Volunteering
Every kind of volunteer help is highly appreciated by the Save Blessing Child Home. There are two ways you can help. You can either travel to Nepal and help at the orphanage in Kathmandu or you can get active in your own country.
Below you will find all the information you need in order to get involved. Should you still have questions, please feel free to contact us.
Below you will find all the information you need in order to get involved. Should you still have questions, please feel free to contact us.
Volunteering in Nepal
The Save Blessing Child Home is always happy to welcome volunteers in Kathmandu. There has been a number of volunteers staying with us over the years and have made an impact at the orphanage. Volunteers and the SBCH alike have found that voluntary service has been a positive and rewarding experience. We are always looking forward to sharing our lives with new and entheusiastic people.
If you want to volunteer, you should...
- be willing to live under simple conditions in the orphanage amongst the children.
- speak English fluently
- be willing to help out around the house (cleaning, cooking or tidying)
- have a great interest in Nepali culture
- limit drinking and smoking to moderate amounts and never drink or smoke inside the orphanage.
- be willing to spend time with kids (playing with them, doing crafts, sports, etc.)
- be able to teach the kids something (e.g. basic computer skills, a musical instrument, a new sport/game, English, etc.)
- be willing to humble yourself, and put someone else's needs before your own.
- be flexible and pro-active.
- be easy-going and able to adjust to different situations without complaint
Important Informations
Consider that the living conditions here are most certainly a lot different from what you are used to. There is going to be a lot of dal bhat, the traditional Nepali rice dish with lentil soup. You probably will not have any variation between meals. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner will be the same. You will probably experience periods of time without running water, frequent power-outages, and no washing machine to do your laundry. Keep that in mind if you consider taking on a volunteer position. The living standards in your own country will probably differ considerably from what is available here.
Life in Nepal is considerably less structured than you are probably used to, and one needs to accept the fact that many things just take longer or are more difficult to achieve here.
We are a small organization and do not have volunteers permanently. Therefore there are many possibilities to get involved, but you must be aware that the experience is what you make it. Often you have to find your own little projects within the orphanage to complete, and not wait to be asked to do something. Nobody is going to tell you at all times what to do.
Nepali culture is very undemanding, and the staff here will probably never ask you to do very much. That can offer you a lot of freedom, but it also means that you, must be pro-active and outgoing. There may be plenty of things that need to be done, but the staff are not comfortable inconveniencing you and asking you to do it. There are always plenty of opportunities to help, you just have to grasp them.
If you volunteer with us you will get:
- a truly Nepali experience living with us, taking part in our festivities and learning daily about our culture and lifestyle.
- the chance to pick up some Nepali language skills.
- gratitude and smiles from the staff and children.
- the opportunity to get involved in aid work with your own little projects.
- a family atmosphere. We work and live together with our volunteers and they become a part of our big family.
- a great learning experience, getting to know another culture and yourself better. Over 20 kids are automatically going to train you in flexibility, patience and stamina. No further skill training required.
- over 20 adorable children. The kids in the orphanage are easy-going and truly well-behaved. There are rarely any fights or disturbances happening, and none of the teenage drama one witnesses on TV. The kids are not used to having any personal possessions and therefore do not fight over toys, etc. They'll embrace you as their sister/brother and will make you feel welcome right from the start.
Finances
The SBCH is a non-profit organization. Accommodating and educating the children is sustained through sponsorships and donations from abroad. Since we are non-commercial, our aim is not to make profit with our volunteers. Nevertheless, there are certain expenses associated with your stay at our orphanage (food, accomodation, water, etc.). We don't feel it is right to use part of the donations we receive to finance a volunteer. Therefore we do ask our volunteers to take over their own living expanses. At the moment, expanses are approximately 45 Euro a month, which can change due to changes of address, etc. Living costs in Nepal are generally low, so it should not be much more than that quoted above. Additionally, volunteers need to pay for their flight, personal expenses and any other costs related to travel (insurance, equipment, etc.). If you should choose to donate any of the exorbant funds necessary for a commercial volunteer program to this orphanage directly, you can be sure that your money genuinely arrives where it is needed most.
How to apply
If you are interested in applying for a position as a volunteer, please send a letter of motivation and a copy of your resume or CV to [email protected]
Any questions?
We are happy to answer all your questions and extinguish your doubts on a volunteer to volunteer-to-be basis. We can help you through visa processes, anxieties, vaccinations, and any other questions you may have. Please feel free to email us with questions or comments.
If you want to volunteer, you should...
- be willing to live under simple conditions in the orphanage amongst the children.
- speak English fluently
- be willing to help out around the house (cleaning, cooking or tidying)
- have a great interest in Nepali culture
- limit drinking and smoking to moderate amounts and never drink or smoke inside the orphanage.
- be willing to spend time with kids (playing with them, doing crafts, sports, etc.)
- be able to teach the kids something (e.g. basic computer skills, a musical instrument, a new sport/game, English, etc.)
- be willing to humble yourself, and put someone else's needs before your own.
- be flexible and pro-active.
- be easy-going and able to adjust to different situations without complaint
Important Informations
Consider that the living conditions here are most certainly a lot different from what you are used to. There is going to be a lot of dal bhat, the traditional Nepali rice dish with lentil soup. You probably will not have any variation between meals. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner will be the same. You will probably experience periods of time without running water, frequent power-outages, and no washing machine to do your laundry. Keep that in mind if you consider taking on a volunteer position. The living standards in your own country will probably differ considerably from what is available here.
Life in Nepal is considerably less structured than you are probably used to, and one needs to accept the fact that many things just take longer or are more difficult to achieve here.
We are a small organization and do not have volunteers permanently. Therefore there are many possibilities to get involved, but you must be aware that the experience is what you make it. Often you have to find your own little projects within the orphanage to complete, and not wait to be asked to do something. Nobody is going to tell you at all times what to do.
Nepali culture is very undemanding, and the staff here will probably never ask you to do very much. That can offer you a lot of freedom, but it also means that you, must be pro-active and outgoing. There may be plenty of things that need to be done, but the staff are not comfortable inconveniencing you and asking you to do it. There are always plenty of opportunities to help, you just have to grasp them.
If you volunteer with us you will get:
- a truly Nepali experience living with us, taking part in our festivities and learning daily about our culture and lifestyle.
- the chance to pick up some Nepali language skills.
- gratitude and smiles from the staff and children.
- the opportunity to get involved in aid work with your own little projects.
- a family atmosphere. We work and live together with our volunteers and they become a part of our big family.
- a great learning experience, getting to know another culture and yourself better. Over 20 kids are automatically going to train you in flexibility, patience and stamina. No further skill training required.
- over 20 adorable children. The kids in the orphanage are easy-going and truly well-behaved. There are rarely any fights or disturbances happening, and none of the teenage drama one witnesses on TV. The kids are not used to having any personal possessions and therefore do not fight over toys, etc. They'll embrace you as their sister/brother and will make you feel welcome right from the start.
Finances
The SBCH is a non-profit organization. Accommodating and educating the children is sustained through sponsorships and donations from abroad. Since we are non-commercial, our aim is not to make profit with our volunteers. Nevertheless, there are certain expenses associated with your stay at our orphanage (food, accomodation, water, etc.). We don't feel it is right to use part of the donations we receive to finance a volunteer. Therefore we do ask our volunteers to take over their own living expanses. At the moment, expanses are approximately 45 Euro a month, which can change due to changes of address, etc. Living costs in Nepal are generally low, so it should not be much more than that quoted above. Additionally, volunteers need to pay for their flight, personal expenses and any other costs related to travel (insurance, equipment, etc.). If you should choose to donate any of the exorbant funds necessary for a commercial volunteer program to this orphanage directly, you can be sure that your money genuinely arrives where it is needed most.
How to apply
If you are interested in applying for a position as a volunteer, please send a letter of motivation and a copy of your resume or CV to [email protected]
Any questions?
We are happy to answer all your questions and extinguish your doubts on a volunteer to volunteer-to-be basis. We can help you through visa processes, anxieties, vaccinations, and any other questions you may have. Please feel free to email us with questions or comments.
Volunteering in your country
We are always looking forward to voluntary involvement from abroad. If you want to donate some of your time, please feel free to:
- start a fundraiser at home.
- tell people about Nepal and the SBCH.
- distribute flyers
- create contacts between people in your home country and people at the SBCH.
- convince people of the benefits that come with sponsoring a child.
- suggest donating a part of the christmas present budget to a good cause instead.
- collect old shoes and jackets at home and send them over.
Your help is greatly appreciated and we'll sign you up as a life-long-member of the orphanage. That won't do anything, but you'll get a cool I.D.-tag and can be sure that you have done some good.
- start a fundraiser at home.
- tell people about Nepal and the SBCH.
- distribute flyers
- create contacts between people in your home country and people at the SBCH.
- convince people of the benefits that come with sponsoring a child.
- suggest donating a part of the christmas present budget to a good cause instead.
- collect old shoes and jackets at home and send them over.
Your help is greatly appreciated and we'll sign you up as a life-long-member of the orphanage. That won't do anything, but you'll get a cool I.D.-tag and can be sure that you have done some good.
