'You never know what happens' - Limerick mature student (49) after winning UL award

A 49-year-old woman in Limerick has opened up on her experiences at University of Limerick after winning the President's Volunteer Award for her work in the arts.

Sharon Bromell from Corbally in Limerick and is currently in her second and final year of the CEEWEL programme in University of Limerick (UL) which is their Community, Wellness, Empowerment, Leadership and Life Skills programme.

Before she started her course, Sharon was was working for the concert hall out in UL and was working in newspapers and magazines.

"I'm on my second play, I'm a writer. I wrote a play last year and brought it to the drama community group called Killer Productions. And then I decided that I wanted to mix; I wanted to work within the community and work in the arts as well.

"So I mixed my two courses, one is script writing and my second one is the community wellness. I wanted to mix both to work within the community to volunteer within the community at the moment during my college to bring both together."

Sharon said that she is finding university fantastic.

"It's a really good course because it covers so many different aspects of the community from social studies to active lifestyle to to health and wellness, mental health, the whole lot, it covers everything. 

"So we do so many different modules and then we do projects as well within the community to support others in the community, so we've been doing our projects at the end of this year to support the community. So we pick either a charity or, you know, someone that might need assistance or need support in their jobs, and then we go and do a project with them".

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Sharon isn't the only mature student in her classes and said some students are even in their 60s.

Her play called The 27 Club was performed last year and was sold out in the Belltable for two nights. Next year, they are doing her new play Kingdom on April 14/15.

Because of this work, Sharon received an award from University of Limerick.

"That's why I got the award then, the President's Volunteer Award for all the hours I volunteered for the play, which was 500 or more even. I got it last week in UL and I got a gold award, which is 60 hours plus, 60 hours, and it's calculated and capped at 60 hours."

Sharon said that like most students she does struggle financially trying to juggle her playwriting, studies and volunteering altogether.

"Absolutely, yeah. I'm sure anyone in college does, especially going back as a mature student. But yeah, it's hard because you're volunteering and you're a student, you're studying, you know, you've no income coming in as a sense of that. But it's all for the greater good in the future, you know."

Sharon said she has been writing poetry all her life and she has been writing bits and pieces for national and local publications.

"But now I'm like writing in a different capacity, I suppose. A more creative way, which is what I prefer to do. So yeah, and then I'm writing a book as well and it's a fictional book.

"I've been accepted into Tyrone Guthrie...it's a manor house in Monaghan for writers and it's a scholarship. It's a residency, so you get a week there to write as well. So they provide your accommodation and food and stuff, and you can go there and just write for a week.

"You pay a small amount because they kind of subsidise what you pay. And you have to go on a panel and everything to get in there. So I was absolutely delighted to be chosen to go on that as well. It's all going in the right direction."

Sharon has given some advice to those who wish to follow their own dreams and work towards doing what they love.

"I'd say go for it. Just, you know, if you're thinking of writing, just put pen to paper. If you're thinking of acting, just turn up.
You never know what happens. It's just the first move really is the hardest. Once you make that first move, that's when your dreams will start to be realised.

"It is all about just that first step, it's the hardest part, because people are worried about, oh, I won't know anybody, or what can I write about? But the minute I start writing, it comes out, you know. You wonder what you're going to write about. You know, it starts coming out as you start.

"And all you might need is just the smallest little bit of a story, and then it can grow. And just have an idea, like, which is what happened with both of my plays. You can have a small idea, but it grows from there."