Happy Autumn!
As we look forward to the next few months, we are excited to bring  some fantastic and informative events to PALs, including our Gaisce Gold Participant Meet Up and the new Gaisce Community Involvement Showcase.
 We will be announcing the members of Gaisce’s first Youth Ambassador Panel very soon, and we’re looking forward to meeting them all and working with them over the coming months. Our Lá Gaisce celebration for this year is almost here, and we can’t wait to celebrate it with our PALs, partners, and participants.
As we approach our 40th anniversary year in 2025, we are preparing our programme of events and activities to mark this significant milestone, and we’re looking forward to sharing all the details with you.
Keep reading to find out what’s coming up in the world of Gaisce!
What’s Coming Up
Don’t miss out on our upcoming event, the Gaisce Community Involvement Showcase, which will take place this Wednesday, September 25th.
This event is a valuable opportunity to meet and engage with some of our Challenge Partners, who offer volunteering and community engagement programmes and activities that meet the award criteria for the Community Involvement challenge area. Our PALs often tell us that it can be difficult to help participants find volunteering or community engagement opportunities for their Community Involvement Challenge Area.
At this event, PALs and participants will be able to meet, ask questions, and be inspired by a range of volunteering opportunities. Participants will have the chance to discover a volunteering activity they’d like to get involved in and may not have considered before.
The Challenge Partners you’ll hear from are:
- Children’s Books Ireland
- Young Social Innovators
- National Federation of Arch Clubs
- Community Games
- Young Saint Vincent de Paul
- Alzheimer’s Society of Ireland
- Cycle Against Suicide
We have now closed applications for the new Gaisce Youth Ambassador Panel, and thank you to everyone who contacted us.
We are currently in the process of reviewing applications and we’re looking forward to introducing the inaugural Gaisce Youth Ambassador Panel very soon.
The panel will have its first meeting in November at Gaisce HQ. Members of the Gaisce Youth Ambassador Panel will play a crucial role in shaping the future of the Gaisce Award programme by actively engaging with the Gaisce team, sharing their insights, and acting as advocates and ambassadors for Gaisce amongst their peers and the wider youth audience.
Stay tuned for updates on the Gaisce Youth Ambassador Panel!
Our annual celebration of all things Gaisce is almost here!
Lá Gaisce will take place on Wednesday, October 23rd, 2024, and we invite everyone to celebrate the day and wear your pin with pride!
There are many ways to get involved. Invite your Gaisce participants to share their progress and achievements, take part in a Gaisce initiative like volunteering in your local community or engaging in a physical activity, host a Gaisce awards ceremony, share your experience as a PAL, display your Gaisce Award Partner plaque, and more.
We will be running competitions on our socials throughout the day, so keep an eye out for your chance to win some Gaisce goodies! Make sure to follow us, tag us and use #LáGaisce in your posts.
If you’d like to let us know what you’re up to this Lá Gaisce, you can email us at comms@gaisce.ie. You can also tag us on social media: @GaisceAward (X, TikTok, Instagram) or @Gaisce – The President’s Award (Facebook, LinkedIn). We are eagerly looking forward to seeing and sharing everything you accomplish this year!
Note: When sharing any content related to your Gaisce group, please ensure you have proper media consent from each participant.
Gaisce is hosting our second Gold Participant Meet-up on Saturday, October 19th, at Gaisce HQ Ratra House, Phoenix Park.
We will once again gather current and prospective Gold Participants from all over Ireland at Gaisce HQ to meet, network, support each other, and swap stories from their Gaisce experiences.
The Gaisce staff will be there to support our golds and take you through a workshop on the Gold Award. You will hear invaluable advice from a fantastic guest speaker at the meet up. In the end, you’ll have all the information you need for your Gold journey!
Join us for food, fun, and the opportunity to connect with other Gaisce Participants over a cup of tea.
This event is for Gaisce Participants 18+ who are currently doing or considering taking part in the Gold Award.
Don’t miss out on our upcoming online Going for Gold information session!
Going for Gold takes place this Thursday, November 21st, at 7pm.
This online event is an information session providing details about the requirements for the Gold Award. It is suitable for newly registered Gold Participants, PALs and prospective Participants interested in Going for Gold!
The session focuses on information relating to all aspects of the Gold Award, including Adventure Journey, Residential Project, Portfolio, and Challenge Areas like Personal Skill, Physical Recreation, and Community Involvement. Going for Gold is highly recommended for those in the process of completing or about to begin their Gold award journey, ensuring you meet the requirements correctly and paving the way for success.
What’s Been Happening
PAL Survey
We asked our PALs to complete a survey earlier in the year. We want to thank all PALs who took the time to complete the survey. Your feedback has been invaluable in helping the Gaisce team know what we’re doing right and what we can improve on, and it has helped shape our plans moving forward. Those who completed the survey and opted in were randomly drawn to win a €50 One4All voucher. Congratulations to the winners: Bridget Bransfield, Dave Nolan, Eilish Wilcox and Judith Jennings!
No Name Club Conference
From left to right: John Williams, No Name Club, Avril Ryan, CEO, Gaisce- The President’s Award, Edith Geraghty, No Name Club
We were delighted to be invited to the No Name Club National Volunteer Conference, which was held on Saturday, August 31st, at the Killeshin Hotel in Portlaoise.
Gaisce CEO Avril Ryan attended and met with No Name Club staff, volunteers, and members of the Board. During her presentation, she spoke on how No Name Club Participants can participate in or organise a No Name Club as part of their Gaisce Award and the benefits of the Gaisce programme to young people and their communities.
We are glad to count No Name Club among our Gaisce Challenge Partners. For more information, see our Gaisce Challenge Partner page.
Reminders
Whitelisting emails: Make sure you stay updated with all things Gaisce!
Many schools and organisations have safety controls on emails sent to young people. If participants signed up with their school email, their Gaisce ID and confirmation email might go to the junk folder. To fix this, contact the school secretary or IT Department to whitelist Gaisce.ie emails and make sure they are accepted or marked as safe.
Alternatively, they can register with their personal email or use an email address that does not expire.
Use the queries section through the GO system for any questions you may have