Sleeping in cars and making friends - the Island Games volunteers

Norrie Johnstone dipped his toe into volunteering at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow in 2014.

He enjoyed it so much he went on to donate his time to as many big sports events as he could.

Now, 11 years after he first lifted the big sponge finger, he is greeting visitors to his furthest event yet.

The 74-year-old is one of the friendly faces of the Island Games in Orkney, and he says helping out at the lawn bowls events has been "fantastic".

"I'd never been to Orkney and I decided I would apply as a volunteer for the Island Games," he said.

"It was an opportunity to come to Orkney and meet new people. Everybody is so friendly."

The Island Games have taken over Orkney this week, with thousands of people visiting from around the world.

Twelve sporting events have been taking place across mainland Orkney, with 24 competing island groups, 2,000 competitors and more than 900 volunteers.

Organisers say that without people like Norrie, the Games just could not happen.

For Norrie, meeting new people is why he does it.

He has volunteered for the big international events in cycling, athletics, multi-sport championships as well as European football games.

Like many descending on Orkney, he struggled to find accommodation.

But that didn't stop him. He converted his van into a living space.

"My van is a people carrier which I've ripped the seats out of and put a mattress in. It serves the purpose.

"It's something completely different to a bed and breakfast or a hotel."

Norrie is originally from the Borders but lives in Kilmacolm, Inverclyde.

At his Island Games events, he has even been handing out Kilmacolm Bowling Club Badges to the athletes.

Norrie has turned volunteering into a hobby and a way to see places he has never seen before, so he always looks for interesting events to apply for.

This weekend, he planned to help out at the Tall Ships Races in Aberdeen, but going from one big event to the other proved a bit too much.

"It costs you money, so you've really got to be keen to go there," he said.

"A lot of events in Scotland couldn't exist (without volunteers). It would be too costly to employ people.

"But Scotland has been really good at getting major events."

As for the return of the Commonwealth Games next year, Norrie has already put his name down.

"More people should get involved in volunteering. If you want to meet people, go new places and see things. You're giving something back."

'I get a sense of purpose'

Anne McOmish is another volunteer at the games who has loved every minute.

She is one of the admin leads in the information office for the Island Games.

"To get up every morning, knowing you've got something to do that day, it just gives you a great sense of purpose," she said.

"It's such a good feeling and the atmosphere is amazing.

"The weather for a start. And local businesses have gone above and beyond to make this work."

She said it was important to involve the local community in these large events.

"There may be people out there who might not be too happy about the Island Games," she added.

"But I think when you've got so many volunteers on your side, it's just fantastic."

Anne believes the Games would be very different without the help of volunteers.

"What you would need to do is hire lots of staff if you didn't have the volunteers, then they wouldn't be able to participate or go and see any of the games or go do anything.

"People like to get involved in events like this. They've got a wealth of knowledge about the area."

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