Seeing the good in people

Clare Daish recently joined Youthline as the newsletter editor for the comms team. Currently working for the Parliamentary Services, she is also studying nursing at Whitireia Polytechnic.

So what inspired her to add a volunteering role to her already busy life?

“I think I was inspired to join Youthline because I’ve seen first hand how much young people can struggle in today’s society. I’ve had a lot of peers describe feeling like they can’t talk to anyone in their life about their feelings for various reasons. I think that this is where Youthline comes in handy. I basically just wanted to help out in whatever small way possible to hopefully spread some awareness on youth wellbeing and how Youthline can help those in need.”

She credits her fellow volunteers for keeping her on top of things when struggling to juggle all her commitments.

“I like the attitudes of all my fellow Youthline volunteers. The atmosphere they create is so welcoming and positive. It makes me feel very optimistic that this amazing group of people are taking time out of their busy lives to help out our youth and shape our next generation.”

She has already learned a lot from her time at Youthline, and it has taught her a great deal about volunteering, and people in general.

“It is all very heart-warming seeing the good in people. There is a great range of things that Youthline does to benefit the young people of New Zealand. I think that even simply raising awareness of mental wellbeing, and being there for other people, makes large change in our societies attitudes towards these more taboo topics.

“I believe that fostering the healthy attitudes and positive values that Youthline promotes, this is helping shape our young people into their best selves. This will ultimately benefit New Zealand society in the future.”