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Volunteering, a real way to realization of local initiatives

Since 2004 the Youth Cultural Center – Bitola has started promoting volunteerism and organization of international volunteering work camps with participation of youngsters from all over the world.

From 24 June to 4 July the Youth Cultural Center – Bitola realized the camp “Tumbe kafe” with volunteers from Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro. Volunteers worked on arranging the derelict area of the famous but forgotten building of Tumbe kafe. They cleaned up the garbage, cut old trees and bushes and put bins. The objective of this camp is revival of the Bitola Tumbe kafe. The camp is just a beginning of the YCC – Bitola activities in cooperation with the local self-government to revitalize, renovate the building, so that it could be further used as an open scene for concerts, theatre performances and the rest of it as a trim path and ZOO.

Last year, from 20 to 30 August, YCC – Bitola organized a volunteering camp which was a part of the youth art festival “Bitola open city”. Ten volunteers from Serbia and Montenegro, Croatia, Spain, France, United Kingdom, Portugal, Japan were logistic support for the festival. This year YCC – Bitola is organizing three volunteering camps.

From 13 to 23 August Bitola open city camp. Again ten volunteers from Serbia and Montenegro, Croatia, USA, Japan, Denmark are going to be a part of the festival, held from 17 to 21 August.

Third camp will be realized from 20 to 30 August in Strezevo where 15 volunteers from the Czech Republic, Serbia and Montenegro and Croatia will be cleaning and renovating sports fields.

To volunteer means to give yourself, not a part of yourself, because the essence of each volunteering is the desire to help others. There are many other motives that could make you volunteer: desire to travel, new friendships, learning new skills. Every volunteer should be open for new challenges and sensitivity for the others.

It seems that in Macedonia volunteering is just a new term for what was being practiced in the previous system, that is socialism. So we can still find the foundations and continue building our relation to volunteerism upon them. And tell the new generations how their parents were working and making friends during the working actions.

The relation between the civil society sector, young people and the local government is the real way through which all initiatives and actions will pass, relevant for a better life of the community. Only common action and coordination can bring successful implementation and new initiatives.

(the author is a member of the Youth Cultural Center – Bitola, PR officer)