Gatherings Filled with Joy

What comes to your mind when you hear: happiness, children's smiles, support, love, a safe haven? All of this, and so much more, defines our partner organizations that have been successfully implementing the Older Brother, Older Sister program for many years. One of those organizations is the Center for Youth Education (CEM) from Travnik, which year after year provides children and volunteers from the central region of Bosnia and Herzegovina with quality knowledge, valuable life skills, and unforgettable moments of growing up. We had the opportunity to visit this amazing team at the beginning of this week and witness firsthand all the incredible work they do and the joy they share during their gatherings.

Thanks to coordinator Stela Dukić, program assistant Ilhana Mujak, and the dedicated volunteers, outstanding results are never lacking. Together with the team from the Center for Social Work, with whom they have been collaborating successfully for many years, united in the mission that every child deserves to be happy and grow up surrounded by love and care, they organize a variety of activities, such as visits to museums and libraries, forest walks and learning about flowers and planting, painting on stones, learning about ecology and protecting the planet, exploring cultures and foreign languages, and many other activities. Not only do these experiences equip younger brothers and sisters with knowledge and skills that will help them confidently walk their life paths, but they also provide older brothers and sisters the chance to grow, refine themselves, and contribute to creating a better society.

After getting to know the children and volunteers, we were all eager to start the workshop prepared by Mirela Džinić, founder of the Senses.ba brand, a designer and creator of unique children's clothing pieces, who showed us how to creatively use fabric scraps. Thanks to the materials Mirela brought, and with her guidance, we crafted the classic game tic-tac-toe. The room was filled with laughter, a spirit of competition, engaging conversations, and, of course, the genuine happiness of being part of this story.

With a desire to continue achieving great results, bring even more smiles, and carry out more activities, we thank the team from CEM for the wonderful gathering and look forward to continuing our collaboration.

Amila Ibrahimović
Volunteer at the Foundation for the Support and Development of Mentoring Programs
Older Brother, Older Sister