Barbara from Spain and Sofia from Greece came to Aveiro a year ago to volunteer at Centro Social Paroquial da Vera Cruz (CSPVC) under the European Commission funded ESC programme (European Solidarity Corps)  for volunteering. After some delays in their project, they finally arrived in September 2020, excited to help, even during a pandemic.

Their twelve months in Aveiro weren’t easy. Even so, two quarantines, the various limitations and the adjustments that were made to make the project fit the circumstances did not stop these two wonderful young girls. They continued to do whatever was necessary to help at the CSPVC, learned Portuguese and made new friendships. They made Aveiro their new home with ease and left a big mark on the institution where they volunteered. 

The secret, they say, was that they came to Aveiro with no expectations, which happened to be their key to happiness. Despite living in strange times and an unknown city, they made the best of it and made many people’s lives brighter thanks to their voluntary work, always done with big smiles on their faces.

Barbara and Sofia, we miss you already! We hope you continue to shine, wherever life takes you. And, hopefully, you will visit us again in Aveiro, soon.

Thank you to Erasmus+. There are plenty of volunteering opportunities around Europe waiting for you. If you’re interested, check out our Erasmus+ page for more information.