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Where does your money go?
Since it started in 2002, the Friends of the Europe Region WAGGGS Fund has been used to help Associations in the Region grow in various ways. At the end of each year, the Europe Committee WAGGGS decides how the funds the Friends have raised should be used.
In 2003, the funds raised by the Friends supported a Baltic workshop in Estonia to help strengthen Guiding in these countries where Girl Guiding and Girl Scouting is very young. Additionally, a gift from Eurolife.01 was used to co-fund seven larger projects in Belarus, Hungary, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, Slovenia and Ukraine that were important to the strategic development of these Associations. None of these projects would have been possible without the help from the Friends.
Read about all these projects and how the Friends have given even more girls and young women the opportunity to make friends, understand the world around them and begin taking action to make a better life for themselves and the communities they live in…
In 2004, the Friends have raised €9.150. These funds will be used to support two initiatives in 2005 - an event for WAGGGS' Associate Members to assist them in the development of their plans for Full Membership, and a Swap Shop to give Associations an opportunity to exchange best practice and learn new ideas from each other.
If you would like to make a suggestion on ways in which future donations and subscriptions can be used, you can send your suggestions to:
friends@wagggseurope.org
Here are some more examples of how the money from the Friends has been used in past years to help Guiding grow in the Europe Region…. |
Baltic Workshop: Moving Forward to the Future ( Estonia, December 2003)
In Euros, it may not be much but for some of the girls who attended the Baltic Workshop, just the cost of the bus fare from Latvia or Lithuania to Estonia was the equivalent of a year's pocket money and required some sacrifice.
It is not unusual for a Leader in this part of Europe to have a full-time job, say, as a teacher (average monthly salary is €207) but also have to help on the family farm, and possibly, juggle family responsibilities in addition to the voluntary work they do with the Girl Guides and Girl Scouts. So why do they do it?
This is a time of great change in these countries with their imminent entry to the European Union in 2004. It is the time for youth organisations, like the Girl Guides and Girl Scouts associations, to take their place in civil society and particularly, to help develop young people who are autonomous, responsible, committed and supportive. As the leading youth organisation for girls and young women, we must be ready to accept and play this role in the Europe of tomorrow. |
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In these countries where Girl Guiding and Girl Scouting is very young, this sub-regional event helped to strengthen the Guiding network in the Baltic region, between countries with a similar background.
Participants, who would probably never be able to afford to attend training events in western European countries, were able to share their experiences and best practices, spread information and create links between neighbouring countries. Overall, the event was very much appreciated.
In their own words…
(Trainer) "It would usually be difficult to get even one representative to a training event held in a western European city - but we had 10 participants from EACH country because the event was in Estonia. These young women will take back what they have learnt and impact several hundreds more girls in their countries and this will certainly have an impact on their local communities."
(Participants) I am for the first time in such an event and received useful information in a very suitable form - the links I've made and experiences I've learnt has given me new ideas and improved the bigger picture"…."Thank you- this event was needed for a long time!"
"I am going home with some specific ideas and examples in the fields of image, fundraising, membership recruitment and retention as well as a general good feeling because of the great atmosphere."…" I am going home with the desire to work!"
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EUROLIFE.01 HELPS ITS FRIENDS!
The Mouvement Scout de Suisse pledged a gift of 12.500 Swiss Francs (around € 8.600) - part of its final surplus from Eurolife.01 - to be used to support future events in Central and Eastern Europe/CIS countries of the Europe Region WAGGGS.
In 2003, a call was sent out giving Associations in Central and Eastern Europe / CIS area a chance to apply for a small grant that they could use as co-funding for a larger project that would contribute to the strategic development of their Association. Additionally, all grant projects had to have measurable impact and clearly address the needs of girls and young women and involve girls and young women in their development and implementation.
The seven projects that received grants of €500 to €2.000 to help them with their projects were:
| Belarus | First Step |
| Hungary | Renaissance - Get Involved! |
| Romania | Impreuna - "Together" |
| Russia | Join us and enjoy Scouting! |
| Slovakia | Promoting Guiding and Scouting locally and nationally |
| Slovenia | Training Course for Group Leaders |
| Ukraine | "The Right to Learn" - Educational |
Programme
As these projects all have different timetables, we will update this site as they are completed.
You can read the outcomes of Project "First Step", the first project to be completed in 2004. Also, the Association of Hungarian Girl Guides and Slovensky Skauting, who were also grant recipients, have sent in some pictures in their letters to show their appreciation to the Friends on the following page. |
PROJECT "FIRST STEP", BELARUS
The first finished project under the Small Project Grants has achieved several positive outcomes in terms of Quality and Quantity.
Here's a quick summary of how the grant helped the Association of Belarussian Guides (ABG):
In terms of Quality:
- New groups have been organised and some leaders will soon start active work.
- A Regional Committee and Regional Commissioner for the Vitebsk region have been elected and the Vitebsk region of the ABG is being registered with the local administration.
- Further development of the Mogilev region is also being looked into by the National Board of the ABG.
In terms of Quantity:
- 5 presentations were carried out
- 2 Basic Trainings have been done
- 12 leaders trained in the Vitebsk region and 15 in the Mogilev region
- 4 groups have been organised in the Vitebsk region and 2 in the Mogilev region.
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"I have a hand and you have another,
Join them together, and we have each other…"
Dear Friends of the Europe Region WAGGGS
We all would like to thank you for your generous support towards our "Renaissance-Get Involved!" project. In May 2004, we organised a recruitment programme and also created a new leaflet for the recruitment campaign for rangers and new leaders on the theme of Our Rights, Our Responsibilities. Since we started this project, many girls have become involved in the work of the Association, which celebrated its 80 th Anniversary this year.
On the 27 th of June, a group of young women were elected to form a new National Board and they had an enthusiastic and very efficient training in July. A forum for existing young leaders was also held in September to discuss, "What are the principal motivations of being a Girl Guide and leader today?"
We are pleased to send you some photos of the events. On behalf of all the girls who have benefited from the programmes supported by you, the Friends of the Europe Region WAGGGS,
The members of the Planning Teams:
Magyar Panni, Szalai Zita, Tóth Eszter, Földházi Anna, Pócsi Renáta, Heller Gabi,
Kovách Kamilla, Békési Réka, Szalai Zsófi, Héjja Panka
Since we started this project, many girls have been involved in the work of the Association.
 
New National Board elected 2 7 th June & Training 8-10th July.
Leaders Training 17th September
 
The right to be me, and to express myself! The right to learn, and be the best we can be!
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Message from Slovakia for the Friends:
"Having a friend is the best thing that can happen to one in life. Thanks to the Friends, we could train 30 Girl Scouts in public relations management and thus enable them to promote Scouting Slovakia in their regions, towns and villages. Part of the grant was also used to produce supporting materials such as a new leaflet to attract adult volunteers, which is now being prepared. Other PR materials are also being produced using documentation of the biggest Scout event in Slovakia, Tatracor* which was done in very professional way. None of this training, materials and activities could have happened without the generous contribution from the Friends of Europe Region WAGGGS. Eight thousands of thanks from Slovakia to our Friends!!!" 
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With your support, we can really make a difference………………………………
Click here to download a membership or donation form
Thank you for being a Friend
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