Selection Results
We are proud to announce the selection of a Greek Volunteer from CHIOS island, Despoina Kossena, to an individual volunteering project in Malagón, SPAIN, who will participate in a 7-month project, assisting Asociación Coraje Malagón in leisure activities for people with disabilities..!
Great work, well done, DESPOINA!
Congrats to our young Greek volunteer for her distinction among other candidates... Despoina seems to be skilled in negotiation and communication abilities. She is very focused, responsible and deeply aware about the added value of such an experience and social work. Her special support is complementary and serves for a good purpose: Despoina is going to be a volunteer, for entertaining and supporting in leisure activities disabled population. Through such of philanthropic activities, volunteers enhance the universal entropy for a better world, in benefit of peace, social harmony and the core of humanity...
Thank you Despoina!
The specific volunteering has been funded with the code number 2024-1-ES02-ESC51-VTJ-000212886.. The volunteering project lasts 211 days and specifically, from 02-09-2024 to 01-04-2025.
Supporting Organization: ESAI EN ROI
DESPOINA KOSSENA motivation statements
My name is Despoina and I come from a very beautiful island of the North Aegean sea, called Chios, which is located in Greece. Having being raised in a small town on the island, I am quite used to the relaxed and slow-paced lifestyle, being able to move around mostly by foot and building long-lasting relationships with neighbors and other residents. Also, in such small communities, the Greek traditional element is quite strong. Therefore, I hold all the traditions, ethics, customs and cultural elements of my birthplace very close to my heart. Moreover, I learned how to cook from a young age while observing and learning from my lovely grandmother who was an incredible chef, and it is something that I really enjoy doing. I, also, enjoy artistic activities like dancing, singing and playing musical instruments. Furthermore, through my life experiences so far, I have come to realize the importance of inclusivity and visibility of people. We are all unique and special individuals who deserve to be treated equally and respectfully, and regardless of our background, we are all worthy of living a happy and healthy life. Additionally, I truly enjoy working and living in multicultural environments, and it has been one of my dreams to be able to live in Spain and get acquainted with the language, the culture and the Spanish spirit. I am very excited to embark on my first long-term volunteering journey that will allow me to broaden my knowledge and horizons, while actively contributing to the social inclusion of people with disabilities. I am looking forward to sharing my knowledge, skills and culture
I am quite an outgoing and communicative person, nimble, independent and autonomous, with empathy and a sense of responsibility, dedicated towards what I do. I would love to share my knowledge, as well as Greek Culture traditions (dancing, songs, customs, fairy-tails, greek cuisine etc) with people from other European countries.
...!
The Activities of the Association
CORAJE MÁLAGÓN, is a non-profit organization integrated by around of 145 members; persons with or without disabilities who also take part of our "family". Our organization was created in April 1999, when a group of people with disabilities and their families decided that their union was necessary to achieve an improvement in the quality of life of people with disabilities in MALAGÓN, village where is situated the Association. In 2005, our OCCUPATIONAL CENTER was opened, giving the opportunity to 15 users with intellectual disabilities to achieve their social and work integration. From then until now, there have been many professionals who are working for persons with several capacities. The workshops that they currently do are: MACHÉ PAPER and SERIGRAPHY. In 2009, begin a new service for people with disabilities in the locality, in this case focusing on people with physical disabilities, opening our company called ALITADIS SLU, dedicated to catering and food service. In 2010, CORAJE MALAGÓN decides that we must continue to move forward and we started to work in our DAY CENTER FOR PEOPLE WITH EXTENSIVE AND GENERALIZED SUPPORT NEEDS. In 2018, we would like to open our Asociation to Europe; sharing our experiences and opening our entity to European Youths that would like to join us for some periods of volunteering. Our objectives are to achieve the balance and reconciliation between three major general objectives: THE SOCIAL INTEGRATION, THE PROMOTION OF PERSONAL AUTONOMY AND INDEPENDENCE AND THE QUALITY OF LIFE AND THE WELFARE OF THE PERSONS. We pretend that each one of the beneficiaries achieve the desired lifestyle, the highest levels of freedom, control, empowerment and self-determination possible over their life.
The activities are divided into different areas:
--> Operational Areas: subdivided into:
- Pre-Labor Area: where two workshops are carried out: Serigraphy and Tapestry. Where they shape the AREA OF INITIATION OF PRODUCTION .
- Personal Qualification: conformed by Laboratories of Mache Paper workshop and Labels. In this workshop they acquire the basic skills to be able to exercise a work routine, as well as to acquire the minimum steps necessary to exercise autonomy in your daily basic skills.
--> Strategic Areas:
- Support for families: where the union and communication with the families is created through two ways: "GO AND BACK BOOK", where the professional and the family communicate daily. Another way used is the FAMILY SCHOOL, where both, people with disabilities and their families and professionals of the occupational center, share an environment of information, communication, listening, which is at the same time enriching for all and above all for the beneficiaries, definitive in the planning that themselves make of their own future, since it is a space in which they feel enveloped by all their greatest supports.
- Community Integration: These are activities focused on the environment of the person with disabilities. These activities are developed throughout the year and involve: companies, associations, musical groups, sports, holding exhibitions, participation in all kinds of festivities, social events ... It is about enjoying the environment, making every day and normalized what has traditionally been invisible and secret, it is about making a party of being a person with a disability and making everyone participate in it.
The city of Malagón
Malagón is a municipality in Ciudad Real, Castile-La Mancha, Spain. As of 2010, it has a population of 8,731.
Castilla–La Mancha (UK: /kæˌstiːjə læ ˈmæntʃə/,[5] US: /- lɑː ˈmɑːntʃə/,[6] Spanish: [kasˈtiʎa la ˈmantʃa] ⓘ) is an autonomous community of Spain. Comprising the provinces of Albacete, Ciudad Real, Cuenca, Guadalajara and Toledo, it was created in 1982. The government headquarters are in Toledo, which is the capital de facto.
It is a landlocked region largely occupying the southern half of the Iberian Peninsula's Inner Plateau, including large parts of the catchment areas of the Tagus, the Guadiana and the Júcar, while the northeastern relief comprises the Sistema Ibérico mountain massif. It is one of the most sparsely populated of Spain's regions, with Albacete, Guadalajara, Toledo, Talavera de la Reina and Ciudad Real being the largest cities.
Castilla–La Mancha is bordered by Castile and León, Madrid, Aragon, Valencia, Murcia, Andalusia, and Extremadura. Prior to its establishment as an autonomous community, its territory was part of the New Castile (Castilla la Nueva) region along with the province of Madrid, except for Albacete province, which was part of the former Murcia region.
" [source: wikipedia].
Comments