Meet the Prep Team!

Hey everyone! My name is Marie and I will be the camp coordinator for the second time at the VV24, nice to meet you! My pronouns are she/her. 😀 I’m French and to be more precise I’m from Brittany, a region in the north-west of France, where we eat good crepes, drink cider, and surf. 🏄 My role with AFS and EFIL? I started working for EFIL in September 2022 as a project manager, I’m coordinating projects mainly involving volunteers such as the Peace Programme and the VSS. I’m an outsider, as you might say, eheh! Unfortunately, I’ve never done an AFS exchange. However, I have had the opportunity to move around the last few years, for example in Czech Republic during my Erasmus or in Rome where I worked for an NGO for one year. I’m very happy to be part of this adventure with you. Fun fact about me? I’m teaching yoga and I’m an overthinker. My motivations for this Peace VSS24? I see it as a challenge and a great opportunity to meet volunteers from the network. It’s possible that we’ll do a yoga session together during VSS. I love yoga and I’ve been teaching it for over a year now. Apart from that, I’m a very good listener, sociable and I always try to be positive. 🧡

Hi, I am Klara!
I am the Participants’ Coordinator of this year’s VSS. It will be my very first VSS and I am very excited!
One year and a half ago I moved from Germany to Brussels and fell in love with the city. After going to France with AFS life has always been connected to French speaking communities and cultures. For a couple of months now I have been doing my ESC in the EFIL office. In Brussels you see me moving around a lot, it might be anything AFS related, activism in a student movement, playing football or just enjoying a beer. (I still prefer German beer over the Belgian though). Anyways, I look forward to meeting you all and seeing all the same coloured T-shirts walking around the university campus in Cieszyn!

Hello, human beings! I’m Vini and to be honest, it’s really hard to describe ourselves in a few words, but I’ll try. I live my life seeking new experiences because I truly believe that the meaning of it all is to experience it all. AFS Gave me this opportunity around 9 years ago and ever since it kept continuously giving me new chances to be amazed about this world that we live in and those that I share it with.
I’m from Brazil but have lived in Portugal for the last 12 years. If there is One thing That I love is to talk on public, so after many EFIL events and different roles across the last years, I finally got to be Plenary Coordinators!
I love long talks, parties, hugs, dancing, and basically everything, so feel free to invite me to your fun things! I can’t wait to meet everyone and if you want a good icebreaker, ask me about my dogs, I have thousands of pictures and love to show them all the time 🐶

Angie

Cześć & olá !
My name is Angelika, but everybody in AFS knows me as Angie! I’m originally from Poland, where I started volunteering in 2013. I have never been on AFS exchange but I found my community with AFSers. My life is deeply connected with Portugal, where I went for my Erasmus and where I live now since the pandemic. I have taken part in EFIL’s PEACE Camps as Prep Team member three times and I was a participant at the VSS in Italy back in 2016. That’s why I have a profound enjoyment for any international activities connected with volunteers and I cannot wait to prepare VSS for all of you! Side notes: I love “Dance Monkey”, color yellow, sunsets and hugs! 

Hubert

My name is Hubert and I am one of the two Support Team Coordinators this year. I joined AFS Poland in 2016 as a volunteer and in 2018 I did my EVS (you might know the program as ESC now) at AFS Hungary’s office. I loved Hungary, so I decided to come back for a semester-long Erasmus program in 2021 and after that I participated in another Erasmus program in Sarajevo, Bosnia and it was the best decision in my life, I have fallen in love with Balkans on the very first day and hopefully that journey will be continued in the future.
I love Polish folk so I am really excited to show you all the Polish culture during the VSS that will happen for the very first time in my country! Do zobaczenia!

Hello beautiful human beings! Here is your Trainers Team Coordinator! I have been volunteering with AFS for 10 years now and it’s been quite a journey. I did my exchange year in  Norway in 2015/16. I study pedagogy and I love working with children and youth which is why this year’s VSS topic is very close to my heart. In AFS Serbia I am mostly coordinating volunteers, delivering workshops, training other trainers and collaborating with schools. I love transferring my knowledge to others but I love gaining some knowledge from others even more. So feel free to hit me up with some discussion topics and “Did you know…” statements. One of my AFS hobbies is collecting AFS T-shirts, hoodies and tote bags. I already have over 25 beautiful T-shirts from different AFS organizations but I am always ready to trade for some that I don’t have in my collection. Do not forget this when preparing for Bazar night! Can’t wait to see you all in Poland! 

Ciao! This is Valeria, your PR Coordinator for this year’s VSS!

About me: I’m originally from Italy, Rome, but I have been on the move for the past 4-5 years, from Belgium, where I have been an ESCer at the EFIL office in Brussels, to Venice, where I am currently studying, and passing by Sweden, Switzerland and France!
I love running (you might see me run around the venue in the mornings during VSS!), all that is sports, but also videogames and good chats around a warm coffee! I also love all that is creativity and good vibes, so you’ll catch me editing or taking pictures and videos to share the beautiful energy that is always around at VSS

 I’m very excited to meet all of you, see you in Cieszyn!