Blog du Wren

Volunteering In Poland

When thinking about my mostly annual winter travels this year, I put a lot of effort into finding something, a reason to go somewhere, rather than just bumming around as is my wont. After much casting about, I landed on volunteering in Poland with a group called All Hands and Hearts, fixing up shelters in advance of the expected influx of Ukrainian refugees fleeing the war (and weather) in their country.

All Hands and Hearts normally focuses on natural disasters (hurricanes, earthquakes, etc.), rebuilding schools in the impacted areas. The Ukraine project was a first for them, so I can't say that I have a good feel what for a more normal project might feel like with them, though I heard stories. Many of the volunteers there had done many stints with them before.

In my 10 days on project*, I got to see 3 sites. The biggest was an old middle school in Boratyn where AHAH had weathered in an attic space (insulation, vapor barrier, dry wall, electricity, etc. etc.) to be available for refugee space. There was Space Parts in Przemyśl*, an old auto dealership(?) office space, that has refugees currently living in it, where AHAH was adding bathroom capacity (and maybe other stuff as well). And there was an old office building in Przemyśl where we helped the organization mainly responsible for getting it ready for refugees by , , assembling bunk beds, and otherwise doing little tasks.

The volunteers and staff were based in a gorgeous set on a sheep and deer farm. There were 30-35 people which made the living space tight but not too uncomfortable. We got simple local catered dinners (though always delicious!) and even simpler grocery store breakfasts and lunches. Work days went 7-4. Evenings occasionally had organized events (world cup watching, trivia night, etc.) but mostly people went to bed early.

In addition to building, I had one or two opportunities to interact with some refugees (both involving juggling, of course). During an English lesson some volunteers were facilitating at base, the kids lost interest very quickly. I showed them my juggling and rope trips and they were very amused. Many wanted to learn them themselves so it was a great way to sneak some English teaching in ("slower", "higher", "good!", etc.) while having a genuine connection. Secondly, at Spare Parts, I was chipping ice off the entry stairs when some men who came out to smoke helped out. In very broken english, we exchanged the basics (name, where we're from, jobs). When they found out I worked in circus, they were very amused. I showed them some tricks with whatever was at hand (face balancing a broom and some )

The whole experience, for me, was mixed. On the plus side, I learned a lot, mostly about myself, esp. being reminded that volunteering/helping people is really important to me and I need to find more ways to make it a part of my life. On the down side, due to a confluence of circumstances, my time on this project wasn't great. The type of work to be done while I was there didn't feel impactful, the volunteer coordinator was just starting in that position so there wasn't good facilitation, there was a sickness that spread through base that took some key staff out that might have provided more effective leadership on site, the project was receiving more money and volunteers than it could find work for leaving us doing busy work more than I'd like, and the weather provided some significant setbacks on some projects (like paint not drying, etc.) And while I mostly realize that had the timing been different, many of my qualms might have been allayed, there was an underlying lack of organization and lack of focus on efficiency that might have made even an ideally timed project hard for me. That said, I imagine I might give AHAH another try, because I believe in the mission and I am in great need of, well, what I hope experiences like this can provide.

On the whole, though, I'm considering the experience a win. While I wasn't able to feel like I actually helped, I did something (which is super important for me) and I learned so that next year I can manifest something more fitting for me. Plus, having this as an anchor to build further travels around was good. Oh, and I met some super interesting people too, so that's a plus!

(If you care to read my daily journal from my time there (including all sorts of fun stuff like what we ate, how much I hate painting, and other momentary feelings), you can read about it here (Day 3-11))

Sunday December 18 2022

File under: work, poland

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