Another Big Volunteer Week on the way!
We are getting ready for yet another wonderful Big Volunteer Week! This year, it will centre around the six groups of need in the city on which Serve the City focuses, namely: people who are homeless, people who are asylum seekers, people who are elderly, people with disabilities, children in need, victims of abuse. This week we will talk about the people who are living with disabilities.
We all have different abilities and disabilities, in one way or another, but for some people, disabilities take them out of the societal mainstream, into a life where they are better known for their disabilities than their abilities. Making matters worse, people with disabilities often feel uncomfortable in the presence of people with a visible disability. Our friends who are blind, deaf, in wheelchairs, or experience other physical, intellectual, or emotional challenges welcome the involvement and friendship of volunteers who are willing to see them as more than their disability. When appropriate, we also offer to help them with physical tasks that they may not be able to accomplish by themselves. All the barriers encountered by disabled people in Brussels and everywhere else should be eliminated. They encounter numerous problems with everyday life going from one place to another and difficulties in finding a job. There are centers in Brussels that try to help them and offer support and advice in order to make their life easier. Our Volunteers want to help with their state of mind and to help them not see themselves defined by their disability. That is why Serve the City’s volunteers spend time with them, listen to their problems and concerns, and sometimes even help physically.
