Our October Volunteer of the Month is Lena Rabens!
Lena joined us recently at Bethany House, and has quickly become a well-respected member of the team. She shared her story with us:
“I grew up in Germany and moved to Edinburgh two months ago to volunteer with Bethany at Bethany House.
I always had a heart for volunteer work and after volunteering at my church, school and with St. Johns ambulance (Johanniter) in Germany, I wanted to do a full year of volunteering at a new place for one year after finishing high school this year.
For this reason, I applied to a German organisation last year and mostly left it up to God in which country and in which placement I would work.
After I was offered the job at Bethany House, I was more than happy, because although I couldn’t name it beforehand, it was exactly what I wanted to do.
Over the past couple of months I have learnt more about homelessness and the Bethany Christian Trust. Thus far, my experience here has been better than I could have imagined. I love working with all the different people and sharing God’s love that I receive.
In my role as a volunteer, I have a lot of opportunities for meaningful interactions and conversations with the residents and I support the staff and residents in their daily tasks.
I am more than grateful to be here and I am looking forward to all the other experiences and moments this year and all the people I will be able to meet!”
Lena has been an incredible asset to the team, getting stuck in with all aspects of Bethany House life and even joining on the House Holiday recently, where she was able to build closer relationships with many of the residents and staff team.
Thank you Lena for everything you do!