Fairthorne Manor's Volunteer Spotlight: Meet Mark
07/11/2024
Celebrating National Volunteers Week - Meet today's Volunteer: Mark!
Mark has been in the Royal Marines since 1990 and moved to a desk job within the service in the last year. Mark was one of the first to move into the new Stoneham estate and knew he wanted to give back to the community. This change in role gave him the time to be able to commit regularly and the YMCA in the heart of the development was the perfect opportunity.
Mark, who has marathon running in his DNA met with Derren, the Eastleigh Community Manager and discussed how he could bring his skills to the local community and a running club was born. Risk assessments, first aid courses and routes were completed and the running club was ready for its first members.
The running club has a wide range of runners from beginners to those looking for challenging length regular runs and Mark is able to deliver the session to suit all abilities. He runs the whatsapp group to help keep the feeling of community and support going. He knows that those who attend improve every week and whatever pace that is at participants are in the fresh air and enjoying physical activity.
Mark says that what keeps him coming back is ‘knowing I make a difference, seeing progression in their running, helping them and getting a sense of wellbeing from the experience. I recently had a 22 year old join the sessions and he went from being unfit, to walking / jogging, to running 5k and applied to join the Royal Navy. Last week he passed out of training and is now serving.’
Mark says ‘If you have a bit of spare time and looking for a sense of community, whether its to build one or take part in one, volunteering is a great opportunity. If we can all get together and give back a little it can make a big impact on the community around us’
To join the running club please head to YMCA Eastleigh on Wednesdays at 6.30 (please turn up 15 mins early for the first session to complete paperwork). To find out more about volunteering opportunities at the YMCA please contact volunteering@ymca-fg,org
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