The second Volunteer Day for the B50 community!
On December 5, Ukraine and the world celebrate International Volunteer Day.
In English, volunteer means a willing helper. These are people who work for free wherever their help is needed: in orphanages, boarding schools, nursing homes, animal shelters, and at war.
Ukrainian volunteerism saw a powerful surge in 2014, when russia unleashed a hybrid war against us. And after the full-scale invasion in February 2022, Ukrainian volunteerism increased significantly.
The B50 community is one of the organizations “born of the great war”.
B50 volunteers were one of the first teams to join the cleanup of the newly liberated Irpin, Bucha, Hostomel, and Vorzel. Since April 2022, we have been gathering every week to help residents of the de-occupied settlements. Most often, we volunteer in the Kyiv region – in Moshchun, Borodianka, Makariv, Horenka, Potashnia and other settlements.
Our achievements
20
months of
volunteering
volunteering
306
volunteer events
organized
organized
647
volunteers
engaged
engaged
178
destroyed houses
cleaned up
cleaned up
12
children’s libraries
provided
provided
21
houses
repaired
repaired
7
children’s shelters
decorated
decorated
22
photo exhibitions
organized
organized
22638
hours
worked
worked
The B50 community is currently helping in several ways:
- dismantling and clearing the rubble of destroyed buildings, restoring damaged structures (Restoration program);
- providing modern Ukrainian-language literature to libraries affected by hostilities or occupation (Growing program);
- transformation of children’s bomb shelters, support for animal shelters (Care program);
- promoting volunteering (Country of Volunteers program).
You can also volunteer with us from any part of Ukraine and the world – you can become a part of the B50 team as B50 Friend or support us.
To celebrate the holiday, we conducted a survey among B50 volunteers, as well as any activists, our subscribers and friends, to help us better understand the motivation and engagement in volunteering, and to find out what our volunteers think.
84% of respondents have volunteered with B50, and each 8% has not yet joined or is planning to :))
Almost half of the respondents were prompted to volunteer by the full-scale invasion, but more than half had volunteered in various ways before.
For 84% of respondents, the motivators to start volunteering are russian aggression and a personal desire to be useful, 12% help others because they want to do something good, and 4% volunteer only because of the invasion.
Most respondents spend 10 to 20 hours a week volunteering.
80% of respondents have involved others (family, friends, colleagues) in volunteering.
80% of respondents can safely say that they will continue to volunteer after the Victory, while none of the other 20% said no.
Approximately the same number of activists are eliminating the consequences of the full-scale invasion and helping the Armed Forces; more than 30% of respondents help IDPs, children and volunteer in the field of environmental protection.
On average, respondents are engaged in 4 different types of volunteering!
| Eliminating the consequences of the invasion | 76% |
| Helping the Armed Forces of Ukraine with military needs | 80% |
| Helping IDPs | 36% |
| Helping children and educational institutions | 36% |
| Helping shelters and animals | 56% |
| Volunteering in education or culture | 20% |
| Engaged in online or remote volunteering | 32% |
| Provide psychological support | 16% |
| Helping the elderly | 4% |
| Volunteering in the field of ecology and environmental protection | 24% |
| Participate in other types of volunteering | 4% |
| Active volunteers | 40% |
| Ready to respond when urgent help is needed | 24% |
| Putting aside their personal affairs when help is needed | 36% |
| Regularly plan and set aside time for volunteering | 52% |
| Donate for different needs | 76% |
| Constantly looking for new ways to be useful | 32% |
| Regret not starting to volunteer earlier | 52% |
| Feel that they can do more | 32% |
| Assist in organizational volunteer work | 28% |
| Consider volunteering an integral part of life | 44% |
For half of the respondents, making time in their schedule for volunteering has become the norm, and 44% consider it an integral part of life.
Every third respondent is ready to put aside personal affairs if there is an urgent need to help somewhere.
3 out of 4 respondents, in addition to volunteering, also donate.
Almost half of the respondents would like to start volunteering earlier, and 32% are constantly looking for ways to help.
What B50 volunteers say about
What motivates them to volunteer.
OleksandrTishura
After the beginning of the large-scale invasion, I could not stand aside and immediately started looking for ways to help. I believe that today’s life requires every Ukrainian who is not at the front to participate in volunteering.
PolinaKoruts
The idea of volunteering had been in my head for a long time.
But I didn’t dare to.
(in vain).
The impetus was the invasion… Now it is an integral part of me and the only thing I regret is that I did not start doing it earlier.
YevhenShyshatskyi
I cannot stand aside when I feel the opportunity to do something and see the need around me.
BohdanHolovchenko
The need for physical activity as my own psychological therapy after the outbreak of war. The need to help the victims and the choice of ways available to me to do so. Conscience. Awareness of the need to “work off karma” for not participating in the war effort.
What volunteering gives them personally.
SophiaLazarenko
Donate to the Ukrainian Armed Forces = speed up the end of the war = peaceful life. Helping those in need = making their lives a little better. Join the cleanup = improve the environment and aesthetic pleasure from clean areas.
SvitlanaRudokvas
It’s my free therapy, my free gym, my new friends, my karma points.
NataliiaTsyhanenko
Thanks to volunteering, I meet interesting, positive people and spend my time with use. It’s important for me to do good deeds for free, because I believe that this is the meaning of human life – to serve with what you have: if you have money, donate it, if you have time, spend it on good deeds, if you have abilities, plan projects.
YaninaKobets
Feeling my own life “worthwhile”.
Things that volunteering has taught them.
PolinaKoruts
Volunteering teaches me to believe in myself,
my strength, the people around me, and to hope for the best. It also teaches me to be more responsible
and more organized.
ValentynaVrublevska
Do not provide help without being asked. You need help not when you decide to help, but when you are asked to help.
YaroslavHadzinskyi
Better communication
and better understanding of people.
AnastasiiaMezhybovska
It taught me how to work
in a team. It also made me realize that I shouldn’t face my problems alone.
Whether volunteering is tiring.
YaninaKobets
From time to time, of course, I get tired, but it’s not a priority, so I don’t pay attention to it)) The hardest thing
is the background of the location where we work,
or the fate of the animal you see or walk
in the shelter…
SerhiyMohylin
In volunteering, as in any activity, you can change the form, the team, take breaks, etc. Volunteering is too general term; talking about volunteer fatigue is the same as talking about fatigue from life.
YuliiaHorbasenko
When I feel tired, I do the same thing, just slower.
YevhenShyshatskyi
Energy and fatigue regularly replace each other, it’s a normal process. Instead of the most tiring thing, I’ll talk about the most important thing – taking care of your mental state so as not to devalue your efforts and not to impose projections of indifference on others.
Wishes from B50 volunteers to their colleagues
I would like to wish you good health, strength and inspiration. These are the components without which it is difficult for us to volunteer. Find time to volunteer, it is very important!
Oleksandr Tishura
Strong muscles, even stronger nerves, a sharp mind, inspiration and as LESS as possible really significant reasons for volunteering.
Bohdan Holovchenko
A utopian wish: that the time will come when volunteering will become unnecessary, because the war will end, everything will be rebuilt and restored, all structures will perform their functions efficiently and all the needs of people at different levels will be consistently met without outside help. Until this future comes, I wish we could believe in our better future against all odds, because volunteers are patient enough ;))
Nataliia Tsyhanenko
Health, energy, Victory and staying yourself after all this))
Svitlana Rudokvas
Strength. And take care of yourself!!!
Tetiana Maznyk
Do not forget to rest, we need you for new and new ” achievements”.
I want to thank you. Because I realize that I want to live in the country with such people, to rebuild it. I want to wish you balance, prudence and balance in your life. To avoid burnout. I also wish that sledgehammers, buckets and shovels do not break. I wish that your noses do not meet the ground and bricks. And that the wheelbarrows always had inflated and working wheels 🙂 People, thank you for being here.
Anastasiia Mezhybovska
You are heroes!!! Keep up the good work. Without you, we would have lost. Ukrainians, we are strong and powerful. I admire your successes!!! Everything will be UKRAINE!!!
Oksana Dovhal
Remember that you need to take care of yourself first. This is the only way you will be able to help others for as long as possible without harming yourself, and thus avoid burnout.
Anastasiia Daieva
Dear friends, Ukrainians and foreigners! First of all, I would like to thank you for your tireless work, help and big heart! I wish you inspiration, strength, and faith!
Аnnа
Strength, inspiration, faith in a wonderful future)))) Thank you to the volunteers for what they do!!!
Polina Koruts
We would like to express our sincere gratitude to each of the B50 community volunteers for their invaluable help and dedication, which gives hope and support to those who need it most. You are an inspiration and an example for others. Your energy and dedication are changing the world around us and bringing the Victory closer.
We wish you new achievements, strength and inspiration!