A. Project environment: profile of the organisation and local community
Organization OPTPM is an independent youth organization founded in April 2000. We are working with and for young people from different backgrounds: with disadvantaged youth from poorer background, children from our village and region, Roma people, disabled youth from all over Slovakia. We cooperate with different social centres in the region, with schools and kinder garden in Bežovce and different partners from abroad. Our aim is to support young people and get them opportunities to improve trough nonformal education, to have positive impact on the youth, motivate and show them possibilities to be active, support understanding and acceptance, support the integration of disabled and socially disadvantaged youngsters into major society and eliminate negative thoughts and prejudices against those groups mentioned. We organize our activities and meetings in our club (it's building of old library) where we have 2 big rooms with computers, table tennis, materials for games and activities. We have creative, cultural, sports as well educational activities or an educational aim when organizing different activities. We organize regular meetings with children and youth where we do sport activities, all kind of games outside, non-traditional sports. Also we organize summer camps, recreational stays, balls, excursions, international exchanges and cultural activities for all community ( like children's day, mother's day, carnivals, Christmas activities, etc.).

The small village Bežovce is located in the area of South-East Slovakia, 450 km away from capital- Bratislava, near the Ukrajina border. The biggest cities of this area are Košice ( 100 km away) and Prešov ( 130 km away). The first records about Bežovce were made as early as 1214. There are about 982 inhabitants in the village, including Roma community (about 70 inhabitants). In the village is situated grammar school, kinder garden, health centre and curiosity is that in Bezovce are 4 churches. The economic growth is rather low in this region, it is a rural area. For young people there are only few possibilities to be engage in cultural or leisure time activities. Sobrance District is a district in the Košice Region of eastern Slovakia. The closest town is Sobrance, 22 km away with about 6200 inhabitants - a small town situated in the north-east tip of the East Slovakian Lowlands and became shortly the administrative centre of the new district having the same name. The town has a new technical infrastructure and citizens´ facilities of higher level. The part of the town is the health resort Sobranecké kúpele. Its main function is curative but the resort is fulfilling also the function of a holiday centre. In town Ve¾ké Kapusany(15 km away) is opportunity to visit swimming pool, also there started organize activities. Closest cultural and historical centre is Michalovce, 30 km away. Lake Morské oko in the country reservation Vihorlat is one of the nicest nature seclusions of eastern Slovakia. It is a nature reservation with protected flora and fauna. Sninský kamen (1005 m) known by its circular view to near mountains and valleys towers above its surface. Zemplínska Šírava, located near Michalovce town, is a water reservoir being a very popular summer recreation region with several well equipped centres. Close to Zemplínska Šírave is situated Vinianske Lake - recreational centre with beautiful nature, with hypnotherapy centre.

Food and accommodation
The volunteer will live in house situated in centre of village, the house is with garden, two entrees, big kitchen. In the front part of house live family (the family of the organization's president). We have the possibility to host two volunteers at a time, both within this house. The volunteers will live in back part of house separated from part of house where lives family. In this part are two rooms with separated toilet and bathroom, every volunteer will have own room and own keys. Room has own TV with international channels, video, new furniture. The accommodation is suitable also for lightly handicapped people.
The volunteer can choose to share the meals with the family or to prepare food himself/herself. When required while working with other partners, the organization will provide food in e.g. a canteen. It is also possible to host a vegetarian or someone with other specific needs. (But then it would be good if the volunteer would also know how to take care of preparing food himself/herself, but he/she would be supported.)

B. Proposed activities for EVS volunteers

Our organization has previous experience with hosting international volunteer; we already hosted 6 volunteers (from Germany, Belgium, Poland). We have a lot of activities in which the volunteers could be active.

Support:
Volunteer will have full support from all the workers of our organisation: we have had experiences with volunteers 4 year. Especially they can ask to be helped to their mentor or to their supervisor. Volunteers will have a mentor speaking English from Bežovce, so that it is no problem to have regular meetings. But while living with the family support can be given at any time. They will also be happy to help the volunteer to integrated into the local community. At work there will be the team and the staff, who is always responsible for the supervision and guidance the tasks require. The EVS-project leader as a supervisor can give support whenever it is needed.
The volunteer will have the possibility to go to a language course at least twice a week, the teacher of Slovak language will support volunteer also.. There are two places to receive language training in Michalovce. It would also be possible to arrange a language training in Bežovce, e.g. at school or with a private person.
Volunteers will attend the on-arrival training organised by the National Agency, as well as the nationally organised mid-term meeting, or others.
Role:

The volunteer's role will consist in cooperating with workers in our organisation. Volunteer will work mostly in our club, he/she will cooperate on regular activities, so he/she will by one of us. Also she/he can bring new ideas and organize activities he/she interested in and lead these activities. Volunteer will work as assistant in kinder garden and social centre where she/he can also realize his/her ideas and use previous experiences. On recreational stays and international exchanges volunteer will help to disabled people and assist them.

Opportunity:
- work with children and youth
- pick up skills in this leisure time activities
- intercultural learning- contact with public
- to prepare his/her own little project
- work with team of our local volunteers
- to know about traditional Slovak food, folklore, history
- to live with hosted family-to be part of family


Volunteer's task:
The volunteers will find our organization very flexible and multi-interested. We are working in different fields together with different centres and educational institutions in the region. Since the organization is small the volunteer will also work with our partners. The volunteer will always be allowed to choose tasks that are best suitable and fit his/her abilities and to impact on the balance of those tasks. At every workplace will be different people from the staff and local volunteers ready to support, guide and help the volunteer at any time. As well as the mentor or supervisor is prepared to visit the workplaces regularly to help to sort out certain things. The work will demand a high level of tolerance, since this region is not only inhabited by Slovaks. The volunteers will certainly meet Hungarian speaking people and Roma. Also to work with people with different kinds of disabilities demands tolerance and patience. The daily working hours will be maximum 6, weekly working hours will be 30, according to the EVS regulations. The volunteer will have 2 days off during the week and 24 days of holidays.

If he/she agrees, we will show him/her the cultural relics in the region of Eastern Slovakia. We are willing to share free time activities and help to find some for the volunteer. We will be happy to find the volunteer motivated to realize own ideas.
We use to organize activities during weekend, in this case volunteer will work and we will offer him/her off during week.


Volunteer's time schedule in percents:
· Working in opened and creative club with children and youngsters: 25%
· Help organize courses: PC course, art course: 10%
· Language course: 5%
· Working as assistant in kinder garden: 15%
· Working as assistant in social centre: 10%
· Environment activities: 5%
· Working and preparing activities for Roma minority: 10%
· Work at computer, create and actuate our web page: 10%
· Prepare music, costumes, posters for courses, workshops and activities: 10%



Typical week
Monday:
Slovak language course to develop his/her vocabulary and to improve the communication between the volunteer and the local people. Help and support the trainers at the "Domov Sociálnych Služieb", a centre for mentally and physically handicapped young people in Michalovce. The children have organized training/activities in the morning and free time in the afternoon. The volunteer will assist the staff to carry out different activities to improve skills and fantasy of children who are mentally and/or physically handicapped. They need to be supported in every activity, e.g. painting, physical activities, playing with different games. They need to be motivated and leaded. The volunteer will help to play with them. But sometimes its just to be there, listen to them and hold their hand. There will be several people around the volunteer to explain things. Nevertheless there are different groups of children in this centre, also healthy children who are from a difficult social backgrounds. They live in one part of the centre because they have no families. The volunteer could also create activities for them, accompany them or help e.g. with homework. The volunteer will be allowed to choose the group he/she wants to work with.

Tuesday:
The volunteer will assist the pedagogic staff in kindergarten in Bežovce by supporting different creative activities for children in preschool age. The kids are very curious and have not met many foreigners. We hope that the volunteer will be able to contribute inspirations and new ideas for the work with children. This activities should support physical activities as well as fantasy.
Activities for Roma minority, sport games for Roma children, help them with homework, art workshops, PC course.

Wednesday:
Work at the computer. He/she will help to form the bilingual internet page of our organisation, where descriptions of our activities, information about our organization and things related to our topics of interests, are available. Help with the work needed to organise our international projects and prepare games for children in cooperation with members of our organization or local volunteers. He/she can bring new ideas to improve the quality of projects and activities.
Preparing for activities, prepare music, costumes, posters for courses, workshops and activities. Meeting with local volunteers, create program for activities.

Thursday:
The volunteer will assist the pedagogic staff in kindergarten in Bežovce by supporting different creative activities for children in preschool age. The kids are very curious and have not met many foreigners. We hope that the volunteer will be able to contribute inspirations and new ideas for the work with children. This activities should support physical activities as well as fantasy.
Courses in club(PC course, theatre course, film course, art course). Help to lead and organize courses and workshops.

Friday:
Slovak language course. Help to plan and prepare leisure time activities like sports and games for children in Bežovce and to carry them out in the afternoon. There will be experienced local volunteers to carry out those activities in teamwork. Sometimes we just play board games with them and talk. Our organization gathers children one day in the week to provide some organised activities for them, because they don't have many possibilities in the village.

Volunteer will have space and time to realize own ideas and prepare own activities and we will support and help him/her.

C. Volunteer profiles and recruitment process
Our project is opened to all young people from Europe, who is interested in our project. The volunteer should be motivated to work with and for disabled youth, children and/or Roma. He or she should be willing to co-operate with Slovak young people, who are living in our village and region. Ability and attitude to be initiative and take over responsibilities at work, being open, tolerant and flexible is necessary, as well as to be communicative and straightforward. The volunteer should like to work with small children and youth, but it is not necessary to have experiences on this field already. Basic knowledge of English language would be helpful, but is not essential. Any specific needs of disadvantaged volunteers will be dealt with individually. Since we work with disabled youth we have plenty of experiences on this field. The volunteer should not expect to have a lot of cultural opportunities nearby, since we live in a little village. We have to organise things ourselves or with local volunteers travel and trips to bigger cities. But the bus connections are in a way limited. So the volunteer should be aware of this situation.
D. Special needs (if applicable)
We are able to host volunteers with fewer opportunities /from cultural differences, economics difficulties, geographical difficulties/ for long term project.

E. Risk prevention, safety and protection
At the beginning of volunteer's EVS we will provide him/her information about the structure and rules of our organisation. Also we will provide training of first aid. We will give him/her a phone card and useful numbers to call in case of necessity or emergency (number of police, firemen, hospital, etc.) In case of problems with accommodation or health problems volunteer can ask for help the family with he/she live any when.
Anyway Bežovce is small village and Sobrance and Michalovce district is also small, beautiful and safe region. We have never had any problems with last volunteers about their safety and protection. Accommodation is in good condition with new furniture and house is located in centre of village

http://ec.europa.eu/youth/evs/aod/hei_form_en.cfm?EID=68000166701