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Dear Friends of This Child Here,
I am getting several queries a week now from people who have found my website and are interested in volunteering. So basically, I sat down and tried to answer some questions that keep popping up. First of all, please take a look through all the pages of this website and our partner organization site (www.streetkids.ua).
The most important points I would like to make as you think about volunteering are that:
- you can get out of this experience as much as you want
- it is all about relationships with kids
- and no two days are alike.
Some volunteers come to dive right into this kind of work because they hope someday to make a life of it. Others have jobs back home and careers and want the experience and want to do what they can with whatever skills or gifts they have.
It is not possible for me to give all my attention to volunteers. I am a busy person. But I am glad to have you. At the end of a week or two weeks or even a month, you may feel like you haven't done much but your presence says you care and that counts. In addition you may have something to offer because of your talents and abilities. It might be with programs for kids, or website design or sports useful skills I never thought about. If I can get them here, I will need help with bicycles. Some of the best times we have are sitting around the office or in a cafe talking about what is possible and using our imagination. I have some wonderful people working with me--you will be quite impressed.
Having said all that, a regular day for me starts after lunch. ( I study russian and write in the mornings) you can come to the office at 10 am and hang out with kids or check email if you like (we should have enough notebook computers-but bring your own if you have one) . We all touch base till about 2pm when it's time to go to the streets for the "Social Patrol". This is a couple of hours of meeting kids on the streets and sometimes we end up with a hospital visit and other errands like the police station or state offices for documents. We get back about 5 or 6. You can eat with kids at The Way Home (we have 25 kids living at the dorm) or wait and eat with any of our staff who going somewhere to talk, or take off and meet other friends or see some of Odessa.
This is a town with a night life and plays and opera and art exhibitions and music. The summer is, of course, more busy.
Please know that you come and go as you like. It helps me to know that you are independent enough to get around and take care of yourself. If you have other things you are interested in, you can step into our program at any part of the day. The program here will run with or without you. It runs fine, I am sure when I am in the states. I believe though, that inviting people to come enhances what we do. Everyone who comes here, has something to offer. Out of the miracle of dialogue, come some great answers.
Now about where to stay. There are choices. Sometimes in the summer, if they have room, volunteers can stay at the dorm because kids are camping. Camping with kids is also a great idea, but it's rustic, no toilets or showers, just tents inthe woods. If you are here in the summer, you want a place back in town. two or three nights in woods and you need a break... well, some of you will.
I don't know what two weeks would be. But apartments are the cheapest way to go. You can go online with a search engine "apartments odessa ukraine" and send emails to other folks who have apartments, you can get a nice place for $60 a night and even nicer for $80-100 a night. We also have the option of a bedroom at someone's home for $250 a month.
About food: you can eat for about $8-$15 in a nice place for dinner. Lunch can be as little at $1.85 at the market or 6-7 bucks at a nicer place. You can cook in your apartment too.
About learning Russian : get Pimsleur for starters. they have it at Barnes and Noble. If youre really interested, get Rosetta Stone, but its expensive. I can find you a tutor and you can spend your mornings learning russian if you like. You can also go to http://www.verbalplanet.com/ and start learning with a tutor online with SKYPE.
We get around by walking or taking buses (marshutkas) they are called. I will explain when you get here. It is quite cheap, fast and confusing.
About getting to Ukraine, go to cheap flights, travelocity etc and the rest of those search engines. Oddly enough, flying from California can be cheaper than the East Coast. You can fly to Odessa, or you can fly to Kiev. If you fly to Kiev there are busses all day and trains in the evening that go to Odessa for about $20.
About communications: bring a cell phone that takes a sim card. when you get here (at the airport) buy a ukrainian sim card from the network LIFE. It cost about $5. Then you can call me. +380636117928
When you write me about volunteering, tell me what your interests and skills are, what you hope to accomplish, and how long you plan to stay. If you are planning to camp with the kids you need to send me the phone numbers of two references; you also need to tell me if you have any criminal record. We would need to talk about that.
About health insurance: technically, you need health insurance to enter the country. if you want travel insurance you can go to www.sevencorners.com they are reasonable and good. I am not sure if they service only US citizens. Otherwise health care is cheap here, you just need someone to translate when you go to the hosptial.
About calling here or home. Get skype. It's free to download. You call other computers for free and call phones for a low fee.
You can call me in Ukraine, My phone number and addresses are on the website and at the bottom of every email.
Sincerely, Robert Gamble |
