I joined in summer 2021 and had the chance to be one of the first volunteers to support Lea and Bonface. During the corona period, I was looking for a meaningful task that would really fulfil me – and I came across UNDER Lea’s TRUST via Instagram. I immediately liked the idea of helping to shape a newly founded project from the very beginning and growing together towards a common vision.

I am currently active in the newsletter and update team. 

In the newsletter team, I take care of the articles on ‘Team introduction’, ‘Recipes’, ‘Behind the scenes’ and ‘Outlook’. Every month, after our team meeting, Nicole, Lea and I meet online to decide on the structure and content of the upcoming newsletter and set deadlines. We then write our texts, correct them, translate them into English, prepare the design for dispatch and publish the newsletter article on our blog.

I manage around 70 children in the update team. I check whether my colleagues in Kenya have provided new updates for the sponsors or whether an update is needed. If the latter is the case, I inform Bonface and the team on site. Our aim is to send an update to the sponsors every 3-4 months so that they know how their sponsored children are doing and what their donation is achieving.

ULT is growing continuously – and as it grows, so do the challenges. Our team is therefore also expanding to ensure smooth processes. Communication is the be-all and end-all: each of our teams holds its own meetings, the entire German team meets once a month to exchange ideas, and we meet with the Kenyan team every two months. Over time, this has brought us closer together, and although we are spread across Germany and the whole world, ULT feels like one big family.

The biggest challenge for me is organising my time. As I work full-time, clear deadlines provide me with orientation and help me to integrate my voluntary work into my everyday life in a meaningful way.

In November 2021, I had the opportunity to get to know the team and the children directly on site in the slum. This made it even clearer to me how important our contribution really is – a realisation that motivates me in the long term.

The absolute highlight for me, however, was our first team trip with the German team this year. Rarely have I experienced so much warmth and solidarity. This weekend gave me new energy and enthusiasm and I am already looking forward to the next trip together. ❤️