"I wouldn't trade what volunteering gives me for anything in the world."
Albert Vázquez dedicates some of his time to accompanying others who need companionship or support with errands. He finds motivation and gratitude in this volunteer work , and he feels that his contribution improves the quality of life for people in vulnerable situations.
Albert began volunteering at the Fundació Germà Tomás Canet , which supports people in vulnerable situations and at risk of social exclusion, in 2014, just one year after being diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome. "I felt relieved to know what was happening to me," he tells us, "to understand the reason for so many tests during my childhood." He also volunteers at the Parc Sanitari Sant Joan de Déu .
Having Asperger's syndrome gives him some very interesting characteristics for carrying out the task of volunteering: perseverance.
"I've always said that I don't have any special qualities. In every volunteer activity, I try to give my best. I try to be consistent and fully committed," explains this volunteer. "I'm very clear that anyone, giving 50% of their potential, can surpass me in any quality when I'm at 100% of my capacity."
Albert, with all his humility, believes that being a volunteer has taught him that we can all, at some point, go through a stage of vulnerability and has given him the responsibility and commitment to take on a role.
With his personality and approach, Albert has earned the trust of the organizations he works with. This is also true in his current job at a support services company through a Special Employment Center. "On a personal level, I've become accustomed to doing tasks in a certain way and always following the same steps," Albert explains. "I find it hard to tolerate mistakes, I've also struggled to control frustration, and I also struggle with not valuing myself as others do, not seeing the qualities I possess when others do," he tells us.
To help and to be helped
Albert is aware that volunteering benefits not only the people he supports, but also himself. "It has helped me and continues to help me both socially and emotionally," he tells us. "People with Asperger's syndrome find it very difficult to socialize, especially in childhood. In my case, I never managed to have any childhood friends. And I still don't. All my close contacts are, and have been, fellow volunteers. You learn to appreciate the little things in life."
Asperger's Syndrome, a unique way of understanding the world
In his early thirties, Albert is very sincere when he shares his view of life and leaves us with a message of gratitude towards volunteering: "I will never have a partner, I will never start a family, I will never know what leisure is, I haven't had friends, but I have colleagues who have become friends, I will possibly be the most unhappy guy on the planet because I won't know what the word fun means, but... What I do know is what volunteering gives me, THAT I wouldn't trade for anything in the world."
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