CRY Volunteering

freebirdnz

Hi there,

Has anyone had any experience with volunteering for CRY here in Bangalore? I would love to hear about your experience with them.

Thanks!

Shareen

brishti

nope.
but i hear they're very sorted out and organised.
they do great work.
aren't they the ones with the 'adopt' one child programme ?



:brishti

freebirdnz

Hi there, yes they could be. I am hoping to meet with them next week and get the ball rolling. All their email address on the site don't work and I think it's blocking my yahoo address thinking it is spam. This could be a big problem for them as a lot of people would be emailing from overseas. I tried to explain this to them over the phone but they didn't understand me. I am now waiting for them to call me back so I can go into the office and meet with them.

brishti

so much for being organised then
unfortunately, alot of organisations still do not realise the importance and efficiency of cyber space correspondence.
either this, or they get a whole lotta mail - most of which goes unanswered.
either way - it is something they must be made aware of.
when you do get to meet them - reiterate the importance of internet communications, to the top honcho there.

my suggestion would be - dont wait for them to call freebird, gawd knows how long you'll have to wait.
call them back after an 'appropriate' number of hours.
bangalore, i think, is one of the 'smaller' branches of CRY.

good luck - enjoy - and tell us about your experience with them

yup - here it is, adopt a project



:brishti

freebirdnz

Hey thanks for your advice Brishti. Yes even when I phoned they didn't understand English very well and I was told to call back, which I did 3 times and was then told the coordinator was on holiday! I tried to explain that they need to step up there communication but again they didn't really get what I was saying so this is why if I don't hear from them I will go into the office next week and explain this to them in person.

You are right and a lot of people from overseas seek out volunteer places before they get to India so if the site isn't working properly it's not a good start!

I will let you know how I get on. If you know of any other good places in Bangalore then please let me know. I am really looking at doing something different then going into the schools and teaching.

Thanks!

Shareen

brishti

freebird - just a suggestion...
you know, it is as important as any other ngo work - to have efficient and competent modes of communication in the organisation.
why dont you volunteer to coach / train / kicka$$ and clean up their act in communications in the CRY office itself ?
i am serious... it is obviously an area which most ngo's overlook.
just a thought


:brishti

freebirdnz

Hey wow that wouldn't be a bad idea you know! I could talk to them about it. As long as I could still do some hands on experience then it could work out well. Thanks for the suggestion! I am going to give this some serious thought! Bless you! :-) Oh and I am also a Web Designer so I could help sort out their website as it also needs work!

Take care,

Shareen