Dundalk youth charity seeks local volunteers

Local charity Extern is seeking volunteers with a passion for the arts, sport and outdoor pursuits, or health and wellbeing to share their skills and deliver special workshops for vulnerable and marginalised children and young people across Dundalk and the surrounding areas.

The charity is currently based locally in the Redeemer Family Resource Centre, and supports marginalised young people across the county and beyond. 

Colin McCusker, Service Manager with Extern, has worked  with the charity in Dundalk for over eighteen years and talked about some of the group's work.

We started working in Dundalk in 2003, working with groups of young people from Coxs and Muirhevnamor.

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“We work with young people aged between eight to 18 and their families, on a one to one basis. 

“Some of those we work with may have challenging behaviour, or may be socially isolated or have turned to criminality so what we do is develop tailor made supports that respond to the needs of individual young people to try and keep them in their homes or alternatively at the lowest level of the care system. 

“We try to build on the young person’s skills and their coping skills and get them to engage with the local community. 

“We work to engage them in sports or different social activities whether that be music, drama, cooking, outdoor pursuits or any sort of interest they may have.

“A lot of it is about building on the interests they have or helping them identify interests they may not have even known they had in the first place.”

It is for this part of the group’s work that they are seeking local volunteers for.

“What we’re really focused on and what we’d really love is people that have skills and experience in certain areas like the ones I’ve just mentioned, and feel they could pass these skills onto a young person.”

Colin has seen the real life impact this sort of mentorship and skills development can have in the local community.

“We had one young person who had a passion for water sports but was never able to develop it.

However we got them in contact with the local Kayaking Club in Dundalk and they found a real passion that changed their life focus and experience. 

“Without our programme that young person may never have got an opportunity to do that.

The charity are currently seeking volunteers from Dundalk and the surrounding area.

To find out more  visit www.extern.org

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