Background Information
Volunteer for the Visayans
currently works with a number of child care facilities both in Tacloban
City and surrounding towns, with children aging from as young as one month to
eleven or twelve years. These children that volunteers work with are often
undernourished and have previously suffered from great deals of neglect. Many
of them thrive on the attention that can be provided by volunteers and react
well to enrichment activities that can help boost their social, motor
functional and cognitive skills.
As in other developing
countries, the Philippines lacks a strong safety net to support
families at risk of breakdown. This has contributed to a deterioration of
the family unit and an increase in the incidence of child abuse,
neglect and abandonment. Many of the children in our facilities have
been abandoned by an impoverished parent who could no
longer care for them.
This has put increased pressure on government and
non government child welfare services to find permanent or temporary homes for
such children. In most cases child care facilities are often underfunded
and have limited resources. If you want to volunteer with orphans should not
only have a strong passion for working with children, but must also be
resourceful and able to show initiative.
About the Program
One of the Childcare facilities we support is the Missionaries of Charity orphanage
which is based in Tacloban City. It is an orphanage run by the religious group
with the same name. Missionaries of Charity was founded by Mother Teresa of
Calcutta and the facility is run by nuns together with local house parents. The
centre aims to provide safe temporary haven to children between 0-15 years old.
These children are provided with all the basic services such as safe home,
food, health, and education. All the children admitted to this facility are in
need of help, with different cases. The children are abandoned, neglected,
sickly, or malnourished. A few of them are placed there by a parent who needs
help looking after the child while he/she is working.
Any volunteer, regardless of religious affiliations, can work at this child care facility. During prayer days however (Thursdays), volunteers especially those with different religious beliefs, are requested not to go to the orphanage to give way to a solemn observance of the day and to avoid distracting the attention of the kids as well.
Why We Need You
Typically, the child to
caregiver ratio in child care facilities is high, resulting in caregivers not
having time to attend to much beyond the physical care of each child.
Without emotional nurturing, children are at high risk of developing
severe developmental and emotional disorders. As a volunteer, you
will provide vital interaction with the children, assist
house parents with daily chores and child supervision as well as
running different activities to liven up the children’s day.
Over the
years, Volunteer for the Visayans (VFV) has augmented support to child care
facilities through the distribution of resources such as clothing and vitamins.
We have also supported projects to train local staff on relevant
topics. Sadly, VFV does not have the capacity to provide support to these
facilities on a daily basis and as a result need international
volunteers to provide support. In addition, we value the skills and
expertise that international volunteers bring to the orphanage.
Whilst no
official care-giving experience is required, VFV requires you to have a love of
children and be able to work both independently and in small groups. This
is a meaningful way you can learn first-hand the hardship that some
children in the world face and give back to underprivileged children
in the developing world.
Dress Code
To conform to the Filipino conservative culture and to look
professional, volunteers must dress modestly. The volunteer must report to work
wearing the appropriate clothes. Top must consist of shirt or blouse or tshirt
with sleeves. No singlet or tank top. Top should not have plunging neckline.
Bottom wear must be knee-length/long pants or knee-length skirt for women and
knee-length shorts or long pants for men. Footwear must be shoes or sandals. Outside
work, a volunteer can wear more comfortable article of clothing such as shorts
and tank tops and wear flip flops.
Transportation to the Placement
Patience is required when
traveling to and from placement though it is quite easy to reach this placement
than the others and some volunteers would even choose to walk. The volunteer’s
daily commute takes at most 10 minutes and requires him/her to travel from
Bliss to Kalipayan on a jeepney that goes to downtown. This ride cost 0.14 USD
only. Any jeepney that passes along “Sariling
Sikap” road by the VFV arch with a sign that says “Diretso Downtown” will take you to
your placement.
Get off at the corner of Kalipayan road leading to Missionaries
of Charity orphanage. On the way back, you have to catch a jeepney that goes
back to Bliss, with a sign saying “Diretso Bliss” with the same fare. Volunteer will be
briefed on getting to placement and back to Bliss during the placement
orientation at the beginning of the program.
