CISV used to stand for Children International Summer Villages, that was before the organization expanded with other 5 programs. It all started after WWII with a psychologist, Doris Allen, who believed that peace could be built and maintained if children learned how to live as friends, respecting differences, and accepting new ideas ( also breaking down stereotypes). In 1951 the first international camp was celebrated in Cincinnati- OH and after that, thousands of children and adults participate in CISV programs every year.
"We are a global community of dedicated volunteers, creating opportunities for all ages to experience the excitement and enrichment of cultural diversity through our educational programmes. We are founded on our belief that peace is possible through friendship - and that the real difference can be made by starting with children. CISV is a charitable, independent, non-political, volunteer organization promoting peace education and cross-cultural friendship."
Everyone that works for CISV is a volunteer. We donate our summers and our hearts in hopes that after a camp, 80 people will be new citzens of the world, ready to make a difference in those around them. They will stand up, and speak out for the things that they believe in.
The kids can participate as young as 10 years old. The first program, the village, is 4 weeks long for 12 delegations around the world. One can say that in a village you experience 15 countries in 28 days! Every delegation will have one leader (over 21) and 4 eleven years old, 2 boys and 2 girls. During these 4 weeks these people will do activities to promote trust, friendship, self-awareness, peace and environmental care, among many more.
I've been a part of CISV for about 10 years now. Since I had my first experience I've learned to be more understanding, to be eager to explore, meet new people, not be afraid to go out of my boundaries. It gave me confidence to be who I am, and fight for what i think it's right. And that's how most kids will come out of the experience.
That's all I can think about, and all I can talk about. I leave in 2 weeks to a Village camp in Ontario. It's my first village ever, and I'm so excited to be a part of the magic. For 28 days I'll be spending time with 52 kids (this village has one extra delegation because the one in Thailand was cancelled due to political unrest), 6 JC's and other 17 likeminded adults who want to make a difference in the world.
During my vacation in july I'll work for peace.
2 comments:
Oi Patty, consegui colocar muitos posts no blog, pq a maioria dos hoteis tinha internet gratis, em outras cidades, no mc donalds era gratis. O Davi esta curtindo muito, só reclama qdo tem que trocar de hotel.. Hoje vamos pra Ghana, acordei tão cedo, sem sono... ansiedade.. beijos
“Letters to Juliet”…A Love Letter to Verona
Leaving letters for Juliet is something that Monica Catalina, also known as, the Tuscan Texan, is all too familiar. Monica, a brand new Texan and expat from Verona, is embracing her Italian roots and finding a common ground wherever she can here in Texas. From her city of star-crossed lovers, she has followed her amore (and now husband) to Dallas, Texas. Trading in the star that hangs from the coliseum in Verona to the Lone Star that hangs in her new state flag. From the boot that represented the shape of her country, to the cowboys boots that she now wears around her husband’s family ranch. Monica’s contagious personality and love of all things make it easy for her to feel right at home in her new surroundings.
The story began in Lisbon, Portugal where Monica and Richard Anderson where selected to represent their respective countries in an International People’s Project where they worked with 54 youth and adults with cerebral palsy at a 21-day CISV camp. They met wanting to help other people like the character in “Letters to Juliet”. Similar to Romeo and Juliet, it was love at first sight, two people from different parts of the world, not meant to be together. Richard, a recent Vanderbilt graduate, was traveling through Europe on the orders from his parents to find himself or a passion and don’t come home until he knew what he wanted to be now that he is grown up. After a couple of months travel and the fortunate event of meeting Monica, he called home and said “I didn’t find myself, and I still don’t know what I want to be, but I have found a girl, I am in love, and I am moving to Italy” which is exactly what he did. They married outside of Monica’s hometown of Florence in the beautiful Tuscan hills last September.
Now that Monica has moved to Texas, she very much wishes to share her traditions, memories, cooking talents and affections of all things Italian-Tuscan-Florentine-Etruscan-Mediterranean. She is a myriad volume of the treasures that Italy has to offer. This was witnessed first-hand after guiding us to the pinnacle of the Duomo in Florence, Monica exhaled, “this is where my friend and I used to skip school and come to read our books”. She is now busy in Texas, planting olive trees and making plans to plant grapes for a small vineyard . With Monica’s infectious personality and special understanding of her beloved country, she has entered into the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) “Your Own Show” competition under the cooking category in hopes to communicate her expertise and experiences with a large audience. Please consider voting for her at –you can vote as often as you would like. http://myown.oprah.com/audition/index.html?request=video_details&response_id=3319&promo_id=1
Thank you!
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