Life at KERIC

Volunteers at KERIC

Since 2002 we have been hosting young people from all over the world in Čadca – first through the European Voluntary Service (EVS), today through the European Solidarity Corps (ESC) project. More than 201 volunteers from over 40 countries have led language courses, workshops, camps and activities for children and young people in the Kysuce region.

201+
Hosted volunteers
20+
Years of hosting
40+
Countries

Our volunteers lead language courses and conversation clubs (schedule in Slovak) right here at KERIC – come and practise English, French, Spanish or Italian with native speakers. Read about volunteer life in Čadca on the KERIC volunteers blog. And if you would like to volunteer abroad yourself, everything you need is on our Volunteering abroad page and the volunteering blog.

2026

Tuisku Takalo – volunteer portrait
No. 201

Tuisku Takalo

📅 March 2026 – May 2026

🏠 Finland, Helsinki

Saliha Aliyeva – volunteer portrait
No. 200

Saliha Aliyeva

📅 January 2026 – June 2026

🏠 Azerbaijan

Sinem Seviç – volunteer portrait
No. 199

Sinem Seviç

📅 January 2026 – January 2027

🏠 Turkey

💬 Intro

Hi! I’m Sinem, a 19-year-old from Sakarya, Turkey. I’m currently studying Political Science & Public Administration and Law. I joined the ESC project with the motivation to work with children, something I truly enjoy, and to experience different cultures up close.

Through this journey, I hope to gain new experiences that will help me grow both personally and socially. Also I’m vegetarian.

In my free time, I love watching Formula 1, following the latest races, drivers, and stories behind the sport. I also enjoy reading books, listening to music, and visiting museums. I find so much joy in discovering history, art, and different perspectives.

I’m really excited to be part of this project and can’t wait to see where this experience will take me 🫶🏻

Eliška Kysučanová – volunteer portrait
No. 198

Eliška Kysučanová

📅 January 2026 – July 2027

🏠 Slovakia

Chiara Bernocchi – volunteer portrait
No. 197

Chiara Bernocchi

📅 January 2026 – July 2027

🏠 Italy

2025

Khalid Babayev – volunteer portrait
No. 196

Khalid Babayev

📅 October 2025 – October 2026

🏠 Azerbaijan

💬 Intro

Hello everyone!
My name is Khalid Babayev, I am from Baku, Azerbaijan🇦🇿 and I am 22 years old. I would like to learn how to manage tasks, balance volunteer work with other responsibilities, plan events and keep records.

The surprising fact about myself is that I can learn various languages fast. In my free time I like to engage in activities such as swimming, drawing, reading books, learning languages, taking photos, traveling and sport.

One of the main reasons for my motivation is my strong belief in the importance of community engagement and environmental responsibility. I am passionate about helping to create positive change — both for people and for nature.

I dream of a greener world, cleaner skies, and fresher air, and I believe that even small actions taken together can make a real difference. Volunteering at Keric would allow me to contribute to these values while also learning and growing personally.📚

Sena Ugurlu – volunteer portrait
No. 195

Sena Ugurlu

📅 October 2025 – October 2026

🏠 Turkey

💬 Intro

Hello everyone ✨
My name is Sena, I'm 23 years old. I'm from Türkiye and I’m really happy to be part of this ESC group!

I graduated in Social Work and I love being involved in projects that bring people together and make a positive impact on society. I love traveling, discovering new cultures, learning and doing research.

In my free time, I enjoy watching movies and TV series, ice skating, playing table tennis and spending time with my friends playing board games. I like hiking but I'm new to this sport.

I believe that through this project I'll have the chance to improve myself both professionally and personally, and also develop my language skills. I’m really looking forward to meeting all of you, learning from each other and creating great memories together 💗

✨ 8 Months, One Home: Sena's "See You Later" to Slovakia

David-Alexandru Palimariu – volunteer portrait
No. 194

David-Alexandru Palimariu

📅 September 2025 – September 2026

🏠 Romania

💬 Intro

👋Hello, my name is David. I come from Romania🇷🇴, but I really enjoy traveling, putting myself in difficult situations to challenge my limits and get out of my confort zone. I also like living among foreigners.

I am 18 years old, I like to work with youth in an international environment. I am passionate about economics, politics, geopolitics, international relations, and the European Union. I tend to have a formal style, except when it comes to clothing.

I cannot wait to see how I will change by the end of this project as I higly value growth and personal development. I want to improve my language skills, take part in projects among Slovakia (and maybe beyond), discover a new country and do not let a single day pass without learning something.

✨ 267 Days in Slovakia: What ESC Volunteering at KERIC Taught David

Gabbo (Gabriele) Laquidara – volunteer portrait
No. 193

Gabbo (Gabriele) Laquidara

📅 September 2025

🏠 Italy

💬 Intro

Hello, my name is Gabriele but u can call me Gabbo. I'm 19 years old and I'm from Italy (Rome), I work in a prison community and I've a little second job as Graphic Designer.

I really like to work with people 'cause I like to help others, understand their problems and try to resolve them.
I'm a boxer and thai boxer, I really like to listen and sing music, cook and I practice modeling like a Nerd🤪.

I really would like to know different countries and cultures and East European Countries really fascinate me. I really hope to understand your language to be able to speak the language with a lot of my friends who were born in the East.

I truly hope to be helpful and pleasant for all of you.
See u💪🏻💪🏻

Wissal Adair – volunteer portrait
No. 192

Wissal Adair

📅 September 2025 – September 2026

🏠 Spain

💬 Intro

Hi! I'm Wissal 😄
I'm 21 years old and I come from Terrassa, Spain.

I joined this volunteering project because I’m excited to learn everything! I’m a fun, curious person, always open to new experiences.

I love doing crafts, spending time with animals, and learning about other cultures. My main motivation for joining this project is to grow both personally and professionally, and to connect with people from all over the world.

I’m really happy to be part of this adventure in Čadca.

Florian Dobigeon – volunteer portrait
No. 191

Florian Dobigeon

📅 September 2025 – September 2026

🏠 France

💬 Intro

My name is Florian, I'm 21 and I come from a small town in the west of France.🥖
I really enjoy running and trail running. As a marathon runner, I'm eager to discover Slovakia's nature through hiking or trail running.

For me, the ESC will allow me to learn about new cultures and enrich myself with others. Beyond the linguistic challenge that will be my biggest challenge this year, an incredible adventure will begin in September.

Peter Sagan shone on the roads of my country, it's up to me to understand why.

Noa Bertrand – volunteer portrait
No. 190

Noa Bertrand

📅 September 2025 – September 2026

🏠 France

💬 Intro

Hi everyone,
My name is Noa and I am 18 years old. I come from the east of France, from a city called Dole.

I’ve just finished high school and received my diploma. Now, I would like to join a mathematics bachelor’s program, but before that, I applied for the ESC project because I want to experience cultures that are different from mine.

I hope that during this project, I will learn many things that will help me in my future life and allow me to become more self-confident. This is a unique opportunity that I didn’t want to miss!

In my free time, I’m a road biker and a beginner drummer. I also enjoy climbing and hiking. But I would like to start getting into extreme sports, such as skydiving, for example.

I’m really excited and can’t wait to start the project, meet the future team, and learn a lot about different cultures!

Dalia Sabry – volunteer portrait
No. 189

Dalia Sabry

📅 March 2025 – March 2026

🏠 Egypt

hosted volunteers 2023 – 2024 web thumb

A list of volunteers from all over the world hosted by KERIC in Čadca in 2023 – 2024 through European Solidarity Corps (ESC) projects – volunteers No. 174 to 188. For each one you will find their country of origin, project dates and their intro or story, if they wrote one.

hosted volunteers 2021 – 2022 web thumb

A list of volunteers from all over the world hosted by KERIC in Čadca in 2021 – 2022 through European Solidarity Corps (ESC) projects – volunteers No. 157 to 174. For each one you will find their country of origin, project dates and their intro or story, if they wrote one.

hosted volunteers 2019 – 2020 web thumb

A list of volunteers from all over the world hosted by KERIC in Čadca in 2019 – 2020 through European Solidarity Corps (ESC) projects – volunteers No. 134 to 156. For each one you will find their country of origin, project dates and their intro or story, if they wrote one.

hosted volunteers 2017 – 2018 web thumb

A list of volunteers from all over the world hosted by KERIC in Čadca in 2017 – 2018 through European Voluntary Service (EVS) projects, the predecessor of today's ESC programme – volunteers No. 111 to 133. For each one you will find their country of origin, project dates and their intro or story, if they wrote one.

hosted volunteers 2015 – 2016 web thumb

A list of volunteers from all over the world hosted by KERIC in Čadca in 2015 – 2016 through European Voluntary Service (EVS) projects, the predecessor of today's ESC programme – volunteers No. 92 to 110. For each one you will find their country of origin, project dates and their intro or story, if they wrote one.

hosted volunteers 2013 – 2014 web thumb

A list of volunteers from all over the world hosted by KERIC in Čadca in 2013 – 2014 through European Voluntary Service (EVS) projects, the predecessor of today's ESC programme – volunteers No. 69 to 91. For each one you will find their country of origin, project dates and their intro or story, if they wrote one.

hosted volunteers 2011 – 2012 web thumb

A list of volunteers from all over the world hosted by KERIC in Čadca in 2011 – 2012 through European Voluntary Service (EVS) projects, the predecessor of today's ESC programme – volunteers No. 52 to 68. For each one you will find their country of origin, project dates and their intro or story, if they wrote one.

hosted volunteers 2002 – 2010 web thumb

A list of volunteers from all over the world hosted by KERIC in Čadca in 2002 – 2010 through European Voluntary Service (EVS) projects, the predecessor of today's ESC programme – volunteers No. 1 to 51. For each one you will find their country of origin, project dates and their intro or story, if they wrote one.