Savanorė iš Ukrainos Nadiia: „jei grįžčiau metus atgal, sau pasakyčiau – net nedvejok, savanoriauk!“
„If I could go back a year, I would say to myself: „Do not doubt, you should go to Lithuania to volunteer, it will be a full and unforgettable experience in your life! You will meet wonderful people who will become your friends, your Lithuanian family. You will get the opportunity to create and do useful things for youth. You will get to know yourself better and encounter incredible support from others.“ I joined the team of Youth Space „Laisvas Plotas“ in Vilnius Children and Youth Club „Šatrija“. Together with the youth workers, we created various activities for young people: master classes, creative, art evenings, historical, educational, and networking events. We were helping young people develop their hard and soft skills, realize their ideas and ambitions. I also organized events for Ukrainians, providing them with Ukrainian speaking opportunities and helping them with adaptation. The opportunity to create in a team and implement our ideas together really inspired me in this place! Although I came to the project during the most difficult period of time for my country, my family and me, the fact that now I feel filled with harmony, inspiration and gratitude means that I have successfully gone through all the difficulties and can share with you my tips on how to get the most out of your experience. First of all, I would recommend choosing a project that meets your desires. Ask yourself: what do I wish to do, what areas am I interested in and what areas do I want to develop in further, what do I expect from the volunteering experience, how can I be useful for the organisation and what results do I want to achieve? Secondly, be prepared that integration may not be easy, but it is a very interesting and exciting process. Building friendships with other volunteers and locals, organizing activities together, getting to know the city and the country through learning history and culture helped me a lot. You also need to know that you wouldn’t be alone. You will have a local mentor, a tutor, a coordinator, and you can count on their help and encouragement. Thirdly, it is very important to be open to the new environment and experiences. Explore a lot, and you will definitely discover a lot of new things about yourself and the world.“
