I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to volunteer at PRM for three months (April, May, June) in the early part of 2013. I’d spent a fair amount of time researching different places around the world to volunteer at, and managed to stumble across PRM on the internet one evening. Having never been to Jamaica before and extremely interested in seeing what life on the island would be like I quickly signed up.
Although a number of the other volunteers I worked with had backgrounds in medicine, nursing, social work etc., being an archaeologist I had very little experience dealing with either the homeless or those with mental illnesses. From this perspective the work was quite challenging, but I soon found that no matter what your background, sometimes all that can be needed to help is just to sit and talk, or take the time to listen. A day spent working at PRM could involve anything from cooking meals, administering medication or even something like leading guided meditation.
I’m so grateful for my time spent at PRM, its changed me for the better, I genuinely felt like I was making some kind of a difference, and I’ve made a number of friendships that I will always cherish.
Iain