Voluntary

What is volunteer work and what tasks does it have?

All over the word there are people who want to take care of other people so they spend their time using their abilities and money to help people who need it. We often might be surprised when hearing answers volunteers give when asked why they do volunteer, as often answers include: „because each person should give help”, „because everybody would do the same”, „ because one should behave like that”. From those simple answers one can notice that a volunteer work changes the whole person and impact his or her values. A volunteer worker copes with everyday life which sometimes is full of suffering. Giving help can influence a volunteer’s life and change his or her values. A volunteer, through helping, discovers his or her humanity. A lot of people help by using their abilities and interests. The idea of a volunteer job is simple: you give help and in exchange you receive food, accommodation and the possibility of meeting people from all over the world. Working as a volunteer abroad can have many benefits like the possibility of exchanging his or her experience with others, meeting new people from different countries, and learning something about the culture of a country where he or she works. The leader of the above foundation is a catholic missionary nevertheless he accepts all people willing to help!

Volunteer tasks:

Creating centers which will provide warm meals for kids and youth from poor families.
Helping children with their homework.
Helping children who can’t go to school by visiting them at home, helping them with learning, and giving financial support (buying uniforms and school accessories).
Organizing free time for the kids and youth.
Organizing free courses for poor and unemployed people.
Organizing different educational and cultural activities on the city area.
Visiting families who are under the foundation’s care.
Coordinating different projects (a specified project chosen in accordance with a volunteer’s interests).

From a volunteer we expected:

Creativity – each new idea is very precious.
Availability – due to the specificity of work, it is not always possible to plan working hours and all duties.
Commitment- a person who comes should be really willing to help.
Flexibility- the ability of adaptation to new situations is very helpful.
Unselfishness- the only award which can be expected is appreciation from the people who we help.

Foundation provides:

Accommodations including single and double rooms with bathrooms.
Full board.
The Internet.
The possibility of part defrayal of journey expenses (given sum of money depends on the length of stay).
Spanish Courses (when a volunteer stays longer than six months).
Ecuador visa (formalities and defrayal of expenses when a volunteer stays longer than 6 months).

Obligatory:

get a visa to Ecuador in a country of residence (for stays longer then 6 months all costs of it will be reimbursed)
basic knowledge of Spanish language
minimum stay: 6 months
buying a round-trip ticket (after agreed terms with the Foundation, half of the ticket costs will be reimbursed for stays over 6 months)
filling an application form doesn't mean, that the candidate is automatically approved as a volunteer.
a person applying for admission to the volunteer program is required to refrain from buying the ticket until the time of his arrival is established and confirmed with the Foundation the period of his arrival.

Important information:

The Ecuadorian currency is US dollars (one should not take paper money of face value higher than 20 dollars, as they are not accepted for everyday use);
Polish citizens do not need visas when they come for less than three months;
In Ecuador flat plugs are used and the voltage is 110 V ( converters can be easily bought here);
In places which are located in the mountains, nights might be chilly so warm clothes are also needed;
It is better to buy measures against mosquitoes in Ecuador as they are more effective here;
Towels and bedclothes are provided by foundation so there is no need to take them;
Passport should be valid AT least 6 months since the planning date of leaving Poland, the most convenient is having a valid passport for the whole period of staying;
Pocket Polish – Spanish dictionary is very helpful;
International driving licenses re valid for 3 months;
Shops are well supplied. There are no problems with buying every day necessities;
Most credit cards are valid here.