Siobhan 'helping people to help themselves'

Siobhan Scullion,(pictured) who recently finished her PhD at the University of Ulster, was paid to work for Trocaire as part of the Vodafone "Make a World of Difference" campaign.

The scheme provides applicants with the opportunity to assist a charity of their choice and get paid for their work. Siobhan decided that Trocaire was the charity for her. "I've grown up with the Trocaire box in the house during the Lent campaign, and I really like the work that they do. The difference with Trocaire is that they are helping people in developing countries to help themselves" she said.

Siobhan was based in the charity's Belfast office during a very challenging time, as they tried to raise funds for the Haiti Earthquake appeal. This coincided with the launch of the Trocaire fast and Lenten appeals, so it was a busy time for the organisation.

Siobhan spoke of how impressed she was with the charity and the way everyone came together to help out in a crisis. "It is great to be involved with something that is making such a difference to people's lives, and seeing how it all comes together. The help that Trocaire are providing is practical. They send people to areas where help is needed and provide them with the skills and tools they need. It is a really sustainable way to help."

Trocaire provide people with everything from seeds to grow their own crops, to access to credit so that they can get the start in life that they need. The money is often used to start up a business or to send children to school. The scale of the problems caused by poverty are vast. A recent World Health Organisation report found that one billion people in the world go to bed hungry every night, and five million children die of hunger or malnutrition every year. Siobhan says that money raised from this year's Lenten appeal will be used to continue helping people to pull themselves out of poverty.

Local people have made a huge contribution to this. Last year the diocese of Down and Connor raised 705,000 for Trocaire.

Siobhan, who studied at the University of Ulster at Coleraine, has a degree in Biomedical Science, and did her PhD on Diabetes. The time at Trocaire has helped her decide that she would like to put her skills to use in a way that will help others, and hopes to return to Trocaire in the future. In the meantime, she is planning to go to South Africa to help in the fight against HIV and Aids. Siobhan hopes to pass on the laboratory skills she learned at University to people there, so that they can put them to good use in the fight against the virus.

Her advice to anyone who is interested in doing some charity work is just to go for it. "I would recommend it to anyone, it is a great scheme. And I would like to thank Vodafone for the support and everyone at Trocaire for having me on board."

Anyone who is interested in applying for the "Make a World of Difference" scheme can do so through the Vodafone website.