Our volunteering experience in Greece

Our two months in Polykastro passed in the blink of an eye. It’s quite difficult for one person to sum up all the things that happened during that time. That’s why I decided to ask 6 of my fellow volunteers to describe their time here, including the lessons they learned, skills they will use in the future, and reflections they want to share. 

Apolline’s experience

My first interviewee was Apolline from France, who taught the Computer Classes and Literacy + for adults, as well as the Falafel class (children aged 4-8)

Question: What did you discover whilst volunteering at OCC? 

Apolline: I realised the power of creativity as a tool to perceive life in more colours. During the class, my students had the opportunity to discover their creative side, even if they thought they didn’t have it. I really liked those moments. A big advantage of volunteering at OCC was also its focus on community which encourages all the volunteers to share their ideas, to brainstorm and work in teams, which made our creativity go up to the next level. I really liked how we can inspire each other like that.

Q: How would you use the knowledge you gained here in your future life? 

A: Teaching is not only to give knowledge but more exchanging our points of view, experiences, and ideas. I realised that you can communicate well without speaking the same language. I am a teacher in France, so the experience I gained will be useful for my work. 

Célestine’s experience

I decided to ask Célestine from France about her opinion. She taught the English classes for adults and Pirates group (adolescents aged 13-17).

Q: What was your reason for coming here? 

Célestine: I feel like the political discourse in many countries when it comes to migration is completely separated from reality. I studied international relations and crisis management but I was feeling disconnected, I wanted to have a practical experience to better understand my field. Education is my personal interest. It is a beautiful idea to transmit knowledge, to go outside the boundaries of cultures and transmit information. 

Q: What did you learn from this experience? 

C: I now understand migration in a more human way. I have a broader perspective of what is going on. I also discovered that I really like teaching which I didn’t really know about myself before. 

Q: What is your opinion about the project in general? 

C: I feel it is a very good project because we create a safe space where all cultures can be exchanged without judgement. It is a place of learning at all levels. It is very special to be able to live and work together in such an environment.

Marta’s experience

My next interviewee is Marta from Italy. She taught the Literacy and Photography classes and the Eagles class (children aged 8-13)

Q: What made you decide to come to OCC?

Marta: I felt like it was important to do something in a project with social impact. My education is connected with writing projects but if you don’t know the reality your work will never be effective. You need to be on the field, meeting people and learning about their situation and their needs.

Q: What did you learn? 

M: Every element is important for an organisation to work. It is a good reminder that structure is also a necessity to help people. It was a very intense project, because you are in contact with people all the time, work like that requires effort, time and willingness to share your abilities. You need to be really passionate. Also when the work involves connecting with another person, it is always an exchange, it was nice to connect with the students.

Ellen’s experience

Next up is Ellen from England, who was very happy to share her experience. She supported the Literacy classes and the Pirates classes.

Q: What motivated you to come here?

Ellen: My reason for coming here was to gain first hand experience in the field. I felt helpless when faced with the migrant situation and the discourse around it in England so I wanted to use my skills to exchange knowledge with the community here in Polykastro.

Q: Will you use the knowledge you gained in your future? 

E: I find that this experience was really useful because I want to work in the humanitarian field. It is crucial to understand the people you work with. I was sure that I was going on the right path before but my time at OCC confirmed my choice.

Q: What was your overall experience at OCC? 

E: I really like that we, as a team, really design a space where people can interact and feel safe. It is at the heart of what OCC does. It is a collaborative experience, we can learn from each other and acknowledge that people do things differently even if all of us have the same collective goal. It is inspiring to be surrounded by open-minded people with similar values. I also like how we work as an organisation because it’s based on participatory and bottom-up approaches. 

Miriam’s experience

Miriam from Italy also wanted to share her opinion. She taught the German classes and the Pirates.

Q: What was your reason to come here? 

Miriam: As long as I remember I have always been volunteering. Even if it was just one hour per week, I always found it very fulfilling. I decided to dedicate one year of my life to volunteer and do some good things. 

Q: What is your general opinion about volunteering experience in OCC? 

M: The routine of everyday life in the organisation was a big advantage. I am really satisfied because this was what I was looking for: a structured project in which I could invest my time and energy. I had an opportunity to work both on my weaknesses and my strengths. The other thing I enjoyed was the team work, because our personalities compliment each other. We created beautiful memories together, between the team but also with the kids and adults who come to the center.

Joanna’s experience

Last but not least is Joanna from France, who was the teacher for the Eagles and the Literacy classes.

Q: What was your motivation to be part of this project? 

Joanna: I have been working in different fields, in various NGOs, and I wanted to find a project that worked with refugee communities.

Q: What is your general opinion about the organisation?

J: I am very content to work with a very good, international team. During the period I was here I met people with a positive attitude full of passion for what they do. I really liked our autonomy to organise the classes, which improves our creativity. What surprised me is that I really enjoyed being a teacher for Literacy English class, because I had never considered teaching as my potential career path. It gave me a lot of satisfaction to see the progress of my students. 

I also enjoyed all the monitoring and evaluation tasks, which helped me get a deeper understanding of how the organisation works behind the scenes. I also started to learn how the asylum procedure in Greece works, which was very eye-opening.

A beautiful project and an important step for volunteers

As you can see from these responses, the experience of volunteering at OCC is much more than just a project but also a big step in the life of volunteers. For two months we were sharing thoughts, ideas and all the difficult and beautiful moments. OCC is a crossroad of worlds which leaves every traveller with helpful lessons they will carry for the rest of their journey. Thanks to OCC for giving us the opportunity to create something meaningful together!

Our volunteering programme is funded by the European Union through the European Solidarity Corps. For more information about our open ESC positions, visit our page.