European Voluntary Service

European Voluntary Service

Just last year, I was one of the regrettably popular group of recent high school graduates who had 'no idea what to do with life after high school'. Fortunately, since I already had some international experience, enjoyed traveling, and had learned about the European Voluntary Service (EVS) some time ago, I thought to myself - why not now.

To give you an idea, EVS is one of the key actions of Erasmus+, the essence of which is to support the mobility and volunteering of young people in one of the European or other partner countries. The themes, duration, and form of the project are individual. From short-term volunteering, which often resembles youth exchanges in its course and content, to year-long EVS projects in the fields of culture, marginalized groups, health, sports, or nature. Project offers can be found directly on the “European Youth Portal” website or in various Facebook groups.

A great advantage of the European Voluntary Service, which as of this year falls under the European Solidarity Corps program, is the coverage of the volunteer's basic expenses. These include travel costs, food, accommodation, insurance, and even pocket money. Thanks to this support, the issue of volunteering is no longer tied to financial resources, which are often an obstacle for students and young people.

My attention was drawn to a 9-month project in the field of mental health in Zaragoza, Spain. After successfully completing the selection process, last November I packed my supplies of 'horalky' (a type of wafer), went for a heartbreaking farewell at the employment office, said goodbye to my English, and eagerly boarded the plane.

I spent most of my working time at a leisure center (Club Social) belonging to the Ramón Rey Ardid organization, whose main goal is to improve the quality of social life for people suffering from mental disorders through various activities such as cooking, theater, film club, sports, creative workshops, etc. During these, my Turkish co-volunteer and I assisted other staff members and also had the opportunity to lead our own workshops.

But why did I decide to 'take a break' from home like this? Perhaps surprisingly, Spanish fiesta or tapas were not the key factors, but a whole range of positive externalities that volunteering brings. For me, these included a sense of usefulness, stepping out of my comfort zone, self-realization and self-discovery, becoming independent, developing so-called 'soft skills', a new language, culture, experiences, relationships, friendships, and much more than I can realize now. And it's not just about what I gained from it. At first, I didn't perceive my impact on the local community; in fact, I doubted it at certain moments. However, after a few months, one of our users approached me, saying that I was here 'like a breath of fresh air' (it sounds better in Spanish, I promise), and I admit, that was enough for me to hear. Volunteering has a unique ability - many times it doesn't give us what we want, but what we need.

Noemi