Massive Congratulations to our Club secretary – Iulia Protesaru – who has been recognised by Volleyball England in the 2021 National awards as runner up in the Volunteer of the Year category! You’ll all know Jules – she’s a rock within the Club.
On winning the award Jules said “To say I’m chuffed is not enough. I may not be a winner but a runner up for Volunteer of the Year is still amazing considering the incredible work people do for this sport”. Asked what Jules is looking forward to she said “My 2021 goal is to get people to love volunteering”.
It’s a great time to get involved – after being named Club of the Year in the Volleyball England awards in 2020, Riga has gone from strength to strength despite Covid’s best efforts! We are currently welcoming new volunteers who are looking to make a difference in the sport we all love – if you are interested get in touch!
Jules is secretary for Coventry and Warwick Riga Volleyball Club but her reach, enthusiasm and impact on volleyball, our players and our volunteers goes way beyond that role.
Jules joined the committee just over 2 years ago. As a new volunteer to the sport she rapidly found her groove and stepped up way beyond what was expected of her to have a massively positive impact on our Club.
Over the last year this positive impact has included:
Jules is also keen to learn and has really developed her skills, knowledge or experience over the last year. She’s gone from newest member of the committee to the one many turn to for advice and guidance in a very short period of time. Good examples include:
Jules approaches all of the above with a friendly approach and good sense of humour. She has inspired and motivated so many over the last year becoming a fulcrum of our club. Some examples include:
Overall without Jules’ commitment and her impact to motivate our players and volunteers our Club certainly would not be coming out of the other side of COVID in such a strong position and with its members and volunteers so well engaged. Volleyball England’s the Game Plan strategy focuses on Volleyball for Life (Jules is at the heart of promoting opportunities that volleyball provides for everyone), Get Keep Grow (she has strengthened our club and made it more sustainable) and An Ace Service (she is continuously improving our products and services). As a Club we owe her massively for keeping us going through a really tough period and that’s why we think she deserves to be recognised by Volleyball England as Volunteer of the Year. We certainly hope it will also be a thank you to her and help motivate her to volunteer and remain involved in the sport for life! Thanks Jules!