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5th Helen Storrow Seminar - Theme: “Fight Aids”
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I was delighted to be chosen to attend the 5th Helen Storrow Seminar that was held this year
in Our Chalet, Adelboden, Switzerland. The theme of this year’s seminar was “Fight Aids”.
The seminar was attended by 21 representatives from 19 different countries around the world.
It consisted of a very diverse group of delegates from many backgrounds, coming together to share
this experience. The main goal of the seminar was to create awareness and bring this back to our
member organisations throughout the world. The programme consisted of many sessions that opened our eyes to the problems surrounding HIV/AIDS. Although most of us had basic knowledge of the issues, with the activities we participated in we were able to learn a lot of information. The first session “Finding a Common Language” was one of the most beneficial sessions because English wasn’t everyone’s first language we needed to open the lines of communication to allow for open discussions. It outlined the terminology we would need to be familiar with during the seminar through several activities. This was the first time some people had spoken openly about topics like sexuality and AIDS that may be taboo in some countries. Through these discussions and activities we were able to get to know the other delegates and share knowledge from our different countries. The next session was “The Right to be me” which we split up into our regions (Europe, Africa, Asia Pacific, Arab and Western Hemisphere) to discuss moral and physical characteristics of people. We also discussed responsibilities and where they lie in our communities and countries as regards to family planning, health and well being. This lead on to the topic of values and opinions on issues like is it alright to have a child outside of marriage. Through these topics it was clear that situations in different countries were very different. We also discussed the different types of relations hips one person might have and what makes those relationships strong or weak. That night we had our international evening and we presented food, pictures, dance and music from our countries as well as sampling some Swiss cuisine. Other sessions were “Let’s play: HIV/AIDS” which involved playing games that involved HIV/AIDS knowledge, “Prejudiced and Stigma Reduction” involved defining both terms and role playing, “Advocacy and WAGGGS” was an exercise to try sell our projects to influential people for funding. “Peer Education” and “Project Management” were also discussed. We had several speakers throughout the seminar to bring the issues home to us. We had a trainer from Kenya who is the Programme Manager HIV/AIDS Kenya Girl Guide Organisation and we had a trainer from Brazil who is a co-ordinator of the Listen Learn Live Project, Girl Guides Brazil. They both outlined the steps taken in their country and by their organisation to “Fight AIDS”. We also had two guest speakers from AIDS-HILFE SCHWEIZ. This was a really great experience speaking with two people who have been HIV+ for over thirty years. They explained their fears at first how they worked through them and how they now live a relatively normal life. Speaking to these people really helped me put this whole experience into reality and made it real to so many of the delegates. One of the highlights of the whole seminar was our trip to Geneva. We got up early and took the bus to Geneva. We went to the World Council of Churches where we first had a meeting with the YWCA. They told us about all the HIV/AIDS projects they have running around the world and we then discussed what factors make a successful project. We then met with the UNAIDS representatives. We were shown a video of a women living with HIV and the problems she encountered. We were then introduced to the women from the video. We spoke to her and her co-worker about living with HIV. They showed us their medicine and answered any questions we had. We were also shown a presentation on UNAIDS and how they work throughout the world. They gave us information packs and contact details for further details. We then had some time for sightseeing in Geneva before we got back on the bus to Adelboden. I really enjoyed my stay in Switzerland. I met so many amazing people, learnt so much and all in the amazing surroundings of Our Chalet. I would definitely encourage anyone to visit Our Chalet. The staff were so friendly, the mountains were beautiful and the memories unforgettable! Marianne Mc Govern - Raheny, Dublin Diocese
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