For many, volunteering is an activity that habitually takes place throughout the years. For some individuals, volunteering begins at a young age with bake sales, helping at local churches or leading sports activities in community centres. For others, volunteering begins later in life, sometimes with a move to a new city looking for ways to integrate with the local community Regardless of age and stage of life, volunteering is usually motivated by one common sentiment, an innate human feeling that compels others to help those less fortunate and create a positive impact on the lives of others.
In today’s day and age, with the ability to travel further, travel longer, and connect with so many others from different cultures, the ability to create a positive impact is no longer constrained by geographical limitations. The question now is not so much how much would you do to create a positive impact, but rather how far would you go to make a positive impact?
For those wanting to go further they can contact SB OverSeas. SB OverSeas is a non-profit organization active in Lebanon and Brussels, dedicated to providing humanitarian aid to refugees and victims of conflict through sustainable empowerment projects and non-formal educational programmes. The on the ground operations spikes the interest of international volunteers, particularly those who wish to learn first-hand of the challenges that the Syrian refugees face in Lebanon and who wish to contribute first-hand to the success of the operations.
This is often the common narrative many candidates recount in their interviews, the want to create a positive impact of which they can visually capture, monitor, and sustain. It is this sentiment that drives many to Lebanon. However, for most volunteers who return after their volunteering experience, this narrative changes. More often than not, it is the volunteers themselves who are the most impacted.
Our international volunteers enter our centres with the idea that they will face challenges when it comes to motivating children to learn and love learning. They are not wrong, this is undoubtedly one of the greatest challenges when it comes to teaching. However, the most common occurrence we find, is that it is the children who teach our volunteers.
Despite the crisis around them, the inequalities, and isolation perpetuated by surrounding communities, these children live ferociously active lives, resilient to lifes challenges, and open to the mind and heart of others. They welcome our volunteers, grow with them, and become the visible proof of a successful impact. They teach our volunteers the acts of selflessness, self-motivation, and resilience. They motivate our volunteers to come to the centres each and everyday with fresh ideas, interactive games, and new spin-offs to engage their students. They are motivated because they can see that their impact is working.
There exists a symbiosis of impacts, helping others helps you grow and it helps open the mind of others around you. So how far would you go to impact and be impacted? SB OverSeas is the perfect place to start!
For more information about volunteering in Lebanon with SB OverSeas, visit our website or send an email to volunteers@sboverseas.org
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