Mar & Mark (or Mar(k) for short) are the latest volunteers to answer some questions for us. They are currently volunteering in for VSO in Ghana, and are on a two year long placement. If you are, have or plan to volunteer and would like to share your story, perhaps by writing a blog for us or answering some questions like Mar(k), we would love to hear from you! Should you be intrigued by this short interview, you can read more about Mar(k) and their adventures on their volunteer blog.

When and why did you decide to do volunteer work?

We first decided to do some volunteering work about two years ago. We were coming to the end of our “working lives” in the petroleum industry, and wanted to do something more “meaningful” that could utilise our business skills, and at the same time, hopefully help others in some way.

Grant seeking or fund raising will generally not require you to leave your home. The job entails writing to a list of companies and grant funds etc. representing the organisation, presenting it to the entity in question and explaining why you are applying for a grant or donation.

A perfect position if you only have little time to spare but are wellspoken and good at writing formal applications. Some level of independence is required as you may not be given much information on what to write or to whom to write. Some organisations do, however, provide a list of grants to which they want help applying.

Often the organisations who require this service will be short staffed with little time to spare on writing these applications themselves, or foreign and lacking personnel with the required level of skill. As such, it is just as important and valuable as the more hands-on positions and makes just as much difference.  Without funding, other forms of volunteering would be much costlier.