Work In an Orphanage

Project At A Glance Location: Quetzaltenango/Xela Start Point: Guatemala City End Point: Guatemala City Duration: 2-12 Weeks Hours: 20-30 Hours per week Food: Local meals 3 times a day Room: Local host family Date: First and Third Monday of each month

Project Summary

Poverty, abuse and alcoholism have left many children in Guatemala without families, depriving them of the parental love and care they need. IFRE’s orphanage volunteer projects in Guatemala aim to change these children’s circumstances providing caring and nurturing volunteers to work and play with them. Manpower and resources to support these orphanages are scarce. Your assistance helps keep these children off the street and helps provide them with a happy and productive childhood. Volunteers in a Guatemalan orphanage, depending on individual skills and interests, may act as mentors and companions, helping children with their homework and teaching English, but your love and support are the most important elements for these disadvantaged children. Volunteers at orphanages provide care for the children, help them with their homework and organize workshops and playtime activities. You may work with other volunteers and/or teachers. Most orphanages receive either boys or girls, though there are a few that receive both girls and boys. The children – ages 5 to 16 years – value your care, attention and friendship.

In IFRE’s program, volunteers primarily help orphans with basic English skills and by organizing creative, extra-curricular activities such as game, singing, music, drawing, etc. This program is the perfect place for volunteers looking for opportunities to share their love, passion and skills with these very-unfortunate children. Many volunteers joining orphanage Guatemala program as life changing and rewarding. This is the perfect project if you want to serve humanity or share your love, passion and time with children deprived of their parents love and care.

Skills/Qualifications Needed

There are no specific qualifications needed to join IFRE's volunteer orphanage project in Guatemala. However, volunteers are expected to be flexible and patient, as well as possess a passion and love for orphans. While Spanish is preferred it is not required

Volunteer Responsibilities

IFRE volunteers in orphanage projects in Guatemala teach English (3-4 hours a day) either at the orphanage or the day school the children attend. Volunteers assist with day to day skills: dressing properly, personal hygiene and travelling to school safely. Volunteers may also organize games, art lessons, singing, dancing, as well as other creative, educational and extra-curricular activities for the children. This may include training groups in sports, teaching arts and crafts organizing inter-school football matches, playing music, as well as teaching subjects such as mathematics, world affairs, hygiene and nutrition. The possibilities are truly endless. Some participants will assist in the care of the children who cannot yet attend school as well as lend a hand through food distribution, kitchen work and garden maintenance.

Room/Food/Supervision

In Guatemala, all volunteers stay with well-screened host families. Our host families are socially respected and are well versed in the art of hosting international volunteers. Host families offer a safe home, private rooms (occasionally rooms will be shared with other same-gender volunteers) and shared bathroom facilities with running water and a “western” style toilet. Volunteers have the ability to do laundry at the house or the host family may offer to do it for you for a nominal extra fee. You receive three prepared meals per day. If you will be out of the house during lunch hour, you can request a lunch "to go" that you can take with you or eat out on your own. Host families provide typical meals that are traditional to Guatemala.

Throughout the volunteer project, our local staff stays in contact with volunteers either with face-to-face visits or via email/telephone. With longer placements, we visit our volunteers every two weeks (when possible) and volunteers are always welcome at the local office. If project placement is local, we request that volunteers stop by the office once a week to keep us posted on how they are doing with their home stay and project. If project placement is very far, then our local staff members maintain communication by either email and/or phone.