Sam was keen to help in any way she could
6th November 2020
Submitted by Maya Patel, Restore
A committed member of the support services team, Sam Robertson is the best. She is friendly, reliable, hard-working and dependable. She is always smiling and approachable – no request is too big, she really does go above and beyond to help anyone at Restore. She has also been amazing during Covid helping us to get ready for service users, staff and volunteers to return to sites. She is very passionate about Restore and always promoting Restore to the community. Sam has also helped at many fundraising events and has raised money for Restore by doing collections at different events. She has supported a number of the departments in Restore including HR, Volunteering and Training and Fundraising. She has also supported many new Reception and admin volunteers in their new role, providing a warm welcome on their first day and helping them to settle in.
Sam's manager Rose says:
'Sam is a valuable asset not only to the support services team but also our fundraising team, she is happy to turn her hand to any task and soaks up information like a sponge, she loves helping others and gives 110% at all times. Her calligraphy skills have enhanced our signs and notices. Sam will happily say that she gets as much from us as she gives to us. We are grateful she chose Restore to volunteer for.'
The volunteering Sam has done benefits Restore in a number of ways. There are so many examples we could give, where Sam has demonstrated excellence and has made a difference.
She always provides a warm and friendly welcome to visitors on reception and always eager to support staff in their roles. Often those visitors are people coming for an assessment to use our mental health services and are understandably very nervous. Just today she supported a man who was in great distress who came to Restore to get support. She was kind, patient and friendly and as a result the man thanked her for her kind nature and help. Sam is very skilled at putting people at ease and ensures that all visitors know where to get a cup of tea, or where the facilities are.
She has been especially supportive during Covid, helping the staff to get ready for service users attending and making sure we all follow government guidelines. She always reminds us to sanitise our hands when we come in, making sure we are protected from the virus and keeping us safe.
Whilst staff worked from home as sites were closed, Sam was very keen to help in any way she could. She helped with a case study to promote volunteering for Volunteer Week. Sam also put together a list of services in Oxfordshire which we could send out. Sam has also been helping with recruitment by being on the interview panel and providing valuable feedback.
She is always eager to help with fundraising events such as the Blenheim 5k and 10k run, where she welcomed runners, giving them lots of encouragement, and standing at the finish line to cheer them even though it was a very cold day!
We all definitely believe she deserves to be on the Wall of Fame as she is a true gem, always goes the extra mile and is a genuine pleasure to work with.
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