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Bremen volunteer: Why he does three voluntary activities – news from Bremen

Peter Schenck’s day has at least 25 hours – or so it seems. The 21 year old is a volunteer. He volunteers for three voluntary organizations. It is not uncommon for these tasks to mutate into full-time jobs. Nevertheless, he does not want to miss his voluntary work.

It is difficult for him to say no, explains Schenck, who is sometimes overwhelmed by his voluntary work. The reason why he works on a voluntary basis, however, is different: “Voluntary institutions have always accompanied me in my life and have helped me a lot in my development. So I want to give something back by getting involved, ”he says.

Peter Schenk: “Volunteering is also just fun”

In addition, you can find new friends and like-minded people with whom you can get involved in a common cause. And of course: “It’s also just fun. Otherwise I wouldn’t be able to do it either. The focus must always be on enjoying your work, even if you have to be serious. “

It all started at the age of 14 with the youth fire brigade, where he was also active on the board in the meantime. Almost at the same time, Schenck found his way to the Naturefriends Youth. Almost eight years ago, his father took him to the annual street festival of the youth center in Buchte on Buchtestrasse. “There I had a conversation with a member of the Naturefriends Youth at the drinks stand,” reports Schenck. In the meantime he has done his voluntary ecological year with the Friends of Nature and is also active there on the board.

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Through a spontaneous language exchange to China, he came into contact with the mediation organization Youth For Understanding (YFU) for which he is now also volunteering. In addition, there is his most recent activity at the Vegesack sailing school ship association – the first that has something to do with his professional career.

Because in addition to his numerous voluntary commitments, he is a student. His subjects are nautical science and shipping. Incidentally – just like the year abroad in China – it was a spontaneous decision. Until he began his studies, he had almost no connections with the sea. To throw oneself into new projects without much preliminary considerations is an integral part of Schenck’s life.

He always sees something positive in the associated excessive demands, for example through learning a new, completely unknown language in China. An example of this is a lecture he had to give in China. It was in English, but in front of a lot of strangers and in the background the technology went on strike. “At school I always hid behind index cards when I gave lectures. In China I was thrown into the deep end and had to somehow manage it. ”And mostly – he says -“ it always works somehow ”. He now holds seminars as part of his voluntary work and even occasionally takes to the stage as a theater actor.

Up to ten hours and more per week for volunteering

He usually spends around five hours a week doing his volunteer work. Depending on what is going on, it can quickly become ten hours a week or even several 24-hour days. “Every now and then I have to force myself to take back something. Even then, I can still be reached by my colleagues, ”says Schenck.

It goes without saying that he fully identifies himself with his tasks. “I am active in the Naturfeundejugend because social and ecological aspects are part of the basic orientation here,” he says. If he wasn’t at least 90 percent behind an organization, he couldn’t get involved in it, “no matter how cool his colleagues were.”

It is characteristic of him that, like so many volunteers, he does not seek any attention. Attention, money or an entry on your résumé should not be the reasons why you do volunteer work. The motivation to do something good and to make a difference on a small scale should always be the focus – together with having fun at work. “But that is also the case with all volunteers I know,” he emphasizes. These qualities of volunteers are far too rarely valued, especially by the state.

In the future, he will have to cut back at some point. Voluntary work and work can be reconciled, but to the extent that Schenck does voluntary work, it will be more than difficult. “I will certainly cut everything back a little then. But I don’t want to stop at any of the three institutions for which I am currently active. “

Until then, however, he still has big plans and still wants to achieve a lot. In the youth center, for example, he would like to found a theater group. He wants to help young people to stand on their own two feet, to gain their own experiences and to grow up. Just like other volunteers did for her. And of course he wants to learn more himself through his work. Just as he learned to speak freely and pointedly through voluntary engagement, as well as being able to say no. Unless something important is pending, of course.

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