Volunteering Stories: Italian volunteer in Baia Mare – by Elisabetta

I’ve been in Baia Mare for six weeks, everyone asks me: why here? The truth is that I don’t know, I left blindfolded but I discovered that I like being here. I am Elisabetta, a volunteer from Italy for the Team for Youth Association.

I decided to undertake an experience in international volunteering because it has always been one of my little dreams, and having just completed my studies I thought it was the right time to leave. Team for Youth welcomed me into its small but friendly team. Today I work, for example, on digital skills, information and disinformation, and the skills required in the world of work. My project will end at the end of February 2024.

Working in High Schools

Going to high schools, meeting students, having conversations, and exchanging ideas is truly inspiring for me.

In recent weeks, my volunteer friends and I have presented various topics in schools. For example, we talked about the Curriculum Vitae and how to write it. We then guided students in the creation of their CVs on some online platforms. This week we’ve also simulated a job interview and asked the girls and guys to try to create and answer the most common questions in a job interview. Lastly, I had a lot of fun giving presentations on Italy. I decided to do it in quiz mode to make it more engaging. I’m learning a lot from the teenagers, they are really curious and smart.

Our volunteering service, however, does not only include giving presentations in schools. It includes also preparing events, such as the association’s birthday party, contacting new volunteers, sponsoring volunteering opportunities abroad for young Romanians, and keeping the T4UTH social pages updated. All these back-office activities are helping me to acquire new skills and to understand how an NGO works.

What I love about volunteering

What I like most about being here in Baia Mare is traveling to new places and being in contact with the volunteers who come from all over the world. I also love spending time with the local community and volunteers. They are making me discover a new culture that I would never have thought was so similar and different at the same time from mine. I really like exchanging impressions, and talking about linguistic expressions, traditions, and cuisine, especially if we all cook together!

In the next few months, I would like to be able to create activities in collaboration with volunteers, complete the projects I am following, and learn to converse in Romanian. Sa speram ca o putem face!

The volunteer is hosted by Team for Youth Association in project number 2022-1-RO01-ESC51-VTJ-000062337 (also called “Year2”), on a 5 months European Solidarity Corps project in Baia Mare. The content of this article does not reflect the official opinion of the European Union. The responsibility for the information and views expressed in the article rests entirely with the author(s).