The Žilina Self-Governing Region (ŽSK) has declared 2021 the Year of Volunteering.
Its goal is the development of voluntary and community activities of youth and adults in the region. The Year of Volunteering will last until February 2022.
ŽSK considers the role of volunteers to be irreplaceable.
Many of them are standing in the front lines of the war against the coronavirus. They help with testing and in vaccination centres, deliver food to people who have been quarantined and help pack protective equipment.

"The Covid-19 pandemic has showed how important the systematic work with volunteers is,“ said Governor Erika Jurinová, as cited by the TASR newswire. "With the Year of Volunteering project, we want to give people the opportunity to become engaged in new activities, to encourage them towards community work and to support them in this meritorious activity.“
The first Year of Volunteering project provides transport cards by local transport companies SAD Žilina and Arriva Liorbus for long-term volunteers, with a credit of €20.
The condition is a volunteer having a contract with a relevant volunteer organisation and having worked more than 100 volunteer hours last year.
The transport companies pay half of the transport card and ŽSK contributes the second half. Even in this way, the region wants to "thank all the volunteers who are selflessly helping,“ said Jurinová.
ŽSK committed itself to supporting non-formal education and carrying out volunteering in the Strategy Žilina Region 22+ development plan.
During the Year of Volunteering, the public can look forward to the activities of about 15 organisations that have accepted invitation.
"We will continue to network support institutions and invite individuals to become involved, and work together to mitigate the negative physical and psychological impacts of the pandemic in society,“ said Marcel Rypák, coordinator of ŽSK Youth Section projects.
5. Apr 2021 at 9:00 | Compiled by Spectator staff