Naomi's Reflections

The Inspirational Emotional Rollercoaster - My First International Conference.

Anxious and worried are words that come to mind when I think of how I was feeling on my way to YMCA Fairthorne Manor on Friday evening. I did not know what to expect and I was worried if I would fit in with the others. As soon as I arrived at Fairthorne I was greeted by Andy, one of the facilitators and a board member of YMCA Ireland, and I instantly felt welcomed and at ease. I met the rest of the team and were chatting until we had to meet for a welcome evening.

At the welcome evening we met all the facilitators: Dorina, National Secretary from YMCA Kosovo George Williams Youth Association, Adi from World YMCA, Andy from YMCA Ireland; Rachel from YMCA Romford. Karina from YMCA Fairthorne Group also welcomed us to Fairthorne Manor. Later that night we had the chance to socialise with each other more and get to know one and other a little better.

Overwhelmed (in a good way) is how I felt by the end of the second day. We learnt all about the YMCA Europe and World YMCA. We learnt about the global movement and what YMCA is doing worldwide and in Europe. We also learnt how we are trying to bring YMCAs together. We learnt about each other’s stories of how they got into the YMCA, and by the end of the day I was inspired by my peers and even more proud to be a part of the YMCA community.

On Monday we watched a film called the Freedom Writers. The film was about a new teacher in a gang riddled town in America. The teacher managed to bring together young people from conflicting backgrounds and great accomplishments, learning and friendships developed from that. It taught us the risks and the sacrifice’s some youth workers have to make in order to influence young people in a positive way. After the film we got into our groups to discuss the film and answer some questions on how we felt about it. At dinner we got into home groups, groups of four, to answer some questions about the highlight of the day, and changes we would make and how we were feeling. We learnt that watching films like this can be a great way to learn about youth work.

Energised is how I felt after our evening activity, Night Orienteering. We were given a map in our Home Groups and let loose into Fairthorne Manor to find orange orienteering flags. This was a great team activity and our group won as we stuck together and played on each other’s strengths when trying to find each flag.

On Monday we had the chance to go through different scenarios in small groups that may happen to us as youth workers, and discuss what we would put if we were put in that situation. This was interesting as although sometimes you have personal beliefs, as a youth worker, you may have to give advice or make decisions that challenge your own beliefs. That afternoon we got to do some outdoor activities that challenged our team work. We did Crate Challenge, Jacobs Ladder and Fire lighting.

On Tuesday we got the chance to plan and lead activities with the young people at Fairthorne Manor Daycamps. It was great to be out there with the children and although we all felt exhausted afterwards, it was a valuable experience for us all. My team had to use our initiative as we planned to use a parachute in our activities however this was unavailable so we had to change it on the spot. In the evening we had an intercultural experience with the international staff of Fairthorne Manor. We got to taste food from around the world and take part in a dance from Kosovo.

Wednesday was the day we met Ken Montgomery for a YMCA Tour. We saw the stained glass window in Westminster Abbey that had reference to the YMCA. We also visited the place where the first YMCA meeting was held, near St Pauls Cathedral and also Sir George William’s grave inside the Cathedral. George Williams’ plaque on the wall of St John’s cathedral is what touched me the most. The message he left under it was very moving (PLEASE SEE BELOW).

On Thursday, our last day, we were involved in a session called My Hero, My Inspiration. We got into our Home Groups and shared our stories of how we got to where we are today. This got very deep and emotional for our group as we shared stories we had not told to anyone else before. This just proves how far we have come together in one week and how close we have gotten.

To conclude this experience has been a big eye opener for me. I am so excited to be a part of something special. I am excited about the global movement and proud to be a part of it. I want to try and share my passion with other in my local YMCA and hope that they can start to be excited by it too.