Community Partner since 1990.
Olga Storozhenko has a story to tell. She is currently Global Volunteers Poland team leader, having joined the staff in 2022. But she came to Global Volunteers in a most unusual and unfortunate manner. After Ukraine was invaded by Russia in February 2022, Olga fled her homeland and settled in the small city of Siedlce, […]
Geri Espy of Clearwater Beach, Florida said the Russian invasion of Ukraine motivated her to help however she could. As a Global Volunteer alumna in Poland in 2003 and in Montana in 2013, she felt we offered a reliable avenue for appropriate support. Geri also knew that the needs were great in Poland with an […]
When Russia invaded Ukraine early in 2022, our Poland host partner knew the wider Siedlce community would soon welcome refugees who would flee their homeland. Within weeks, Global Volunteers mobilized to help community organizations prepare and host women and children who arrived from areas under attack. By summer, children’s camps were being offered throughout Poland […]
When the war broke out in Ukraine, Adam and Amy Robinson of Virginia knew they wanted to do something to help Ukrainians. Having served in Ecuador in 2017 with their two sons, Reed (now age 14) and Clayton (age 12), they say they knew that Global Volunteers’ service program in Poland would provide a meaningful […]
First-time Global Volunteer Pam Ballard said she couldn’t have correctly anticipated the impact of working one-on-one with Ukrainian refugee families in Poland. And now, she’s not certain she can adequately describe the impact the experience has had in her own life. Back at work as CEO of Community Service Council in Tulsa, OK, her understanding […]
Denver public health retiree Joanie Jones said joining the people of Siedlce, Poland to care for Ukrainian mothers and children evacuated from their devastated homeland was both life-affirming and heart-breaking. As a six-time Global Volunteer who previously served in Poland, Joanie says she knew right away that she wanted to go and help – but […]
In many ways, Michael Woodley is a typical teen. He loves playing guitar, listening to music and hanging out with friends. But, he took an unusual step in April when Russia invaded Ukraine. Having just received a gift of $1,000 from his godmother, he committed $700 to Global Volunteers’ Ukraine Refugee Fund. What – and who – convinced him […]
In this first-person volunteer story, alumna Penny Louise Flavin describes her experience working with Ukrainian women and children in Poland in April. Penny Louise first served with Global Volunteers in Peru in 2019. Following the pandemic, she returned to service to teach conversational in Poland in October 2021. In February this year, she served in […]
Karen Hogan knows firsthand how important it is to have someone to take care of your child so that a grieving mother can work through a difficult situation. In Jackson, Wyoming, Karen teaches music, movement, and art, and knows the healing and joy that dance can bring to both children and their caretakers. She says […]
One month after Olga arrived in Siedlce, Poland, she felt “at home” among the Polish people who took her in after her country was attacked in March. Since then, she’s become a translator for Global Volunteers, and looks forward to many new opportunities to help other refugees. “I feel I have always been brave, and […]