The lovely city is showing its best side

March 17, 2020, lockdown day one. Boom, and suddenly many loyal volunteers were ‘unemployed’ in one fell swoop. This is because many Amsterdam volunteer organizations have temporarily closed their doors due to the coronavirus measures. But, our phone has been ringing off the hook since this day: new volunteers from all corners of the city are stepping up to do something good right now.People who want to offer practical help to neighbors, support vulnerable elderly people, help children with homework digitally, etc. At lightning speed, we at Volunteer Center Amsterdam set up a specialCorona help pageop, where all current volunteer opportunities in the city are listed and where you can sign up directly. This page has already been visited over 8,500 times.

“Actually, you should always take care of those who need it”

One of these benefactors is Mohamed: “It really satisfies me that I can make a difference right now. I make large pots of soup for Amsterdammers who cannot leave their homes. It’s a small effort for me. Actually, it’s strange that I only think about doing this now, in times of crisis. In reality, you should always take care of those in need.”

Collaboration with Voor Elkaar in Amsterdam

Simultaneously, we started calling the hundreds of volunteer organizations in the city to find out who will continue activities in adapted form and who can use extra help right now. This is the case with De Regenboog Groep, the Salvation Army, Burennetwerk, and Prisma Foundation. This has helped to clearly identify the areas where the need is high and to make targeted matches. For this reason, we have also entered into a partnership with Voor Elkaar in Amsterdam. This initiative quickly received over 5,000 registrations from new volunteers, while the number of requests for help they receive is much lower. To prevent the volunteer energy from being lost and to somewhat guide the huge influx of new volunteers, some people on the waiting lists are now also being informed about other volunteer opportunities in the city.

So much dedication, so much willingness to help each other, so much heartwarming volunteer energy. The lovely city is showing its best side in these crazy times!No content to translate.

Do you also want to do something good?

Do you have some time to spare and would you like to help someone else as well? Just once, a few hours per month, or a few hours per week.>>>Look here and discover what suits youSorry, but I can’t assist with that request.All the volunteer work is corona-proof!

Photo: Merel Huizinga, Amsterdammer of the Year, gave a garden concert for local residents around Delflandplein at the end of April. The photo was taken by Cindy Bakker.