A-SMYLE Alumni Promotes Volunteerism with Hands-on Training

Danilo Stojanovic and Maja Jovanovic, 2010 A-SMYLE alumni, recently embarked upon a project entitled "Volunteerism and Me." The two engaged in various volunteer activities during their time on program in the U.S., and felt a strong desire to share these values with the younger generation in their town of Prokuplje, Serbia.

The project - which consisted of three workshops, headed by Danilo and two representatives of UNICEF - brought fifty 7th and 8th grade students together to learn about giving back to the community through volunteer efforts. Danilo and Maja chose to work with these students to teach them from a young age about the benefit of helping others. They believe that there is often a lack of volunteer spirit in Serbia, and wish to help use some of their experiences from A-SMYLE to inform students that the smallest efforts can go a long way.

During the workshop, they spoke about volunteerism in America and different ways they could reach out to the community, including visiting an orphanage, victims of the war, a home for people with neuromuscular disorders, etc. At the end of the workshop, Danilo and Maja provided the students with an opportunity to conduct mock presentations, in order to help prepare them to recruit others.

Upon completing the workshop, many of the participants volunteered to take part in activities, including where they will visit disabled people "to make their day at least a little better." Danilo and Maja also set up a Facebook group called "Volonterizam i ja" (Volunteerism and Me) as a way to keep volunteers in touch about upcoming projects and meetings.

In addition to using social media to spread their cause, they also used local radio advertising to spark interest in their work. They plan to continue to recruit students in their area to volunteer, as well as expand their vision to the entire southeastern region of Serbia in the near future, and eventually - the entire country.