It was an intensive project year with great successes, but also challenges. The strikes in education were not easy for YES, as they disrupted the continuity of our trainings. This year, we also increasingly encountered more distressing home situations among our young people, which often left us feeling extremely powerless. Yet one thing remains certain, throughout this school year, we have once again carried out all our projects with heart and soul: The Empowerment trainings level 1 and 2, the motivation days for final-year students, the Empowerment program for girls, and the Empowerment training for parents and caregivers. All our young people are absolute stars. They have taken courageous steps they sometimes never thought possible. They are ready to continue their path with more self-confidence and a backpack full of Empowerment tools.

A YES STUDENT:
“I could be who I really am and I wasn't judged.”
When coach Apana asked me if I wanted to write a piece for the newsletter, my answer was of course immediately “Yes!”

My name is Stephanie, and I took my first YES Empowerment training course when I was fourteen. I was the youngest participant in the group at the time. I am now 18 and have taken several YES training courses since then. Thanks to YES, I have learned to be more assertive in my communication and to better deal with challenges in my life.

What makes the YES trainings so special to me is how the coaches treat us. They have so much respect for us and they just understand us. I felt truly seen and it felt so safe that I dared to share my deepest emotions! I was able to share pains and difficult experiences that I never dared to discuss before. I could be who I really am and I was not judged.

The coaches helped me learn how to deal with my emotions better. I gained insights that gave me confidence, which I didn't really have before. I became aware of how events from my past influence me and my choices and behavior. Thanks to YES, I have gained insight into my own thoughts and feelings and have learned how to deal with them in a positive way. I can proudly say that I am a true “Yesser”!

I graduated from high school this month. The training also helped me with that. I will carry the skills and knowledge I gained at YES with me for the rest of my life. “I'm a Yesser for life.” I now want to study psychology so that I can help other young people too.

I would like to thank everyone who supports YES. Thanks to your contributions, young people like me, who are facing many challenges, can get a chance to understand themselves better and make conscious choices for their development and a better future.

Greetings from Stephanie in Suriname

Project during the holidays

We have now started the initial preparations for the project that we always carry out during the long holidays, our Residential Empowerment Training. For updates in the coming period, follow us on Facebook.
We wish everyone a wonderful holiday season and thank you for your support and interest in our mission!

YES WE CAN!

Brasa (hug) from Suriname,

Apana van Leeuwaarde