2nd edition of OEC and FNO volunteering closes with a transformative meeting in the Southern Bahia Lowlands

After four months of virtual mentoring, the VOCÊ volunteer program, promoted by the Norberto Odebrecht Foundation (FNO) and OEC, culminated in an exciting face-to-face meeting between volunteers and students from the Family Houses of the Southern Bahia Lowlands, FNO’s partner institutions in the implementation of its social program. The meeting, held on the 7th and 8th, marked the conclusion of the second edition of the program, which aims to share life and career experiences between members of the OEC and young people from the region. 

Mentors from the second edition of VOCÊ with the FNO team and their certificates 

For the 33 mentors who took part in this journey, the end of their volunteering was a unique immersion in the students’ reality. During the visit, the group was divided into three groups, each assigned to one of the Family Houses: the Agroforestry Family House (CFAF), the Igrapiúna Rural Family House (CFR-I) and the President Tancredo Neves Rural Family House (CFR-PTN). The experience included not only direct contact with the mentees, but also visits to the production structures of the institutions supported by the FNO, such as CFAF’s meliponiculture and hydroponics, CFR-I’s cocoa plantation and chocolate production, and CFR-PTN’s passion fruit demonstration unit. The mentors also had the chance to talk to some of the teenagers’ families and hear about the profound impact of education on their lives. 

Highlighting a key value of Novonor Group’s Our Culture, “We act with the spirit of Service”, OEC volunteer Daniel Aranha shared his vision of the program – and said that this experience made him discover the importance of investing time in transforming lives. “This has been a journey of much love, empathy and reflection. Contributing to the education of these young people and meeting them in person are experiences that will stay with me forever,” he said. 

Visit to the cocoa plantation at CFR-I with members of the OEC and students from the Family House 

The gratitude for the support was equally sincere and moving on the part of the students. At the CFR-PTN, second-year student Mariana Assis Lima presented the mentors with a poem written by the students to honor their mutual learning. “The mentors volunteered to help the young people / With attention and empathy, bringing more joy to our journey / (…) / Each piece of advice given, we will keep in our hearts / using it as a rule of life for our evolution”. 

According to Adelcio Sousa, head of FNO’s Partnerships area, the moments of personal interaction shared over these two days were a turning point in the lives of the members of the engineering and construction company. “We saw in their testimonies how impactful the experience was. The balance of VOCÊ was extremely positive: in addition to professional advice, they were able to see Norberto Odebrecht’s legacy up close, which is ever more alive through the work done on behalf of young people,” he concludes.