Volunteer Service Review
Love and happiness increase as much as we share. Shall we listen to vivid stories about volunteer services?
No Graffiti! Yes Clean and Safe Town! 1
Graffiti is a headache in Australia because it does not look good aesthetically and gives a negative impression that the “area is not safe” to local residents. On a mild sunny Sunday morning, from the early hours on, about eighty brothers and sisters gathered together to remove graffiti from the…
Ju Su-jin from Sydney, Australia
Not Becoming Weary and Not Giving Up
The Cape Town Cycle Tour is a large-scale international cycle race; more than 35,000 cyclists from all around the world participate in the race and more than 2,500 volunteers manage race operations. On March 11, 2018, more than 70 members from the Cape Town Zion supported this event. Since the…
The Cape Town Church in South Africa
Getting Rid of Thorns from My Heart
There was a cleanup at the Seneca Creek State Park in Maryland. The park manager asked us to get rid of weeds and invasive plants. It was easy to pull the weeds that had dried up during the winter. When we were almost done with our project, we found fresh…
The Baltimore Church in MD, U.S.
The Reason Why One Person’s Concern and Love Is Important
Due to the low birth rate and aging population, the number of blood donors is decreasing, whereas the number of patients who need blood transfusions is increasing. Hoping to help those in urgent need of blood, I decided to participate in donating blood, thinking that a patient is someone’s father…
Kim Seon-suk from Chungju, South Korea
Reason for Doing Volunteer Services
I participated in a street cleanup organized by my campus club with my friend who enjoys volunteer opportunities. We got to clean at a food alley located at the back gate of our university. As the alley was lined with restaurants and coffee shops, disposable cups, food waste, and cigarette…
Kim So-jeong from Bucheon, South Korea
What We Can Do
‘What can we do there since we don’t even speak their language?’ This is what we thought while flying to Colombia, which is located on the opposite side of the earth from Korea, during the summer of 2019. Although we wanted to have a meaningful volunteer experience during the summer…
Kim Myeong-eun from Namyangju, South Korea
The Virtuous Cycle of Love
The brothers and sisters gathered in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, for a street cleanup. Although it was a rainy season, it was sunny that day as if even the sky was cheering for us. Thanks to the weather, the brothers and sisters in blue t-shirts and yellow vests looked…
Jeong Min-ji from Busan, South Korea
Even Small Defects
During harvest season every year, our Zion members give a helping hand to short-handed farmers. This time, we visited an orchard in Eoreumgol Valley, Miryang, Korea, in order to help with sorting apples. Eoreumgol Valley located on halfway up the Cheonhwangsan Mountain mysteriously forms ice between mid June and August…
Lee Yeong-jin from Busan, South Korea
Like My Family’s Business
The rainy season was particularly long two years ago. After the rainy season was over, I thought the flood victims would ease themselves by looking at the clear sky above, but they didn’t seem to at all. In the cities near Suncheon, Korea, where I live, the embankment of the…
Gu Yeon-hui from Suncheon, South Korea
Volunteer Service! Military Members Too Join It
In the Cheolwon Zion which is near the base I’m stationed at, there are many military brothers who keep the Sabbath day with permission from their bases. I can’t be happier and more thankful to meet Zion family members I haven’t seen for a week, keep worship services together, and…
Ye Ji-hun from Incheon, South Korea
Secret to Harvesting Good Fruit
I once watched the news that farmers were facing a serious labor shortage due to COVID-19. Since there are many farming areas in Sangju, the labor shortage is inescapable here, too. Hearing that an elderly couple, who had been growing grapes nearby, too lacked in labor were in desperate need…
Jin Sun-gyeong from Sangju, South Korea
Valuable Work
In April, 2020, I participated in the “Cheer Up Campaign” held by ASEZ, the Church of God University Student Volunteer Group, hoping to ride out COVID-19. The Cheer Up Campaign is an activity to deliver encouragement letters and gifts to those who are exhausted physically and mentally in the wake…
Kim Tae-ho from Gwangyang, South Korea
Removing the Waste Vinyl
Many farms were severely damaged by heavy rains in summer 2020. Members in Gwangju planned to help farmers in hardship. We were in a hurry, hearing that the Hwangryonggang River was flooded and all the agricultural lands and greenhouses nearby were submerged in water. Upon arriving at the site, we…
Lee Sun-ju from Gwangju, South Korea
It’s Better When We Do It Together
The National Polytechnic Institute of Mexico [IPN] is one of the top universities in Mexico, having campuses in several locations. Among those campuses, the members of the Mexico City Church volunteered to post anti-drug posters and paint bulletin boards in Zacatenco campus. It was part of “Reduce Crime Together” campaign…
The Mexico City Church in Mexico
Speaking Each Word With Love
I was eagerly looking forward to doing volunteer services with senior students of ASEZ, the World Mission Society Church of God University Student Volunteer Group, before entering university; I had only come across their activities through videos and news articles before. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I could not…
Cheon Sae-eum from Donghae, South Korea
Supporting the Heroes of This Age
“Heroes are born in turbulent times.” It is said that one who will save the world appears in times of confusion and difficulty. Admiral Yi Sun-shin in Joseon Dynasty of Korea defeated the enemy in the midst of an urgent crisis; and independence activists gave their lives to reclaim the…
Kim Min-gyu from Cape Town, Rep. of South Africa
The Last Opportunity
Gurye, located between Mount Jirisan and the Seomjingang River, is famous for persimmons. However, an embankment along the Seomjingang River collapsed due to torrential rain, and the persimmon farms were severely affected. Restoration efforts had to be made quickly to save the persimmon trees and harvest the remaining persimmons, but…
Kim Shin-hyeong from Gwangju, South Korea
How to Double Happiness
After entering college, I participated for the first time in a street cleanup held by the club. I picked up garbage, and by the time I got to a smoking area, I was surprised to find hundreds of cigarette butts on the ground. At first, I picked up each cigarette…
Jeon Beom-jun from Jeonju, South Korea
Monitoring Safety
I joined a volunteer service club to complete a course in community service. I had much experience in doing volunteer services, but it wasn’t diverse. Then, a volunteer group called Safety Monitor caught my eyes. Safety Monitor helped the safety of residents by monitoring big and small safety risk factors…
Yun Gwan-jong from Gongju, South Korea
Love that Gives Strength
Last summer, an unprecedented rain spell caused severe flood damages. I volunteered for the flood recovery efforts with the Church of God Young Adult Worker Volunteer Group [ASEZ WAO]. As we arrived at the village, the residents were already cleaning the dust with sweat. Greenhouses were all ruined, and it…
Mun Su-jeong from Gwangju, South Korea