New Mentor for Longford YouthBank!

Hosted by the Leap Forogie project in Longford Town since 2002, Longford Young Investors has helped many local groups by providing funding. Triny’s experience has been extremely varied since she joined as a grantmaker in 2003; she travelled to Armenia to train young people there about YouthBank and has been involved in the YouthBank Ireland young people`s  steering group which organises and hosts events for young grant-makers across the island of Ireland.
 “I really enjoyed being a grant-maker at Longford Young Investors, as I was able to voice my opinions and meet lots of new people. The group also gave me the opportunity to help the local community and I wanted to be able to continue this work, so I decided to become a mentor,” explained Triny.
Triny’s current role within the YouthBank is very different to being a grantmaker as she comments, “It’s a total change for me as I no longer have a say in where the grant money should go. My role now is to help young people in the group work as a team and provide them with my opinion when they require it.”
During Triny’s time as a member, there have been a lot of changes to Longford YouthBank and other groups across the network, as she explains, “I think there have been positive changes, as the decision-making process is much clearer and Longford has now gone countywide, meaning more groups can apply for grants.”
Having been a grant-maker for five years Triny is now encouraging other young people to get involved in the YouthBank Network;
“I would encourage young people to join their local YouthBank as it’s a great way to get involved in a group that is for young people and run by young people. It’s a really valuable experience as you meet lots of new people, make friends and improve your confidence and teamwork skills.”