how people and places responsible volunteering was born
people and places and market leaders The Gambia Experience are working in partnership to enable people
placement director Kate dancing with local partner from The Gambia Adama
who want to volunteer The Gambia - read more here.
Sallie recently wrote a piece for The Gambia Experience blog explaining how and why people and places was conceived – it has a lot to do with the Gambia!
“people and places was conceived in a garden in The Gambia – so The Gambia, and the work we do there, has a special place in our hearts. We couldn’t ask for better partners than The Gambia Experience to work with us on our volunteer programme; we know all at the Gambia Experience share our commitment to the warm and welcoming people of The Gambia.
Let me tell you how it all began for people and places… In a previous life I sold clothes for tall women through a chain of retail stores in the UK. I loved it – nothing better than identifying a need and satisfying it, especially when others are patently failing. That was certainly the case for tall women in the ’80s and ’90s in the UK. I learnt a lot: about marketing on a shoe string; bookkeeping and accounting; customer service and quality control; people management; building trust with partners and suppliers (we were so small when we started we certainly weren’t going to make anyone rich!); even a little about fashion and predicting trends; but most of all responsibility. And though I didn’t realise at the time, my time selling frocks was preparing me for the important work we at people and places do now – matching skilled and experienced volunteers to vulnerable communities’ needs. All the business skills I learnt in 25 years of retail management – every one of them – I apply and use every day to help economically poor communities build the future they want for themselves.. Read the remainder of this entry »
