When Serve the City Luxembourg meets Citi Bank…

…it usually ends with a pile of laughter and joy!

In June a total of 11 volunteers from Citi Bank, along with team leaders from STC hit the streets, homes and shelters to help bring a smile on a stranger’s face. In support of their annual Volunteer Day, STC organised three separate activities on the same day across all of Luxembourg. It started early in the morning at 8:30 am at the Luxembourg central train station. A mixture of excitement, curiosity and early morning eyes were visible on everyone’s face. After a quick group picture, three groups went their separate ways: one to the Luxembourg city street team, the other to the Centre de Retention in Findel and the smallest group to the Beauty Event and Children’s Activities event in Esch.

Three different places, also meant three completely different experiences. For the first group, it was their first experience with homeless people in Luxembourg. After the food preparation they took to the streets and handed out sandwiches to surprised and thankful strangers, just waking up from their morning sleep.

At the same time in Findel, three Citi volunteers and family members were being briefed about the rules at the Centre and general guidelines. Football shoes were strapped, the volunteer T-shirt was on and they were off to enter a completely secluded world that they had never seen before. Even though they came prepared and fit, the volunteers lost to the eager inhabitants, who were happy to finally have formed a team of their own. It generated a great team spirit, and just shows that the more volunteers attend, the better the activity!

This can also be said for the Beauty Event at the women’s shelter in Esch. Here, two ladies and a daughter took care of 10 children, while their mothers were being pampered. One professional and another semi-professional volunteer helped the women feel fabulous with their new make-up and nails. As time flew by, bracelets were being made and paintings done, the mothers felt refreshed and relaxed at the end of the day. Seeing their mothers with new nails and faces, sparked curiosity in the girls that they wanted to try out the manicure and make-up sessions, which they enjoyed with gusto.

At the end of the day, most of the volunteers gathered at Oscar’s pub to talk about their experience. Even though they didn’t all volunteer at one location and it was less of a team building event, all the volunteers were convinced that this experience was “valuable and deeply insightful” to them. They felt that they could be much closer to the people in need and really make a difference.

This is a win for Serve the City Luxembourg and we are looking forward to more CSR opportunities in the future!

If your company is interested in volunteering in Luxembourg and organising a volunteer day, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us at hello@servethecity.lu and we will be happy to present our options for your needs!