Ciao and Guten Tag!

My name is Simona, I´m 27 years old and I´m from Germany. After I finished my studies, I decided to do a voluntary service with the European Solidarity Corps (ESC). This is an EU programme for young people to promote a social and diverse Europe. For me, it's a great opportunity to broaden my horizons abroad and contribute to a good cause.

I think that´s important in order to become sensitive to problems and grievances in our society and way of life. For me, charity is not only a religious commandment, but rather a part of being human. Because don't we all hope for a more considerate community and social participation? However, my desire to volunteer abroad is not only motivated by my faith. I want to better understand this world and my own role in it. And I want to get to know myself and my personal limits better. In my past, I've learned that this works best when you step out of your comfort zone and challenge yourself.

That's how I ended up at Caritas in Jesi, Italy. Here they support people affected by poverty. Both counseling and emotional, as well as very practical with services such as canteen, food and clothing emporium, solidarity clinic and dormitories. I chose this project because their work is so important for society. Poverty will increase in the future and more people will need help. At Caritas, I want to experience what this help can look like in practice.

My ESC adventure with Caritas in Jesi started in March and will last until the end of September. So far, I have not regretted it. From the very beginning, I felt welcome at Caritas and in Jesi. The people here are great and Jesi is a small but lovely town in the beautiful Marche. Nonetheless, being here is no walk in the park. Language barriers and the feeling of loneliness often get to me, sometimes overwhelmingly intense. But that´s part of such an adventure and I have to learn to deal with it. I'm curious, what experiences, challenges and surprises still awaits me 😁

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My experiences with migrants in Caritas

Hello everyone! It's Louise. Today, I'd like to share with you two actions in which I recently participated. They taught me a lot, both on a human level and in terms of the concrete challenges involved in welcoming and supporting migrants in Italy. Welcoming migrants on their arrival at the port Two weeks ago, I went with Marco D’Aurizio (President of Caritas Jesina) and other workers of Caritas Ancona to welcome a group of 276 migrants who had arrived on the Ocean's Viking (a boat that rescues migrants at sea) at Ancona’s port. We were there at 8am, under grey skies and a cold wind, ready to hand out breakfast: a bottle of water, an apple, a filled brioche, and tea for those who wanted it. The reception was very closely supervised by the police, which made the organisation very rigorous, but also a little tense. At first, we let people sit down, take time to eat and warm up. But soon, the police were pressing us to get the migrants onto the buses waiting nearby. So, we h...

Hello everyone! I'm the new volunteer

Hi! My name is Louise, I'm 26 years old, and I'm from France. Ever since I was a child, I wanted to go abroad to see what life is like elsewhere. Two years ago, in 2022, I graduated with a Master’s degree in Law, specialising in European Law. That’s how I first heard about the European Solidarity Corps (but only from an academic perspective, as we were studying several European programs). During my studies, I volunteered every summer with a French organisation that supports migrants in different aspects of their lives. The first Summer, I helped organise activities for children living in a refugee center. And the following years, I joined the legal advice service, where I assisted migrants with their administrative process to obtain or renew their residence permits. It was a truly rewarding experience that helped me grow personally. After graduation, I felt lost. I knew from my volunteering experience that I wanted a job that had a positive impact on society, but I wasn't ...

Volunteer Oct24. 3 months so far!

Ciao, Hola and Hi! I’m Río Rojas Mayorga and it's been 3 months since I'm an ESC volunteer here in Caritas Jesina. Let me update you briefly about my experience! The arrival and first week in Caritas was a mix of emotions between the excitement to start and the confusion of all the new people and information we were bombarded with. At first we didn't have a schedule and it was a little bit messy but, I'm glad I shared so much time with my project partner; it was nice having someone in the same situation. First month Once the schedule was set, we had to adjust not only to the work but also to the people we shared the time with. As all the services are done with local people, at first it was difficult the communication as I had no words in Italian, but I was gladly surprised to find out my will of talking and sharing was lovely appreciated and corresponded, I found out the language barrier was a challenge but i wasn’t fighting it alone. My birthday arrived eventually an...

From Europe to Jesi

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