Arriving in Korea
I am sitting in a cafe in Korea, reflecting on an amazing week of art, creativity, and growth through KKOOM’s GEM winter camp. The Girl’s Empowerment and Mentorship (GEM) program’s goal is to provide career education, mentorship and educational support for young women in Korean children’s homes. This past week the winter camp program called Unexpected Arts brought young women to Seoul to explore creativity through art, dance, movement, and storytelling. It was an amazing experience to take part in and was truly transformative through the week to see the young women open up and grow in confidence.
Preparing for the Week
I flew into Korea and met the other volunteers in Seoul. We did our best to prepare for what the week might be like but in all honesty, it is hard to prepare for this kind of experience. Even with three years of teaching experience in Korean schools, I was nervous for what the week might bring and worried if my Korean language skills would be enough to help the group.
Meeting the Girls
The girls arrived bright eyed and ready for the week. We took them back to our accommodation and quickly settled in and started to get to know everyone. We had goodie bags prepared with some of the essentials for getting around in Seoul in the winter including transportation cards, hand warmers, and tissues as well as snacks for the week. Just like any other group they were quiet and a bit shy at first. It was also interesting to note that they relayed a lot on each other. It was sweet to see the older girls taking care of the younger ones and reminded us that they have strong trust among their group and we would need to work to earn just a piece of that trust.
Diving Into Programming
To get the most out of our packed week, we moved right into programming. While KKOOM plans a lot of their own camps and activities, we also partner with other organizations in Korea as well. For this camp, KKOOM partnered with an education research center that specializes in arts education. This partnership really made a huge difference in our week and the success of the program.
From the first day the girls were struggling to have the confidence to answer questions or participate. Our leaders stepped up and participated right along with the students and it made such a difference in the attitude of the girls and their willingness to participate. It wasn’t so embarrassing for them to move in a funny way if all the adults in the room were doing it too. Slowly throughout the week they gained their own confidence and needed less and less help from the leaders. The group we worked with was amazing at adjusting to the needs of the group each day and throughout the session.
Exploring Creativity
From creating body movements that then turned into dance movements, to painting an amazing canvas, to tracing our faces, to watching a professional NANTA performance (professional Korean drumming comedy show) and shopping for snacks in Myeongdong the students absorbed it all and learned from all the different experiences. They soaked up every moment. The week wrapped up with a final performance that brought tears to my eyes.
These amazing girls that had grown in confidence throughout the week, gained the courage to dance on their own in front of the group. Something at the beginning of the week, we would not have dreamed they would be able to do. The performance began with the students dancing alongside the leaders and then the leaders stepping aside and the students sharing the dance floor together as a group and then even individually. It was a truly moving experience.
“They soaked up every moment. The week wrapped up with a final performance that brought tears to my eyes.”
MARGARET CLEVELAND | Board Member
Why These Moments Matter
These are the types of experiences KKOOM hopes to create for the youth we work with. Opportunities to grow, learn and build life skills that will benefit them throughout their lives. Experiences that many of these children may not ever have the chance to do outside of this setting. Thank you for supporting KKOOM and helping us to create these memories for the youth of Korea!
