Cohort: Europe — Germany

Serve with our partner Berliner Stadtmission (Berlin City Mission), a more than 145-year-old Christian service organization that ministers with those who are often forgotten in the city—people who are homeless or economically poor, people with special needs, people who come to the city as refugees, and more.

You'll spend a year in Berlin, Germany’s capital city. Berlin is a bustling, vibrant metropolis that has welcomed tens of thousands of refugees who have been displaced from their homes. You'll learn about all of the Stadtmission's work, but your main assignment will be in the WillkommensGemeinde (the Welcome Church), a young church that was planted with and for newcomers to Berlin (like you!). You'll develop relationships within the congregation through its two language cafes and through many relationship-building activities and events. These relationships are natural contexts for sharing one’s faith in Christ, as well as one’s own struggles and joys.

You'll also be trained to work in the Emergency Homeless Shelter during the winter months. In addition to your work with the WillkommensGemeinde, you'll be assigned to serve perhaps a day a week in another capacity within the wide-ranging ministries of the Stadtmission.

You'll live in community with other young adult volunteers and participate in seminars and social events to better understand Germany's history and culture. You'll learn the German language through formal language classes and a host of informal opportunities. However, people from throughout the world call Berlin home, and you'll have an opportunity to meet people from all over the world and learn from them and with them about other countries and cultures and about finding one’s place in a new land.

Resonate missionaries David Kromminga and Mary Buteyn will walk alongside you through a year of growth and exploration. Mary is an employee of the Stadtmission and a former German language and literature instructor. David has been a pastor in urban settings for more than 30 years. They know Berlin well and love helping others discover the city they love.

This placement is a part of the Cohort Europe program. As a participant in this program you'll have direct contact with other Resonate volunteers serving in Budapest, Hungary and Klaipeda, Lithuania. You'll begin your year together with a common orientation, and during the year you'll visit and host one another, being exposed to a variety of programs operating in different European contexts. With a shared curriculum and regular meeting times, you'll be able to grow in fellowship with your Cohort counterparts across the continent.