I would have hesitated for a little while if I would have been aware of how serious the team leader work is. My NGO coordinator proposed me to be a leader believing that it would be relatively easy as it usually is in the most of youth exchanges. However, the Dutch Olde Vechte Fundation is famous for their professional projects, so maybe i should have known there would be more to do.
Basically, team leaders of each countries are special participants, whose main task are being the mediator between the rest of participant from that country and the organizer team of the project. But in Active Rainbow, team leader were simply part of the organizer team.
What is that new job when you become suddenly part of the Team? Firstly, I had to start working two days before the participant started up. And after working 12 hours per day, I felt how time goes by so slowly sometimes. But that is a good sight: it means I’m learning infinitely new things every day.
Among those many new tasks and preparation that we have to deal with, I found one of them especially hard: the Rainbow support groups. Lovely people chose me to tell me their daily experiences, progress and problems. I confess it was the first time I did something similar and dealing with such a diverse sort of people with their own complex and different personalities was a real challenge for me. And of course, by using English all time to do it more stimulating.
But in spite of all this work and permanent issues to sort out, the experience was very satisfactory. Not only was Active Rainbow an experience to know and to accept myself as a leader, but also a way to test my professional and personal skills in a magic and emotional atmosphere.
So, if I had to wonder whether to participate in a New Olde Vechte’s project or not after being aware how hard it can be, a few seconds later I would have no more doubts. Let’s go back to the Netherlands.
Alejandro Moreno Ortiz
Spanish Team Leader in «Active Rainbow», Ommen (The Netherlands)
