Back to News & Articles

Finding Belonging: How Volunteering Helped Luda Build a New Life in the UK

When Luda arrived in the UK from Ukraine, she carried uncertainty, loneliness, and the quiet weight of starting over. Everything felt unfamiliar. She didn’t know the people, the culture, or even the language well enough to express herself fully. Like many in her situation, she could easily have withdrawn. Instead, she chose to connect.

That led her to Hope Café where she volunteers every Wednesday.

Each Wednesday morning, Luda arrives at 9am ready to help prepare the space before the doors open. She sets out tables with care, arranging flowers, laying crockery, and creating a welcoming environment for the café’s visitors, many of whom are elderly or in need of companionship. There’s a quiet rhythm to these early hours, one she particularly enjoys as she continues building her confidence in English.

By midday, the café becomes very lively. It fills with conversation and the comforting hum of community. Luda steps into a busier role, taking orders and interacting more with guests. What once felt daunting has slowly become something she embraces.

But for Luda, volunteering is all about the people.

The café is powered by a diverse team of volunteers, many are students from different countries and backgrounds, all coming together with a shared purpose. Among them is Suzie, the café manager, who has become one of Luda’s closest friends. Through this community, Luda has found not just support, but genuine connection and she is very eager to explain how lovely all the people are.

One moment stands out in her memory. A regular visitor at the café was celebrating his 99th birthday. The team baked a cake, gathered around, and sang to him. But what moved Luda most was what happened next, he insisted on sharing the cake with everyone. “I had not met anyone like that before,” she recalls. “At 99, he can still go out and socialise, he was an inspiration to me.” It was a simple act of generosity, but one that captured the spirit of the café.

Luda’s motivation to volunteer comes from a place of deep gratitude. She says “I wanted to give back to this country because I felt that all the people around me have tried to help me in any way they could. As a pensioner, I had the time to volunteer and so volunteering became my way of giving something back.”

Volunteering has transformed Luda’s life in quiet but powerful ways. She’s improving her English in a real-world environment. She’s formed meaningful friendships and found a sense of belonging, a feeling that can be hard to find when you’ve been displaced from home. It also offers her something invaluable: a way to focus on the present, rather than worry about what is happening in Ukraine.

Luda worries that people think volunteering is a chore but, far from it, volunteering has become one of the most important parts of her week. It’s something she prioritises and looks forward to, it always gives her a boost of confidence. With flexible hours and a supportive team, it fits naturally into her life.

When asked what she would say to others considering volunteering, she laughs and says, “Just do it”. As Luda has discovered, volunteering isn’t just about helping others. It has helped her build friendships and gain a renewed sense of purpose. It’s about creating moments that matter both for the people you help, and for yourself.

If you would like to volunteer, just take a look at the roles available in North Surrey, or get in touch and we can help match you.