Art is something that I’ve always enjoyed since I was a child, but it was only as a hobby before. Now
since coming to Turkey as an EVS volunteer, I’ve found how I can use art to help people, and I’ve been enjoying every bit of it.
My main project is painting wall murals, which was a very new and interesting experience for me. I’ve so far painted in 2 hospitals, a school for disadvantaged children, and for a company as a sponsorship for the next project. The murals vary in size from small wall spaces and whole rooms, to hospital corridors, and (as we’ve just done) an 80 meter wall.
At the hospitals, the mothers stay with their children, are allowed very few visitors, so they were very
happy to interact with and watch us paint. The children, and even the babies, found it fascinating and the ones who were healthy enough would come and help. My favorite patient there was Sinan, a 7 year old leukemic patient who talked nonstop while painting with me, really cute.
The girls at the school come from difficult backgrounds, and most of them have very poor social and
communication skills. We are now working with them and teaching them the basics for painting. The
girls enjoy being able to interact with people from different countries, and since we’ve started working with them, the manager commented that their social etiquette has improved.
I am now over half way through my EVS term, and am really glad that I got this opportunity to help
others through doing what I love. I want to say a big thank you to Citizens of Europe e.V. and Aile Egitim Dernegi (AED) for making this learning experience possible.
-Julie Schmuck