Stories worth reading are often hidden in the lives of people who are sometimes unaware of how inspiring they really are. Scholarship holders of the Hastor Foundation contribute to the creation of a better and happier today with their continuous volunteer activities. By talking about important topics, they help high school and elementary school students to create great ambitions and learn true values. One wonderful volunteer story comes from Maglaj and it is told to us by Edin Šahbaz, a student mentor who regularly designs creative activities that he implements with his volunteer group at monthly meetings.
The volunteer group in which Edin is a mentor consists of 10 high school students, and the schools the students attend are Edhem Mulabdić Gymnasium, Mixed High School, Maglaj and Žepče Mixed High School. They most often volunteer at the premises of the Red Cross in Maglaj, but they are very happy to take advantage of these summer days to socialize in nature. Nature is certainly the starting point for every inspiration that is born in the mind of a person. She definitely inspired our scholarship holder, who this month handled the planned topics with his volunteer group in an interesting way.
They started the meeting with the planned topic, and the introduction to the topic was a conversation with the students about their talents, what talents and skills they possess and in what ways they use them. From the informative part of that conversation, they moved on to the conversation about discovering personal maximum. They talked about how to recognize the talents we possess, how to work on them and how to use these talents for useful purposes. They also watched Steve Harvey’s short video “Steve Harvey Talks About How You Can Identify Your God Given Gift”, which focuses on that topic, as well as “Follow Your Gift, Not Your Passion”, which talks about using our skills.
Although every success requires effort and work, there are other things that make the path to achieving your goals easier. Edin discussed with his group of students about the keys to success and what measures we should take in order to be more successful people. They watched a 10-minute video on that topic and then had a short discussion about the views expressed in the video. One very interesting takeaway from their discussion is that fear is one of the main obstacles to success. n order to get rid of fears, it is important to know how we can reduce them and, if possible, completely remove them from our lives. After the exchange of information that easily fills the students, the mentor opened an interesting session in which the students shared with each other what they want to achieve in their future, taking into account the talents they possess.
The answers were interesting and showed the creativity and individuality of each scholar.The end of the meeting was scheduled for a more dynamic aspect of the topic discussed, and they discussed how to turn your hobby into a source of income. This topic opened the door to various ideas and ways of making money by using your own skills. The students mentioned some of the most popular skills today, but the emphasis was placed on the fact that any skill/talent can be profitable and useful if channeled in the right way.
What additionally contributed to the beauty of this meeting was certainly the fortress in Maglaj, which gave our scholars the opportunity to embrace the pearl of their city and gain knowledge while enjoying the beauty of their hometown. The final part of the meeting was an escape from everyday reality and the students spent it playing social games and admiring the view of the city.
In the month of April, this hard-working group carried out an ecological cleanup in the area of Maglaj, in order to mark the World Day of Doing Good.
Edin Šahbaz is a successful student at the Faculty of Traffic and Communications, as well as a successful scholarship holder, volunteer and mentor, which we had the opportunity to see before because his successes enriched the pages of our newsletter. Speaking about his way of communicating with the volunteer group, Edin says the following: I see mentoring as an opportunity to facilitate someone’s path to realizing their dreams. Our meetings exude freedom, which has always been my goal. I look forward to our gatherings, and I feel that the students also like to fulfill their volunteer obligations. This is my confirmation that I am doing the right thing and I plan to continue trying to organize successful and interesting meetings that we will all remember fondly.
Throughout history, Maglaj has given birth to great people, and our scholarship recipients are proof that this practice did not remain in the past, but extends far into our days and has the potential to reach far into the future. Their meetings at the fortress will build great fortresses of knowledge that no wind can shake and that neither time nor years can destroy.
Prepared by: Nedžma Latić
