Help whenever you can!
If you are willing to dedicate a part of your time to us, you can help in our activities and support us in our initiatives!
You can contribute to us by volunteering yourself freely according to your availability and to our needs!
The main requirements for most of the activities are: love for others, desire to learn and share knowledge, team-work enthusiasm, passion for adventure and flexibility. Life is to share!!!
For further information or if you want to collaborate with us, please write to avemariapeter@yahoo.com
PROJECTS
Teaching English: Volunteers are needed to teach English to children. Learning English is considered as very important. English lessons are however not always of very high standard at the schools in Tamil Nadu, that’s why every help in teaching English is needed. You can teach English at Ave Maria Matric Higher Secondary School in Sathankulam where children from the age of 3 years to 17 years the school in Satankulam. The present strength of the school is 550. The strength is increasing steadily.
Teaching computer application: Computers have become more and more important in everyday life. A lot of people in Tamil Nadu do not know how to work with computers. Knowing how to use computers however, could make their lives much easier and their work more efficient. Students of Higher Secondary Classes have Computer science and Computer Application as their optional subjects. You will be of great help if you can teach computer science/application to Children in the orphanage and school.
Agricultural farm: AID INDIA owns 40 acres of land. AID INDIA has 6 open wells. AID INDIA’s aim is to support children and educational projects by generating income in the farm. The farm has been named as Ave Maria farm. The aim of the farm is to generate income to support our projects. Previously we cultivated bananas, cotton, rice and coconuts. Because of frequently failing rain we could not continue cultivation. We found water resource now. Two tube-wells were made. We have got plenty of water source in them. By doing basic works like removing bushes and fencing we can start farm projects once again. There are plenty of possibilities for the farm production. Goat farming, cow farming, poultry, verimiculture, sericulture, mushroom cultivation, nursery gardens and so on. To extend the farm we need volunteers with specific knowledge on farming. Volunteers can help AID INDIA to establish more activities on our farmland. Besides volunteers, we are also in need of machinery and tools to make the cultivation of the farm land more efficient and less costly.
Micro credit program: The Micro Credit Program is a large scheme that we have been implementing for over 20 years. Financial experts and fundraisers are needed for this program. Volunteer can visit the Self Help Groups (women and/or people with disabilities), see their income generating activities and learn more about Micro Credit Programs in practice. AID INDIA needs more seed capital to support the Self Help Groups. Volunteers can help us by writing project-proposals and by contacting various organizations or private donors to raise funds for this program. Volunteers can raise soft loans also so that the loans can be given to the beneficiaries. A small margin in interest can be reserved for supporting orphanages and schools.
People with disabilities: Volunteers can help by organizing disabled people into Self Help Groups and thereby giving Counseling, Guidance, Medical support, and Community Based Rehabilitation. The clients who were organized in SHGs could stand on their own legs. Many groups have become independent. We need volunteers to support the people with disabilities. We also want to establish a home for disabled children. Volunteers can help us to establish this!
Distance child adoption: In the distance child adoption program we find sponsors (adoption parents) for children in need. Volunteers can put their efforts in finding more adoption parents and updating the files of the children (letters and pictures to the adoption parents). If volunteers have suggestions to help us in a different ways on the distance child adoption program than the above mentioned, it will be a welcome to develop this program and reach more children in need.
YOUR STAY
Volunteers will be provided simple and clean accommodation during their stay. We will cook for you so you can enjoy the South Indian cuisine three times a day. AID INDIA does not charge money for the accommodation nor for the food. We expect however a small donation from you. This donation will support us in many ways. At present, the minimum donation we collect from a volunteer for a month (or for less than one month) is INR 15000 (This is about € 170 or $ 220). Volunteers/existing sponsors who opt for volunteering or staying in our project for a short period may consult in advance. In that case the donation may be fixed in consultation with them in a flexible manner.
If volunteers consider that their donation may help one of the projects of AID INDIA, volunteers are of course free to donate more.
As per the present government norms, volunteers could not stay in the orphanages. So, it is not possible to stay in Island of Hope. Volunteers can visit the home and stay with the children on week ends in the day time and make visit to Madruai city which is in 45 kms from Island of Hope. Other volunteers will stay in Satankulam where our head office is situated.
Guest House
We have a guest house in the town with good rooms. When volunteers come in a big group they can stay in the guest house. But volunteers in small number can stay in the school complex (in the major project site) where we have sufficient rooms with kitchen. It is very close to the town. We decide where you will stay in consultation with you, it also depends on the program/project where you will work on. Volunteers could get nice experience.
Volunteers can make small tours to visit places during week ends or on other days. You will enjoy e flexible situation.
HOW TO APPLY
There is no specific application format for applying. If you are interested in volunteering at our organization and make a lasting contribution, please write to the General Secretary through the following email address avemariapeter@yahoo.com
We will reply within one week. Volunteers are requested to give their bio-data mentioning their special interests and the area or projects they want to work in.