“Near our Hub in Rialto there is a community centre called F2. They offer loads of programmes for different ages and different people. You can do activities like boccia, cooking, dance classes, and chair yoga. I regularly went to activities there with my friends from the Rialto Hub. Seeing the work that the people in F2 do, I liked how they help people in the community. I think it’s important for people to give back and help make society better.

So, I went into the centre and asked if they had any opportunities and gave them my CV. From that, I secured a job interview. In the interview, I wasn’t nervous or scared; I felt confident as I thought I’d be great in the role. I wore a blue suit to help me prepare, with a shirt and tie. When they told me I got the job, I was delighted!

On the first day, my boss showed me around. I met a lot of people. They were all very friendly and I quickly felt part of the team. I love my role in the centre. It’s varied. I do odd jobs and help wherever I can. From welcoming people at the front desk and directing them where to go, to cleaning the hall and helping set up for events and classes. My favourite part of the job is meeting all the people who come to the community centre. You get to meet all sorts of people. It makes me very happy.

I’ve been working at F2 for nearly three years now.  I have the best time with the staff who have become my friends. We’re always telling jokes and pulling pranks. Last year, when we were getting ready for Christmas, we had to take the tree out of the basement. The fellas tied the tree to my wheelchair, and I pulled it out. We have some craic!

My goal is to make people happy and show that anyone can be part of the community. I think it’s important for people to give back and help make their community better in whatever way they can. Earlier this year, I noticed a real problem with people leaving dog poo on the pavements near the community centre and our Enable Ireland hub. I lobbied the local council to clean it up and met with my local councillors to discuss the issues. After the meeting, they arranged for the streets to be cleaned, and the dog poo was cleared. It was a great sense of achievement knowing I had done something to help improve our area for everybody. I’ll do anything to try to make the community better.

My hope for the future is to secure a paid role in a supermarket, like Dunnes. The experience I’ve built at F2 will be very valuable, and it would be fantastic to work in a paid role where I get to work with the public and meet lots of people.”