Independence Day at Serock with Mentally Diverse People
Not many people is totally aware of how EVS projects work. As volunteers of the European Solidarity Corps,
our main job is at our host organization, which for me is the library in
Pomiechówek. However, we are part of a bigger organization that coordinates the
individual projects of the volunteers, thus, every once in a while, we have the
chance to take part in other events different from our own jobs. This was the case
of the weekend of the Polish independence anniversary.
On the 8th of November
our team of volunteers was kindly invited to Serock – a little town close to
Pomiechówek– to collaborate in the activities the social center had prepared
for its users in commemoration of the 100 years of Polish independence. After a
short presentation about the function of the institution and a comforting lunch
the activities started. To run the workshops the participants and we were
divided into three groups, so that they would have 45 minutes of each activity.
Travis, volunteer from Taiwan, showed how to make origami; Ann-Katrin, from Germany,
went outside to play some sport games; and Marine and I chose to help with the
cooking part.
We were going to make some
snacks, sandwiches and brochettes, for the party afterwards. The table was
filled with different kinds of vegetables, cheese and cold meat, as well as
butter and bread. The participants were all into it. They created really
interesting combinations of flavors and the result was very colorful and tasty.
Our main task was to help cut the vegetables and to hand them the food that
were further on the other side of the table, but we also enjoyed a lot making
our own sandwiches and brochettes. Listening to the participants asking us
about some particular product was actually a great way to learn the Polish
words for this kind of food!
Once the workshops were over it
was time for the bonfire. All the group gathered around it to warm us up a bit.
We could also bake some sausages and potatoes, and all of the time there were
two men singing and playing the guitar, so the atmosphere could not have been
more friendly!
But the day was not even close to
finish yet. When it was too cold to stay outside we went indoors again to a
room in which they had prepared a discotheque, even with the classic silver
shinny ball! The main music played was the already so familiar to us “diskopolo,”
and everyone was so happy dancing to its rhythm. The night was just getting
better because there were also tables with the sandwiches and brochettes we had
prepared at the workshop, as well as drinks, fruit, cakes and other sweets.
After a while of free time there,
the workers made a quiz about Poland for the participants –in which we could
not participate due to language barriers, but later we took part in the games.
First we decided to teach them the English song “head, shoulders, knees and
toes,” and it was very funny since every time we went faster and faster. Then
they wanted to dance the “Macarena” song, for which I was very excited since I
did not know it was also popular beyond the Spanish borders, but everyone knew
the steps! We also played the chairs game and some other ones about dancing in
pairs with balloons. We did have a good time and lots of laughs.
The night had come to an end, so
everyone went back to their rooms. However, we still were up for a while
talking to our neighbors, two nice workers of the center who spoke English, and
they told us more about their experience there, and it was great to get to know
them a bit. Finally, we left the next morning after breakfast, but before they gave each of us a cute mug 😍. We were
exhausted but very happy to have participated in the event, and I really hope
we get to go there in more occasions!
