GRAND CAYMAN (GIS) – The Youth Services Unit (YSU) is hosting the Cayman Islands’ inaugural Student Volunteer Fair on Friday, 22 June 2018.

Twenty-three charities and non-profit organisations have signed up to display booths at the event. The fair will allow students (Years 9 through 13) the chance to speak directly to volunteer organisations, and to give the latter a chance to highlight their work and provide information on the range of high school student volunteer opportunities offered.

The fair will be held at the John Gray High School gymnasium from 9am to 3pm.

As an added incentive to participate, the YSU will hold random prize draws, giving students the opportunity to win spot prizes throughout the day. One exhibitor will receive $1,000 for its organisation from the fair’s co-sponsor, Island Heritage Insurance, during the morning session. The company will also hold an afternoon draw, and the winner will be featured as one of the charities of choice in next year’s Island Heritage CharityDrive. Exhibitors who win the first prize or are already featured in this year’s Island Heritage CharityDrive are not eligible to enter the later draw.

Participating organisations in this year’s fair  include the Cayman Islands Humane Society, Cayman HospiceCare, Cayman Islands Red Cross, National Council of Voluntary Organisations (NCVO), Family Resource Centre (FRC), Cayman Animal Rescue Enthusiasts (CARE), One Dog At A Time (ODAAT), Feed Our Future, YMCA, National Drug Council (NDC), Acts Of Random Kindness (Cayman ARK), Cayman Islands Crisis Centre, Cayman Heart Fund, Cayman Islands Cancer Society, Lions Club, Kiwanis Club of Grand Cayman, Rotary Club, National Trust for the Cayman Islands, Cayman National Cultural Foundation (CNCF), Special Olympics Cayman Islands (SOCI), Plastic Free Cayman, Cayman Drama Society and Impact 345.

“As a unit we are always looking for ways to invest in our youth,” said YSU Youth Services Coordinator James Myles. “We decided to organise this fair, to fill the very real need students now have, to find compatible volunteer opportunities to complete the mandatory community service requirements necessary to graduate.”

Mr. Myles advised that the voluntary organisations and charities chosen were selected for their ability to offer meaningful community work assignments and for their capacity to take on multiple volunteers.

“I am delighted that our Ministry is leading the way in this public and private sector initiative, as the fair’s platinum sponsor partnering with Island Heritage,” said Minister for Youth, Hon. Juliana O’Connor-Connolly. “The role of the Youth Services Unit, as well as that of Government, is to encourage initiatives that provide opportunities for young people. The Student Volunteer Fair will help students find opportunities that will help shape them into well-rounded citizens, who contribute to their society and find community causes they are passionate about.”

To accommodate high students, schools are assigned either the morning or the afternoon session; running from 9 a.m. to 11.45 a.m. and from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., respectively.

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IMAGE: Minister for Youth, Hon. Juliana O’Connor-Connolly