Catalyst’s second volunteer day at Julia’s House Creekmoor warehouse

On the 2^nd July, three members of the Catalyst team took part in our second official volunteering day, lending their support to Julia’s House with a day at their warehouse and charity shop in Creekmoor, Poole.

As part of Catalyst’s commitment to ESG initiatives, every team member is given two paid volunteering days each year. These can be used to support a charity of their choice, or to participate in company-organised volunteering opportunities such as this one.

Kate Haas, Marketing Manager; Matt Gillon, Director of Underwriting; and Catherine Balsom, Sales Administrator, dedicated their day to assisting the Julia’s House team. Matt was very quick to volunteer his services in the toy department! Meanwhile, Catherine and Kate got very nifty with a clothes tag gun, attaching the all-important gift aid codes to the newly donated clothes and then sorting them into the correct categories (although they were slightly distracted by the toys too…)

Our team were very impressed by the scale and logistics of the warehouse operations, brilliantly run by the lovely staff and regular volunteers. They were also wowed by the huge, beautifully laid out shop.

Kate Haas, Marketing Manager at Catalyst said:
“We all had such a brilliant day, and it was great to be able to help in a small way. It’s given me more of an insight into how charity shops operate and the work that goes on behind the scenes. I couldn’t believe the scale of the warehouse operations, and I have never seen such an amazing charity shop!”

Matt Gillon, Director of Underwriting at Catalyst added:
“It was so well organised, and a big thank you to Angela for showing us what to do, plus her patience when I kept jamming the label machine! Julia’s House are such a great charity, I’m so lucky to have been able to see just a small amount of what they do.”

Catherine Balsom, Sales Administrator at Catalyst said:
“I had a brilliant day at the Creekmoor Warehouse. The experience gave me a real appreciation for the organisation and effort involved in running the charity shops. I spent the day tagging clothes and accessories for Gift Aid, then sorted the items into the appropriate areas so the Julia’s House team could price them. I thoroughly enjoyed the day and would do this again.”

Caroline Attreed, Corporate Fundraiser at Julia’s House, added:
“Such fantastic support you are all giving! We love seeing how much fun you are having whilst helping us to make a huge difference.”