Going the extra Mile

David Colla has been volunteering with us since 2014. He volunteers as a buddy with Shaun, one of the people we support. They go on trips together to all sorts of places, including the opera, Severn Valley Railway, Weston Super Mare, Fleet Air Army Museum and the Underfall Yard.

David always attends volunteer socials, and recently shared his experiences with new volunteers at our first volunteer induction session. David was also the winner of the Volunteer of the Year award at our 2019 Extra Mile Awards Ceremony.

Judy Shire, a staff member who knows both Shaun and David, said: “Oh my God, Shaun loves David. When David is coming, Shaun is so excited. They’ve got their own bond, I cannot explain, we don’t know what would happen if David stopped volunteering! He has made a very good relationship with Shaun – unbelievable, one of the best.”

When asked about Shaun, David said: “He’s incredible. Everybody knows Shaun, every place we go people say ‘I remember you!’ The amount of times someone says ‘oh hello Shaun!‘ We’re mates, I think we are. I don’t know what he thinks!”

Since the start of the coronavirus outbreak, all non-essential visits to homes have been stopped, including visits from volunteers. This has meant that David and Shaun haven’t been able to go on trips together. However, they’ve kept in touch by arranging a weekly phone call.

David says: “He sounds bright and he sounds cheerful which is good. He says he understands. I’m glad it supports him and the team at the home. We’ve been discussing what we will do when this is all over and he’s had a good idea -we’ll go to dinner. It would be good to do again.”