To celebrate the charity’s tenth birthday today, 20th January 2025, we chatted to Ian Brown on how he supported founder, Bronagh O’Neill, in setting-up Rosie’s Trust, and his continued volunteering over the past decade.
Ian, could you tell us how you became involved with Rosie’s Trust back in 2015 when Bronagh O’Neill was setting-up the charity?
Back in 2015, Bronagh and I didn’t know each other, but we were both supporting Marie Curie’s work in Northern Ireland, and found there was a need to help their patients who had pets. The charity was telling us that people weren’t attending for medication and treatment because they had no-one to support them with their pet.
While I was off chasing people in England, Bronagh got it sorted here in Northern Ireland, and that’s how Rosie’s Trust was set-up. Bronagh is a real go-getter, and her mindset is “I’ll do it myself” – everyone needs a Bronagh in their life! Next she got some like-minded friends together, but did mostly everything herself – from dog walking, interviewing possible beneficiaries to marketing and fundraising, as well as all the paperwork.
Rowena, who used to work for the charity, said I was volunteer ‘number one’ for Rosie’s Trust. I started by helping to assess other volunteers, and guide them with training. My background is I’m a retired dog trainer, so I already had a lot of contacts in that industry in Northern Ireland. I put the word out, and introduced Bronagh to lots of friends. Amongst that initial group were Lynda and Peter Crozier, who were two godsends at the time – and are also still involved with Rosie’s Trust as volunteers to this day. And here we are today… ten years later!
Could you tell us what makes Rosie’s Trust so special as a charity?
It’s the intention that Bronagh started it with – she is masterly when it comes to engaging with people. More recently, as a Dog Support volunteer, I had been walking a dog that is now a personality known to all the team. Her owner’s circumstances changed, and we had to find her a new home – after she had been a devoted companion to her owner for nearly a decade, and I had been walking her for seven years.
It was a very tough time, especially when I took her to the new home, but the Rosie’s Trust team are always there to support volunteers – and Laura, Development Officer at Rosie’s Trust, has kept in touch, and I hear the dog is happy now, after doing her bit to support her owner.
What do you get from volunteering with Rosie’s Trust, and would you recommend it to other people?
I would say that it’s only recently that I have realised how much Rosie’s Trust and its volunteers are needed, as I guess I was too in the middle of it. It’s when you see the difficulties that our beneficiaries face, and the connection they have with their pets – and however little we do, the appreciation is overwhelming!
With the dog that I mentioned previously, we had cards and donations from the beneficiary, and the gratitude was never-ending. For me, it’s about going into someone’s home with a smile on your face, taking their dog out for a walk, and then seeing how happy it makes that person because their pet is happy. The world has changed for them – and that is very nice to see, and always makes it worthwhile. People and pets make a great pair together – and I would recommend volunteering with Rosie’s Trust to anyone who is thinking about it.
What are your hopes for Rosie’s Trust for the next ten years, and into the future?
I hope that the volunteer numbers keep increasing as the volunteers are the heartbeat of the charity – and I know that we will continue with the same values that we have had since day one… it’s all about people and their pets.
Another story that comes to mind for me is the pet owner who had three large dogs at home, and then had to go into hospital as the situation for him was very serious. I was part of the team that brought his dogs to see him at the hospital – and when he was came down in a wheelchair to see his pets, weak as he was, I never saw a man so happy. That’s how special our charity is.
It’s all been worthwhile over the past ten years – and I’ve certainly enjoyed my journey with Rosie’s Trust so far, and I know, whatever the years ahead hold, I’ll enjoy them, no doubt.
To finish, I’d like to say a big, big thanks to our ‘Superwoman’ Operations Manager, Jayne McStay, and the staff team, as well as all our fabulous volunteers, who I know will take Rosie’s Trust safely into the next decade and beyond.
Rosie’s Trust is currently recruiting for Dog Support volunteers* in Portadown, Craigavon and Lisburn. For more info on the opportunities available, email mail@rosiestrust.org with ‘Dog Support volunteer’ as the subject.
*Please note you must be aged over 18 years old to volunteer for Rosie’s Trust.
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