Floods in Bihar,we need your help!!

On the 18th August, the Kosi River in Bihar overflowed and Bihar was hit by severe floods. The main reason was the embankment at Kosaha in Nepal that broke down due to heavy downpour.

A large number of people(in lakhs) remain stranded on islands that have formed in the middle of largely submerged villages. The state of a minimum of 25 lakhs of homeless people is bad and it doesn't seem like enough aid is pouring in.

Moreover, because of problems in terms of accessiblity to the place, a number of people are still stuck in remote areas with no food, water or help. The mainstream media seems to treat this as just another instance of floods hitting some part of the country, completely downplaying the ground reality and the extent of the true ramifications of the flood.

• Minimum of 25 lakhs dislocated.


• 266 villages affected.


• Lakhs, yet to be rescued! (those rescued still wandering in search of their loved ones


• Unstable weather conditions.

Click here to see for yourself.

iVolunteer along with Lady Shriram college(Delhi) are raising funds for the people effected by the floods in Bihar
The whole procedure would be transparent and we would provide you with all the information at every step. The girls of Lady ShriRam college are starting a whole campaign and collecting funds. Together what iVolunteer and L.S.R. collects will be send to Bihar. We are in touch with two NGOs in Bihar who would help us in reaching out to the people.

We also need volunteers, who can individually raise funds in their colonies, corporate houses, colleges etc. So pls send in your confirmations, to volunteer for the same and also those who would like to contribute financially. Last date for accepting funds is 8th of September.
Kindly call iVolunteer at 98414 87984 for any queries.

EVERY SINGLE CONTRIBUTION IS VITAL TO BIHAR AND ITS FLOOD VICTIMS. WHAT YOU CHOOSE TO DO TODAY, WILL DIRECTLY IMPACT A LIFE TOMORROW. IT COULD MEAN THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN LIFE AND DEATH, HOPE AND DESPAIR, OR SUFFERING AND SURVIVAL.

THIS IS NOT A SIMPLE FLOOD BUT A SERIOUS CATASTROPHE. YOUR HELP IS URGENTLY REQUIRED. THIS IS AN APPEAL FOR HELP. PLEASE GIVE YOUR TIME OR MONEY AND HELP US REACH OUT TO THOSE AFFECTED.

EVERY CONTRIBUTION MATTERS!!!

We look forward to your co-operation in making a difference.

--

Team iVolunteer

Remember:Need Blood,call 1062!

On 23rd May 2003 when a patient in one of the city hospitals died because he did not receive blood on time, Sankalp was born.

The commitment was simple. Whenever there is any requirement of blood which the blood banks in the city fail to satisfy, we requested them to forward it over to us. Sankalp 24 X 7 X 365 emergency blood helpline has been working since then taking up all emergency blood requests that come up.

Need Blood - Call 1062

Email: Sankalp.admin@gmail.com

Orientation this weekend!(16th August 08 @ 10:30 am)

At iVolunteer we strive to make sure, Your skills can change lives. We believe volunteering is a principal way to address India 's social development needs. iVolunteer offers volunteering opportunities which fulfils the needs and requirements of NGOs, keeping in mind your time, skills and passion. We know people love to volunteer but they don't know how. Through our special orientation programmes we support volunteers in understanding and adapting themselves to the challenging environs of NGOs.

We are happy to invite our new as well as old volunteers for an orientation programme being conducted on Saturday, 16th August, 2008 between 10.30 p.m. and 11.30 a.m. at iVolunteer office. Orientation programme is carefully planned to make it fun-filled learning and team building experience. To know more on the Orientation session, venue and contact details click here

We would also like to bring to your kind notice that iVolunteer provides a range of programmes, both in India and abroad, which enable volunteers to share their time, skills and passion to make the largest positive impact.

iVolunteer India Fellow is an exclusive volunteer programme enabling Indians to share their skills in rural development organizations for mutual benefit. The Fellows experience first hand the development challenges faced as well as challenging their own personal boundaries, to make a positive impact towards nation building.

iVolunteer Overseas provides a unique opportunity for professional Indians to share their skills to fight poverty beyond their own borders, while widening their understanding of international perspectives on development, for a better support of India in the future.

Thank you for choosing iVolunteer Membership and we look forward to welcoming you personally on the 16th of August.

--

Team iVolunteer,

Chennai

Make a tree,make a fortune!-more feedback!

Thanks Savitha for that blog!

We also wanted to share with you what our volunteers had to say post event.

Volunteers Speak!

Subha , Dinesh , Vasanthi , Jesudas , Sudhir , Vijay

The event overall was a positively new experience and also a constructive activity for the kids!

What mattered most in the end was that the volunteers were already planning for more activities and there was also a volunteer signed up to take craft classes for these children.

A big thank you for all the volunteers who turned up for the activity(on time:))and making this event a big hit!!

Keep shining bright,

More soon!

--

Team iVolunteer,

Chennai

Young minds working hard to play!

The time was 3 pm on a usual warm Saturday in Chennai when a handful of us volunteers got together at the Ramakrishna Mission – Sharadha Vidyalaya Women’s Hostel to have some fun with about 50 children from the ages of 6 to 15. Anusha, the iVolunteer co-ordinator had put together a neat idea of doing something productive while trying to kindle the children’s interests and helping the volunteers mingle with the children without having to really try hard. She had organized for a short interactive and creative 2-hour session where the children had to use waste material, colors, brushes and the works to make a tree – the theme for the day. This, she explained, would give the children the opportunity to learn the uses of trees and why it is important to grow more of them.

The session started with the volunteers introducing themselves to the children who were an absolutely adorable audience listening with rapt attention and cheering for the volunteers who were clearly there to make the most of the evening, more for themselves than the children, who were already having a great time. Once the introductions were over, the children were divided into 10 groups of five each along with one volunteer who would help and guide the children. Then, one of the volunteers explained to the children that the idea for the evening was to build a tree with whatever materials was available and that they could choose them, in turn. At this point already, the children had started getting to know each of their volunteers a little better and were discussing ideas. As soon as the go ahead was given, children raced to get the material required and started work in earnest. It was such an exhilarating sight to watch children coming forth with ideas that I could never have imagined myself.

Once the commotion of running around to find material and the cacophony of voices discussing ideas died down, there was some serious creation happening in every group. If one group of children were talking about what tree they wanted to draw, one group was talking about what colors to use while the next group was thinking of the theme they wanted to portray and the next one was dividing work amongst themselves to get to the end result they had in mind. The volunteers, I noticed, were purely excited at the energy the children exuded and were trying hard to match it. As time progressed the ideas were taking shape on chart paper as paintings or as 3-D models.

Amidst all this I noticed a few things about all the children as I had the privilege of just walking around and watching everyone. I put this as diplomatically (just as only an adult can!), instead of just saying I couldn’t contribute much to the children’s creativity, which was no match for mine (considering my creativity quotient almost tends to zero!). The children, I noticed, were so willing to share the things they had – so unlike the usual behavior I have seen with kids from our affluent families. There was not even a whimper when some child from one group asked for something being used in another group. I guess this is a behavior that is only learnt by living together in one happy family that understands that they are each other’s best friends. I also noticed that in each group children, though were their usual selves talking in excitement, each child paid heed to what the other was saying and tried to help each other with their ideas. I couldn’t but stop thinking how it would be if, as adults, we could do this at least once in a while.

Soon, the two hours came to an end and the children assembled again and each group presented their work with a short description of what their work meant. Again, here I must highlight that the children displayed quite a bit of confidence explaining what they had done and some of them spoke almost impeccable English. Then there came a surprise! After all the 10 groups were done, there was one more group, which according to Anusha, had been silently working away to make some lovely greeting cards for each of the volunteers present, on occasion of friendship day. The cards were handed out to each of the volunteers by the children and the volunteers were beaming blissfully at the thought of having had such a wonderful time and then getting a memorable gift as well from the children. After all this, one of the volunteers, who had brought along some plant saplings, handed them over to the Hostel Warden and Correspondent as a fitting end to a productive day. The saplings were promised to be planted all around the campus and taken care of by the children as a lesson learnt from the day’s fun activity.

I am sure you are all probably wondering by now why I haven’t spoken a word about the work of the children. I guess words were too hard to find to describe the love, warmth, dedication and enthusiasm behind each of the works. So, I’ve just let the pictures here (taken by the volunteers) of each of the works to talk for themselves! I could go on writing more about how we all felt, but I guess the only way to understand it, would be to be there and experience it all for yourself!



--

Savitha Rengabashyam

iVolunteer,

Chennai

iVolunteer policies updated!

Dear Volunteers,

This mail is to share with you that iVolunteer has migrated to a new website recently.The revitalized logo brings a more contemporary feel to iVolunteer, representing the programme's youthfulness and energy.The brand also reinforces the new mission statement of iVolunteer, which highlights the impact the volunteer makes, and how through volunteering the increasing social divide in India can be addressed. Our new logo strapline "Your skills can change lives" is in line with the new mission. Please visit our new website at www.ivolunteer .in,if you have not visited yet.Looking forward to hear from you on the same.

As you may be already aware that iVolunteer started off in 2000 and we are the pioneers in volunteering industry. We have successfully placed more than 7000 volunteers so far (excluding the overseas and rural fellowship volunteers) :-)In March 2008, we as an organization underwent massive planning and change. We have made a lot of changes in our back office processes to try and improve the quality of service we provide you.

One of the many changes being, we have also decided to sustain our programmes rather than depending upon funds from outside.Thereby we have started charging our volunteers a sum of rupees 250/- as an annual membership service fee. With this contribution we will get closer to self-sustainability.

We therefore request all volunteers, who have been registered before April 2008 to kindly come and pay the annual membership service fees. You can either come to the office and pay cash(we will give you a receipt for a national membership) or send a cheque at the name of "Mitra Technology Foundation" (Address-D 134 F.F. East of Kailash, Newdelhi-65).We request the old volunteers to get in touch with us before the 25thof August.

We look forward to your continued strong support in our endeavour to get more and more people volunteer to their time, skills and passion and support the wonderful work of our partner organization ,while keeping ourselves as , transparent, efficient and professional as possible. Please don't hesitate to write to us if you have any questions,doubts and suggestions.

--

Team iVolunteer,

www.ivolunteer.in

Star of July '08

Hello All,

We are back with the Superstar of July!

Pramod is a very special volunteer who has been volunteering for almost 4 years now!!He is known for his dedication amongst the volunteers.He was the backbone for AWPT NGO.He is a shining star indeed!!Rock on super star!
Pramod has shared with us about his journey,read on.

More soon,
--

Team iVolunteer,
Chennai

I started my volunteering activities when I saw an advertisement in a multiplex at Ahmedabad, end of 2004. It was a call for volunteers for an NGO called Volunteer Ahmedabad(VA), I joined them, completely thrilled and excited about it. I soon started associating with various NGOs across the city. I always had passion towards animals, soon I got a call to help AHF (Animal Help Foundation) in their "Help the Birds - Jan 2005" campaign.I volunteered with them and helped them in all possible ways, then I realised that my dreams are becoming true!!!

Oct 05 I changed my job and moved to Chennai. While leaving Ahmedabad, VA gave me the reference of iVolunteer @ Chennai. Soon I met the concerned people at Ivolunteer, registered with IV Chennai. I spent my weekends with NGOs in the city. The bliss dint last for too long, due to my work load, the volunteering activities were almost stopped for a while.

Then I received a mail from iVolunteer asking all old volunteers to join for an event.I replied on the same day,and I am really glad that I did not procastinate the decision.

Let me give you a brief on the NGOs I have been working with over the years.

Animal Welfare and Protection Trust (AWPT): An NGO works for the welfare of the stray dogs and cats. It runs by a couple in their 70s!! I really thank Natasha and iVolunteer for putting me in touch with these wonderful people. With AWPT,I have been associated with their fund raising on a along term basis and some other one off activities that we keep coordinating .

Madras Crocodile Bank Trust (MCBT): - from Jan 2008 Study on reptile behavior and habits. Lend a hand to Animal Keepers for pen cleaning and also help them in food preparation and feeding Turtles Tortoises Crocodiles Snakes etc.I also get to interact with visitors!

Netrodaya-School for the blind – I volunteer here as the ‘collection drive –pick up person’. Collect Old cloths from friends and volunteers and handover the same to the NGO.

Greenpeace-Worked with them on their Campaigns and rallys in Chennai .

After working for long hours /6 days a week, I need to do something very different that will charge me for the week ahead. Volunteering with these NGOs really help me to get refreshed mentally. Yes through iVolunteer only I reached to these NGOs and otherwise my weekends would hav been boring and not of much use.

Almost four years since I have been volunteering, and I have loved every moment of it. There have been times when I had to push myself, but it was all worth it in the end!For all you youngsters out there, I recommend volunteering strongly, for your own good:)

'Take up all your courage and do something your heart tells you to do,so that you may not regret not doing it later in your life.'

--
Pramod Ramachandran

iVolunteer,
Chennai

http://www.88888.co.in/

‘88888 Lights Out’ is a campaign initiated by Exnora International.

If you want to join their campaign against Global Warming,do check out their website and join the campaign.

http://www.88888.co.in/ thats the website.

More Soon,

--

Team iVolunteer,

Chennai

Make a tree,make a fortune!

Hi there,

Last Saturday (August 2nd 2008) we had an event with the children of Our home Orphanage at the Ramakrishna Hostel in T.nagar.It was a super success,thanks to all my lovely volunteers who turned up and made the event wonderful for the kutties:)

Will be posting the pics and the feedback of the volunteers soon,in the mean time do have a look at the invite(will give you an idea of what happened)You will find the invite at http://av.anusha.googlepages.com/makeatree

Keep watching this space,will update sooon.

--

Team iVolunteer,

Chennai

Star of June 08

Hi all,

We are back with the star volunteer of June!.Bubbling with enthusiasm and never in doubt to take the lead,Chaman is our super star for the month of June!

This is what Chaman has to say:

"I was browsing the internet when I came across the iVolunteer website. After going through the website, I created a user account and filled the volunteer details and submitted the form. The form was sent and I went on with my usual life. It was on May 29th when I received an email from iVolunteer about the orientation session for the new volunteers to be conducted on May 31st. The email briefed about the activities of the volunteers and how iVolunteer helped in finding the suitable events for the volunteers. I was impressed by the email and sent the confirmation without delay.

There were 6 volunteers at the volunteer orientation meeting. Anusha chaired the session and individually asked each person their interests. The beauty of this group was that each one of us had come from various walks of life. And each of us had a different volunteering interest. One volunteer wanted to help reduce the traffic congestion of Chennai, while another volunteer wanted to contribute to the animal welfare. The others wanted to do something for the environment or teach the under privileged school kids. Anusha presented each one of the volunteers the different options that were available. The session ended with a note from Anusha that she will send out the names of the volunteers to the various organizations. Thus my volunteering journey at the iVolunteer officially begun and I eagerly waited for my first assignment!!

My first volunteering activity was on June 15th. It was a visit to the CHES Ashram at Valasuravakkam. CHES ashram is for HIV +ve children and also orphans. I was to spend some time with the kids. Varshita from iVolunteer was the coordinator. At 3 pm, I met Varshita and she briefed about the Ashram and that it would be fun with the kids. So without delay we marched on to the Ashram!!!

I had seen in movies the orphanages and how the kids were happy to see the only familiar faces they knew. I thought it was the fancy of the script writer and the imagination of the director that ornate some fake smiles on the not so happy children. However, my aforesaid notion was proved wrong when I saw the kids jumping from their seats and cheering out loud when they saw Varshita and the other volunteer. In no time, they were shouting with joy and clinging passionately to them. Without delay, they inquired about the gifts that were promised to them in the earlier visits. They were pleased to receive them and prepared a new wish list. One little boy had one long list. He wanted a sun glass, a watch and two new t-shirts. He was jumping, smiling and clinging to the other volunteer. I had never seen anyone touch someone so fervently and so tight.

While I stood there, 3 kids, 2 boys and 1 girl, barged into me and clung to my hands and legs. Two of them hung onto my hands and asked me to lift them high above the ground. Their spirits and smiles rose. They incessantly asked me to keep doing so and I kept on. There was one little boy who was walking towards me. I took him in my arms and lifted him up in the air and brought him down. He liked the act of going into the sky and coming back to the ground. I did it a number of times, before I felt tired. Saying "no" to the kid was the last thing I could do. So I sat down and he sat on my lap, hopping from one lap to the other.

The kids were watching the latest Tamil songs on the TV and were dancing to the melodious tunes. Some toddlers were taking the afternoon siesta while others were having a late lunch!!! Varshita, the other volunteer and I sat there with the family of CHES Ashram for about 30 minutes before we left.

My second volunteering activity was the birthday celebration of seven kids at CHES Ashram on Jun 30th. The kids were all excited about their birthday. They were getting ready in their birthday dress. It was a fun fare for them. One of the kids put the latest music CD. We arranged the table in the hall and put the cakes on it. The candles were lighted and the kids were all set for the celebration. It was so nice to watch all the kids enjoying. The little ones were giving the cake to their little ones. It seemed that they understood each other better than any one else. I was watching a 2 year old girl who was running around the hall with a big cake piece, which she was not able to eat!!! I took her in the arms and put a piece of the cake in her mouth. She relished the cake, no doubt!

When I look back into the last month, I feel that iVolunteer has helped me in achieving my volunteering goals. iVolunteer gave me varied volunteering options. This was the best part of iVolunteer because I could choose which activity interests me most. Also both Anusha and Varshita were very co-operative and kept the volunteers involved in any activities that took place. For me, volunteering was doing something other than the mundane job. Volunteering at CHES gave me satisfaction. I had a wonderful time on the weekends with the kids instead of just sitting at room. The biggest satisfaction came when the kids laughed and enjoyed for those minutes that I spent with them. Volunteering has definitely added a variety to my routine life!!!"

--

Chaman Sahu,

iVolunteer

Thats it for now,more updates and feedbacks coming up.

More soon,

--

Team iVolunteer,

Chennai

Star of May!

Hi,

Like we promised you,presenting to you,our super star for the month of MAY:)

Shankar Ram is a new addition to our family:)

Shankar has been volunteering with us for just about 2 months but has shown massive strength in his commitment towards volunteering. As soon he got in touch with us the first time, he was very keen about helping children and the visually challenged.

His first volunteering assignment inlcuded a reading session at an NGO called Prandhaman-an NGO working with the a visually challenged. He was also very keen about scribing for the blind students ,in his words this cause was something very close to his heart.What is more inersting about him would be the fact that he always is keen to share any information he recieves on any NGOs or any new volunteering assignments with other volunteers.

He along with another volunteer Vinay have also set up a new learning centre for under-priviledged children with the help of our partner AID iNDIA.Kudos Ram!!!

Quick and sincere with updates and full of captivating energy,we are already seeing a star in him!!Hope to see this star shining bright-always!! Congragulations Shankar Ram,keep the spirits intact!!!

--

Team iVolunteer,

Chennai

* The Shining Stars *

Hi All,

In recognition of the exhilarating efforts put in by our ‘INCREDIBLE VOLUNTEERS’ ,every month we have a STAR volunteer of the month! They will be christened as the"celebrity" for the month, and will be announced in both our website as well as our newsletter which goes out to thousands of people.

We will share the experiences of our star volunteers every month so watch out for them.

More soon,

--

Team iVolunteer,

Chennai

iVolunteer transforms:)

Hey,

We launched our new branding recently and we are absolutely thrilled!!Do let us know what you think,in the mean while peep into what our director has to say on the same:)

More soon,

--

Team iVolunteer,

Chennai

Dear All,

iVolunteer - Your skills can change lives

At iVolunteer our mission is to bring volunteers and organisations together to share time, skills and passion to promote India's social development.

The revitalised logo brings a more contempory feel to iVolunteer, representing the programme's youthfulness and energy.

The brand also reinforces the new mission statement of iVolunteer, which highlights the impact the volunteer makes, and how through volunteering the increasing social divide in India can be addressed. Our new logo strapline "Your skills can change lives" is in line with the new mission.

For now, here is what some of the iVolunteer team and volunteer members had to say about the new logo.

“The vertical hand symbolises people standing up, raising their hand to make a difference as volunteers. And the second hand, the one that is tilted symbolises that volunteering can be fun too.” Rahul, iVolunteer, Delhi

“The hand in the background stands for the invisible hands of volunteer's - who are everywhere in the social sector, yet doesn't get enough recognition. The more prominent hand is iVolunteer which is making efforts to bring volunteering as the core value to the social development sector.” Smriti, iVolunteer, Delhi

"I raise my hands for volunteering. I give my helping hands to the development of the society." Varshitha, iVolunteer, Chennai

“Represents the clapping of hands. People come together and make a change just like it takes two hands to clap, not one.” Varuchi, husband of iVolunteer employee, Mumbai

“The “i” in red denotes love and passion, “volunteer” in white denotes peace and tranquillity, the green background denotes making this world greener and brighter and the hands denotes the joining of hands” Vijayanand Nagaraj, volunteer, Bangalore

--

Shalabh Sahai

Director
iVolunteer

Our brand new website!

Hi,

We have moved! You can now find us on www.ivolunteer.in Do let us know what you think of our brand new website, we are open to suggestions and criticisms, after all, volunteers are the backbone of our services:)

--

Team iVolunteer

Our brand new website!

Hi,

We have moved! You can now find us on www.ivolunteer.in Do let us know what you think of our brand new website, we are open to suggestions and criticisms, after all, volunteers are the backbone of our services:)

--

Team iVolunteer

Opportunities this August!

Hello all,


We have many volunteer opportunities for people looking to gain experience for employment or education, meet new people, learn new skills, have fun and give back to their community.

At iVolunteer, volunteers are essential in the delivery of our programs and services to the community. In 2007, approximately 250 volunteers performed more than 3500 hours of service through us! Volunteers play an important role in our organization by assisting with group facilitation and support, childcare, special events, maintenance and custodial support and day to day operations.

Opportunities to volunteer this August IN Chennai!

Big brothers & Big sisters! (Mentors for kids)

Summer is a great time to be a kid - or at least play like one! Volunteers are needed to assist with our partner NGOs. Play games, sports, outdoor and indoor activities, crafts, read, talk, attend fieldtrips and interact with children ages 5 - 12 years.

Volunteer opportunities are available from Monday to Friday between 5pm to 8:30 pm and weekends 10:00am to 6:00pm

Teachers

Can you handle the basics of a computer? Then we need you to help as Teachers who can teach computers for our partner NGO that has newly set up Computer learning centers across the city for physically challenged children and youth.
If you are available for 2 hours during the weekday, then this is the opportunity for you. The NGO is however looking for a volunteer who can commit for at least a period of 6 months to continue with the activity.

Campaign Coordinator (Creative writing)

To work with colleges, schools and spread the word about one of our partner ngos.To find out different ways of involving student community and motivating them to be a part of the social development sector.To do copywriting for the NGO's e-mail campaigns and other publicity material


Food Bank Pick-Up Assistant

A volunteer is needed twice per month to accompany our staff to the Food Bank to pick up, transport and then sort food items. Volunteer must be available during the day and be physically able to haul boxes of food.
Every second Saturday from 12:30pm to 3:30pm

Event Coordinators

Volunteers needed to help coordinate activities with partner NGOs. Perfect opportunities for busy people who can't commit to an ongoing position but still want to help out! We have an event almost every weekend. You can work one or all of our events – whatever fits your schedule!


iVolunteer Coordinators

Volunteer to be the point of contact at your work place, school and college!

Those interested to volunteer please call at 98414 87984 or email Chennai@ivolunteer.in

--
Team iVolunteer,
Chennai.

Happiness at the cost of dinner!

A small step taken a couple of years ago and a short detour during a recent fun trip took me right to the door of happiness. It has remained an unforgettable experience ever since and a source of unending joy. The day is unarguably the most ‘well-lived’ of my life on earth. I am sharing this experience with you all, so that you can also take this step to happiness.

I have been sponsoring a child for about two years now through an organization called World Vision(WV). This organization helps people like us who are fortunate to have the many luxuries of life sponsor those children who are getting left behind because of the circumstances in which they happen to be born. And this organization not only helps children go to school, they also adopt entire villages and use the funds to develop the whole community through self-help-groups and community initiatives like building toilets, etc. The organization does not stop with taking donations and giving tax exemption receipts in return. They help you bond with the child you sponsor by sending regular progress reports of the child, letters from the child and arranging visits to the child’s home if one is interested. This is something interesting as it gives one a feeling of being personally responsible for the child( though one can choose to discontinue sponsorship anytime). It is almost like adopting a child and giving him or her a life which he/she can be proud of and happy with.

So, March 10th was the day I decided to give my sponsor child Maruthupandian a visit as Ganesh(my hubby) and I were traveling to Trichy for a wedding and this village was only an hour’s drive from there. The run up to the day was filled with anxiety as I was not sure what to expect; how would the child and his family feel? how would I handle the whole thing? a lot of questions were running in my head. Finally after lunch on Monday(March 10) one of World Vision’s staff took us to the child’s home. I was so overwhelmed when I saw the child waiting just at the entrance to the road where he lives and on seeing the WV marked jeep, running cheerfully ahead to show us the way. His mom and his 3 year old sister were also with him. We then got off the jeep and headed towards his home. I was shocked to see the whole neighborhood waiting for us. And I was given a VIP welcome, bouquet and all. My eyes welled up and when I entered the house, instantly tears gave way to shock. Because, the house was smaller than my bathroom back home. But the warmth and happiness of all gathered was thick in the air and I was more than happy. We had bought some gifts for the child and his sister and the family. I gave them all, all the while smiling away with joy like I’ve never experienced before. Then came a big surprise!!! The family had got me a gift! It was a small but beautiful gift.

I started relaxing as we got talking - about the child’s school, his daily life, his family’s occupation, his sister and also about the other neighbors’ stories. I know I am going on and on without making any big point. It’s just that I haven’t been able to put the feelings I felt that day, in that house, into words yet. And I don’t think I will ever be able to , in the future. It was just a great experience which made me feel so happy with myself and my life. A feeling of a truly well-lived day. Also, a lesson in how I’m wasting life cribbing about small things when there are so many people with much more pressing needs.

By the way, do you know how much I give from my pocket each month for this wonderful feeling of joy and happiness? Six hundred rupees - lesser than what we all spend on an average for dinning out every week! Of course, I am not concluding or even implying that giving money is the way to help. Volunteering for a good cause, whatever it is (for animals, for the environment, for the elderly), by whichever means you are able to, is an experience that will leave your heart full and asking for more. Think about it.

--

Savitha Rengabashyam

iVolunteer,

Chennai

There is a volunteer in every one of us!

Ever had a urge to help an old lady walking down the road with a heavy bag, struggling to balance herself? Ever had a spontaneous desire to help a blind student to cross the road? Ever felt like running errands for your elderly next door neighbour? Well , if you think deeply and try to go back over your past , you will find that sometime or the other, you may have had a urge to “selflessly” give yourself to something that has “touched your heart” , that in the real sense of the word, makes you happy. For that split moment, you are a donning the cap of a volunteer - a special characteristic that is in all of us , but which we intentionally ignore (sometimes deliberately suppress) in this past paced world.

Being a volunteer (for a cause) is nothing but being aware of those moments, acknowledging the goodness involved and carefully nurturing that goodness to take control of your overall personality. To my mind, everyone in life is a volunteer - while most suppress this divinity, others follow their heart to live a life of a volunteer.

Thus there is a volunteer in all of us - for most it is hidden, some have taken pains to carefully nurture this divine trait.

--
Gaurish
iVolunteer,

Chennai

Your first step to iVolunteer!

Hi,

You want to join us,but not sure what has to be done?Then go through this post,patiently:)

The basics is that first you need to register yourself on the web. You could do this at http://www.ivolunteer.in/IVolunteerHome/SiteUser/Volunteers/Register.aspx?F=2
Thereafter, please create your volunteer profile (link "Edit Profile" appears at the top right corner of the page). Be sure to provide as much information as possible. Once your profile is created, the iVolunteer team will want to meet with you to discuss available volunteering opportunities that suit your interests, skills and time commitment and also guide you through your first steps of your volunteering journey with some basic induction.

You can also view available volunteering opportunities on the iVolunteer website using the "Search" link.

The team would like to meet with you, once you have keyed in all your details, so that it would help them know you personally and find you the right volunteering opportunity suiting your interests, skills and time commitment. Orientation sessions are planned in such a way that it would be full of fun with learning and also team building exercise, so be here with full josh and energy leaving aside all your official and personal life:)

This week (and thereafter every following week) we have the Volunteer Orientation Session on Wedenesday i.e. 6th August between 4:00pm and 5:30 pm and on the following Saturday i.e. 9th of August 2008 between 5.00 PM to 06:30 PM at iVolunteer office.


iVolunteer,Old Plot no 373,New No 15,30th street,6th sector,K.K Nagar,Chennai 6000 078

Landmark:After you reach the saravana bhavan (the k.k nagar one,which is on the right hand side when you come straight from Ashok Pillar towards the ESI hospital),take the right after this hotel and keep going straight when you reach the end of that road( it connects to a main road) take a left and keep going straight untill you find a punjab national bank.Take the road opposite to the bank and take the third right from there.You need to find door no 373(on the left side of the road),which is a G+1 House(You will find a corporation children's play ground opposite this house).This house has a board that reads-'ALL CAD'.iVolunteer office is on the ground floor:)

Here is some feedback from our volunteers who have attended the Orientation:

“Well the orientation session gave me an insight into the process called volunteering. It acts as a driving-force in establishing the concept called volunteering. The bottom line is ‘invest your time efficiently and usefully’ and I hope to stick to it.”- Sreejith

“Good session. Clears doubts and helps set right expectations”- Mohit Kumar

Keep watching this space as we will keep you posted on the details of the Orientation session which happens every week!!

We hope to see you soon,
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Team iVolunteer,

Chennai

Notice Board

Hi All,

After a lot of thought and a little struggle we have finally decided to launch this blog for the Chennai center.

But why blog?

The Wiki says this:

A blog (a contraction of the term web log) is a website, usually maintained by an individual, with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video.

Well that is exactly what we have in store for you.

This site is going to keep you updated on all the upcoming events and activities and these are straight from the mouth of the horse, well,umm the volunteersJ

This is going to be the informal notice board for the volunteers. The team will keep this blog page updated on all current activities and we also invite all the volunteers out here to write in on topics that need awareness and thought in context with the social development sector.

We are also absolutely thrilled to take this step!

So keep watching this space and join our team of incredible volunteers!!

Remember, your skills can change lives!!

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Team iVolunteer,

Chennai