pcv projects
ETURN NGAGEMENTS
In September 2006 , I arrived in Macedonia with 48 other MAK 11 ’ s , and immediately fell in love with the country . Our first stop was a few days at Hotel Romantique , just outside of Veles ; the next 3 months were spent with my supportive , kind , and loving host family in Chaska , and then on to Bitola , which I still call “ home ” and where I lived until July 25 , 2009 .
I worked at the Opstina of Bitola . The friends I made there and in the city , and the projects we began , have drawn me back to Macedonia every year since I left . My most recent return to Macedonia was this past fall as a Response Corps Volunteer at the Center for Development for the Pelagonija Region in Bitola . ( This was my second
Response Corps ( RC ) position ; after visiting Macedonia in the fall of 2011 , I served in the Republic of Georgia from October until the end of January 2012 as a PR Advisor at the Ministry of Environment in Tbilisi ).
My position with the Center was Promotional Specialist for the Bitola Zoo . The Center had submitted and received a major EU crossborder IPA grant for renovations , trainings , and a new social media package for the Bitola Zoo and similar upgrades for a small park zoo in Florina , Greece ( just across the border from Bitola ). Great virtual and physical changes are underway in Bitola , with new habitats for the animals scheduled for 2014 ; I hope you get a chance to check
out all the changes online and in person .
When people hear I have served three times in PC , one of their first questions is always , “ Would you serve again ?” The answer is a resounding “ Yes .” If the timing and position were right , I would apply again . RC offers Volunteers , and in some cases folks who have not previously served as Volunteers , interesting international volunteer positions , along with a bit more flexibility than traditional PC service . RC positions are three , six , nine or twelve months long . Both of my RC positions were three months , and I was able to extend each for an additional two weeks to allow time to complete or expand the projects I was working on .
24 – Pauza Magazine Photos : Left to right : New Train to Chaska , Appreciative Inquiry Seminar Bitola