Emmanuella is a student from Ghana studying in China and she spent the summer volunteering at New Hope in Beijing……..
Emmanuella in Class
Having a giggle
The three volunteers after work
At work!
Wanting to do something meaningful such as volunteering during the summer holiday, I went online to searching for volunteering groups in China. It was then that I found Just Volunteers! I contacted Josephine who interviewed me on Skype and then contacted New Hope Foster home in Beijing to introduce me.
I arrived in New Hope on the 24th June 2016 and I volunteered there for 1 month. My stay in New Hope has been a very special experience. It was great to at once be in a Christian family and community just as at my home in Ghana. I volunteered in New Hope as an assistant pre-school teacher with two other volunteers Emma and David.
I entered New Hope with the intention of teaching the kids but they rather taught me a lot. They taught me how you don’t need tonnes of money, good health or wealth to be happy in life but rather the love of the people around you and the love of Christ. This has given me deeper understand of the greatest commandment Jesus gave “love your neighbor as yourself”. In New Hope, I also got to meet a lot of volunteers from across the globe which helped me to make new friends and also to hear the amazing stories each of them have to share.
I left New Hope on the 25th July 2016 which was so hard for me because I just didn’t want to leave but knowing that every kid in the Foster Home was in the hands of an amazing family God gives me peace and joy.
My stay in New Hope couldn’t have been possible without the help and support of Josephine Chesterton, through her this wonderful opportunity was given to me. I also give thanks to Robin and Joyce, the founders of New Hope, for accepting me into their community, Micky and Rebecca Shook for their love, care, amazing dinners and support, Emma and David who were such amazing friends, Krishtel and Denice for their palatable food and dance and the whole New Hope and Show Hope community.
A wonderful man I met called Nate in Show Hope said, volunteering is the best and most honest thing anyone can do because it is straight from the heart and there is no expectation of a reward. My experience in New Hope is so far the best experience in my life and the most meaningful thing I have ever done. Let’s all try to volunteer and give back to the community we live in.
Emmanuella, China, July 26 2016
(Please note that most volunteers are asked to stay for more than one month.)