Camp GLOW

“I’ve told a lot of my friends about Camp GLOW and they’re very fascinated. I gave them some of my knowledge that I get in the camp! I wanted to ask you if you knew the web site “Camp GLOW”? I hope we’ll stay in touch, With all respect, Stephani, Kumanovo.” --A text message I received after camp

"I just want to say a BIG THANKS for all of you. I had a wonderful time at the camp GLOW, i made new friends, i learned a lot of knew things and i just want to say thank you for everything. I look forward to hearing from all of you
P.S. i hope that i will see all of you some day.
ALEXANDRA-KAVADARCI
KISSES AND HUGS!!!!!!!!!!!!!" --An e-mail I got from another camper

When the girls first arrived they were greeted by us counselors lip-synching and dancing to Arethra Franklin’s song “Respect”. By the end of the week 5 teams of girls were giving their own renditions of songs such as “I Will Survive”, “Independent Women” and “Sisters are Doin’ It For Themselves”.

From July 24th to 29th 60 girls from all over Macedonia congregated at a beautiful site on Mt. Pelister for a one week leadership camp called Camp GLOW (Girls Leading Our World). We had 6 full days of activities, and a lot of sessions and activities on issues such as health, self-esteem, goal setting & career counseling, discrimination, environmental issues, arts and crafts, nature walks, dances, creative writing, self defense and team building. The campers were from ages 14 to 18 and we had both Macedonian and Albanian girls attend. Some girls were from big cities and others from small villages. It was so cool to see the girls quickly become friends, support and encourage each other and offer up ideas and participate in the sessions. These girls were chosen for their leadership qualities as well as language skills, since the camp was held entirely in English. I was very impressed with how intelligent, perceptive and creative these young women are; they all have so much potential. I am so glad that I was a part of this experience, it was the best experience I’ve had yet in Macedonia.

On the last evening of camp we had a Candle lighting ceremony where each of us had a candle and we went around and shared things that we were proud of from that week. Many of the girls were crying, a reminder to me of how special this week had been for these girls, who don’t have other opportunity like this to attend camps.

So, now what? Well, many Peace Corps Volunteers, like myself, will continue the legacy by creating Club GLOW’s in our own communities: groups of girls (some previous campers and some who might be able to attend next summer’s camp). Funding for these kinds of projects are getting harder and harder to come by, so we hope that we will be able to do some fundraising projects with our clubs. But even more importantly, we can continue to work with the girls, have activities, projects and sessions about important topics that can educate and inspire these bright young women of Macedonia!

Website: http://campglow.tripod.com/

P.S. There was also a leadership camp held for boys this summer near Berevo, which was also a great success and a lot of fun too.