A primary school teacher that takes a one year break to discover different things and then came to us, this is Barla, our amazing, funny, positive, smart, always smiling friend! Since she’s a teacher she mainly taught in the Adult school but was also always there for any other daily tasks that we needed her …

Today you’ll meet our spicy fermented sauce inventor – Sam! Sam has been first with our partner Better days and was for everyone “Garden Sam”! But then, he decided to join our kitchen team where he spends most of his days at OHF now: preparing food, inventing spicy sauce, speaking with Fifie about sustainability and …

Sandrine, our dear friend from Canada! You arrived at One Happy Family and – since the very first moments – you were completely part of it. It was impressive to see how quickly you had a very good overview of what is happening on this Island. You were always around, and – even if we …

Today’s volunteer story is about Freddies experience at One Happy Family. He stayed with us for three weeks in summer. As a teacher Freddie was involved in the Adult School and did a lot of teacher training to all of our teachers – those who learnt teaching here and those who came with a background …

Rebekka has been with OHF for the last four months: After starting at the playground she joined the school after one week and “never left”. ☺  And Rebekka made an huge impact in the Adult School – thank you Rebekka for all of your heart and soul leaded actions that you let us participate in …

After volunteering with us for around 2.5 months, we had to say goodbye to our most motivated kitchen supporter – Anton! Anton, who will start studying “Geography of Africa” now, will be very deeply missed at OHF! This is my most memorable moment: I can’t think of only one moment, because most of the moments …

Ramo – a happy, positive minded teacher and barber shop manager – but also a dancer, cleaner (yes, we know that dish washing wasn’t your favourite daily task) and on his last day he even joined our security team! In total Ramo stayed with us for around 2 months – but it felt like he’s …

Melanie, 25 from Switzerland, student of Social Work, volunteered at One Happy Family for nine weeks. Thank you Melanie for all your energy, happiness and your support! This is my most memorable moment: This is a question I can’t really answer. Every day is in its own way very exciting and interesting. It’s the daily …

Sophia, 25, Social work student from Germany, volunteering at OHF for 6 months. This is my most memorable moment: It is difficult to define one single memorable moment. What makes the experience of being here so memorable to me are the many encounters with people of cultures, thoughts and perceptions of the world that could …

Jojo, 23, Student in Educational Studies in History, Politics and Sports My most memorable moment is…  When we organised the first football tournament and saw that everybody was so happy afterwards. What struck me the most is…  How the whole situation is setting up refugees for failure. People lack access to the most basic things they …

Felix, 26, Airfreight clerk This is my most memorable moment…  There are plenty of memorable moments. But the new years eve celebration with all the helpers and their families was fantastic. This struck me the most…  The dedication that all the involved people show every day to make this place to what it is. One …

Ludovic, 25, Product Manager in Baby Care Company This is my most memorable moment… There are so many moments… I will always remember Christmas party with all the helpers dancing all together, no matter of their country of origin. Lovely team! This struck me the most… When I saw helpers coming from Moria in the …

Silke Reiter, 36, anthropologist from Austria This is my most memorable moment… I am super impressed by the kitchen team. Cooking for so many people in such a tiny place is an incredible task. The kitchen team is so dedicated to their work and they always try to make the best out of everything and …

Ross Ireland, 64, a semi-retired businessman from England. This is my most memorable moment… My favourite time of the day is when we close the main building to adults and the school kids come for their supper. They walk in singing songs and reciting the alphabet in English and they’re always happy and full of …

Lily Peck, 27, agriculture/ plant sciences PhD student from England For the past 5 weeks Lily has been working with us in One Happy Family for the second time this year. After this experience, she wants to raise more awareness in her home country. ‘’People think that the crisis here on Lesvos is over. It …

Anja Otth, 25, social work student from Switzerland After working with refugees in Switzerland, Anja decided to come to Lesvos to see things from a different point of view. She wanted to see what the people here are going through so she could use this experience in her work in Switzerland. ‘Working here as a …

Ashley and Jordan Johnsen Living in the United States, Ashley and Jordan Johnsen know the refugee crises is a hot topic. But with Trump as their president, they say there is not a lot of information about displaced people. A reason to come to Lesvos to see the situation themselves. ‘Trump dominates our news cycle. …

Gaelle Dietrich Gaelle Dietrich volunteers in a center for refugees in Germany. To learn more about what these people are going through, she decided to go to Lesvos. ‘I wanted to go a little bit further in the work I am doing. I felt the need to see where the people I work with have …

Tina Leiser She decided to go to Lesvos because she felt the need to know what refugees in Europe go through. After this experience, Tina Leiser is ready to raise awareness in Switzerland. ‘I know my impact in Lesvos was really small. But I needed to come here to understand the whole situation. Now I …