Goodbye Ukrainian Youth Club – Welcome to Arche!

The Ukrainian Youth Club was a newly founded organization for teenagers who were forced to flee from Ukraine. We at Experience One opened our event space in the middle of Berlin from March to June to create room for integration, learning and connecting – a space for positive memories in a new environment. Since July the teenagers from the Ukrainian Youth Club have been warmly welcomed at each of the Arche locations where committed staff continue to provide day care to children and teenagers.

Drawings of food, animals, and fun activities

Why did we create the Ukrainian Youth Club?

With so many teenagers arriving every day from Ukraine and schools in Germany just setting up the first Welcome Classes, many teenagers were left to their own devices with nothing to do but to relive the past weeks in their heads and read the news. We wanted to do everything we could to prevent that, which is why we set up a short-term program to alleviate the pressure from the German education system and provide teenagers with positive distractions, while giving parents the opportunity to take care of administrative tasks.

Woman explaining a task to children

What was the Ukrainian Youth Club all about?

We provided a weekday intensive day-care program for Ukrainian teenagers from March through to June. We used our huge event space to provide a temporary welcoming space for the teens – a space for integration, community-building, experience exchange, as well as education and simply distraction. In this time we made sure we integrated the teens into Berlin city life, as well as the existing support network of youth clubs. Now our teenagers continue to visit our partner Arche, where they are already known and are welcome to use all the classes and benefits provided.

Child sewing fabric

What happened in the Ukrainian Youth Club?

Three months flew by and thanks to our volunteers, we were able to create an exciting and fun program for the teenagers. Our activities ranged from lessons in English, German and computer programming – for which we worked together with teachers from Ukraine and Germany – to more creative DIY-projects, like drawing cartoons, folding origami and making badges. And of course, as in any youth club, fun was always on the agenda: we cooked together, watched movies, ate popcorn, played ping-pong tournaments and explored the sights and streets of the teens’ new home – Berlin.

  1. Seating Area, Children in the Kitchen, Kitchen Area, Children working in a class
  2. Seating Area, Children in the Kitchen, Kitchen Area, Children working in a class
  3. Seating Area, Children in the Kitchen, Kitchen Area, Children working in a class
  4. Seating Area, Children in the Kitchen, Kitchen Area, Children working in a class
  5. Seating Area, Children in the Kitchen, Kitchen Area, Children working in a class
  6. Seating Area, Children in the Kitchen, Kitchen Area, Children working in a class
  7. Seating Area, Children in the Kitchen, Kitchen Area, Children working in a class
  8. Seating Area, Children in the Kitchen, Kitchen Area, Children working in a class
  9. Seating Area, Children in the Kitchen, Kitchen Area, Children working in a class
  10. Seating Area, Children in the Kitchen, Kitchen Area, Children working in a class

Partners

  1. Experience One
  2. Die Arche e.V.
  3. Charite e.V.
  4. Pink Pepper Studios
  5. Codary

Does your teenager want to join a Youth Club in Berlin?

Berlin is a great city for children and even though our club has closed its doors, there are many possibilites for children and teenagers to get active – both after school and during holidays.

Our partner Arche provides after-school day care for children of all ages in five locations across different districts of Berlin. Arche in Hellersdorf and Friedrichshain have aa dedicated area specifically aimed at teenagers. To find out more, visit Arche.

You can also find more youth clubs and centers here.

Children working on a craft project

Do you or your company want to help?

If you are looking to get active, see all the opportunities to help on Arche website.

If your company wants to help and wants to get involved as part of a CSR activity, Arche is happy to receive support through both financial backing or voluntary work at the centers, for example as part of “Social Days” at your company. A lot is possible: from renovation work to helping with children's and family celebrations.

You can find more information and contact Arche here.

Craft work of a child