castle, Donegal, where the two overall 2014 Youth Volunteers of the Year will be named.
The two overall winners will each receive €1,000 for a charity of their choice, a gold medallion, a crystal trophy for their school and an all-expense paid trip to the United States in May to participate in the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards ceremony.
The awards are held in partnership with the National Association of Principals and Deputy Principals (NAPD) and the General Teaching Council for Northern Ireland (GTCNI).
The selection committee that will choose the two All-Ireland Youth Volunteers of the Year will include John Hume as chair; Andrea McBride, Pramerica; Ivan Arbuthnot, GTCNI; Clive Byrne, NAPD; Wendy Osbourne, CEO Volunteer Now and Yvonne McKenna, CEO Volunteer Ireland.
Katharine’s Volunteering Story
Katharine Paisley, 18, of Dungannon, Co. Tyrone, a year-14 student at Integrated College Dungannon, is a volunteer with Dungannon Special Olympics Swimming Club, Castlecaulfield Guides, Castlecaulfield Presbyterian Sunday School and Kilnaslee Community Development Group.
Her voluntary work with the Special Olympics Swimming club includes creating lesson plans, getting to know the athletes, learning how to work around their disability, perfecting their swimming technique and helping them gain confidence in the water.
“The pride and joy I get out of seeing the athletes advancing in their sport, and seeing the smiles on their faces when they know they’ve done something really well makes my day,” she says.
As a volunteer with Castlecaulfied Guides, Katharine works with teenage girls, teaching them crafts or languages in a way they find interesting.
Her volunteer work for Kilnaslee Community Development Group involves helping out at catering and charity events.
“Katharine coaches challenging athletes, which requires great patience and understanding of their specific needs. They respond to her enthusiastic, gentle nature which makes their swim sessions enjoyable.”
