Get sponsored to volunteer this Christmas

Want to make a longer lasting impact this year? Get sponsored for your volunteering with Crisis this Christmas...like George! 

George is one of our Sponsored Christmas volunteers, and he is here to tell us a bit about his experience.

How long have you been a volunteer for Crisis at Christmas and why did you sign up?

2008 was a challenging year for me personally, and when I was offered some extended time off work I took it gratefully. I had some amazing experiences travelling, playing music, meeting people, exploring places, and doing things I’d never considered before. But I returned from my sabbatical to the full impact of the financial crash, and was made redundant a couple of months later.

I found myself in December with little on the horizon, and when I saw a friend’s post about “getting her Crisis shifts confirmed”, I dug a little deeper and before I knew it had signed up for whatever they needed covering.

I was given four night shifts at a 60-guest residential shelter in Islington. The volunteers I met that night - and every night - were such a mix of people and backgrounds, but every one kind, humble, smart, and generous; amazing people to make whispered conversation with at the doorway of a sleeping room at 4am! By my second night I’d been persuaded to do all seven shifts! I made solid, lifelong friends that year, and every year afterwards.

I think my next Crisis Christmas shift will be my 100th!

What sort of volunteering jobs did you do and why did you enjoy these roles?

I’ve been a ‘Green Badge’ Assistant Shift Leader since 2017 and a Key Volunteer for a few years before. I most enjoy helping a centre run smoothly and supporting volunteers to have a great experience.

Volunteering on a nightshift teaches you a lot about patience, about making friends in quiet areas, and about finding (and accepting!) ways to be useful when they present themselves.

We tidy and clean the centres in a way that isn’t possible during busy morning and afternoon shifts; sweeping, mopping, wiping, sanitising, deep-cleaning stairwells and bannisters, scrubbing toilets and showers. We tidy and reorganise equipment ready for the next day, restocking the café points and kitchens, and if we have an overnight chef on shift, we help prep some breakfasts.

At various times in my life, some wonderful folk have stepped in to support and care for people I love when they most needed it and when I was unable; sometimes in small ways and sometimes in demanding ways, and many of whom I never knew or got to thank. I like to think that by helping a little each Christmas, I’m putting something back into the community ‘pot’ and maybe even helping some of them directly. And I know of no better way to end a year feeling productive and useful, and ready for the next.

What was the reaction from friends and family when you asked for sponsorship?

I first decided to ask my friends for sponsorship for my volunteering in 2010. I was due to volunteer 80 hours that Christmas, so I multiplied that by the UK minimum wage at the time, which gave me £467.

I wrote a little spiel on my Facebook page and sent an email to my whole address book, asking people to ‘Match My Donated Hours at Minimum Wage’. By the time the week had finished, my friends, family, and some of their friends had donated over £1,000!

It’s become an annual tradition now, and not just for me; as we approach December each year, I get at least two or three messages from people asking when I’ll be sending round my email. Some friends have donated instead of sending Christmas cards for many years now. When I couldn’t volunteer in 2020, I opened the fundraising page anyway and put a few quid in from myself.

It’s hard to describe how proud I am that across 12 years my friends have raised over £23,800 (including Gift Aid) to help people experiencing homelessness.

What is your top tip for anyone considering becoming a sponsored volunteer?

The best advice really is just to do it. Set up a donation page. You can just use the text in the templates, but if you’re feeling a bit wordy, write something from you. It doesn’t have to be super articulate because the people you know will always respond well to it. Set a modest target so that you get a buzz as it gets close, and you hopefully beat it (or double it!)

And remember you have to tell people about it! Once it’s set up, you have no excuse not to share it. Post it to your social media at least three times - once before you volunteer, once during, and once afterwards. Change your profile picture to something Crisis related. Email it to your address book - they won’t mind. Don’t be pushy, but drop it in conversations. Don’t put it in all your WhatsApp groups (some people get funny), but you can put it as your WhatsApp status.

Suggest a few donation sizes and show what that equates to; £8.91 matches 1hr volunteering at minimum wage, £29.07 reserves one Crisis at Christmas place, etc. Sharing again when you’re nearly at target is usually pretty effective as people like to be the one to tip you past it.

And always remember that however much you end up raising still helps hugely, and is more than if you didn’t bother!

Find out more about how to become a sponsored volunteer!