OPEN CALL: ELIXMTV-3 - KEPEP center–working with disabled kids, July 2010 to February 2011
DESCRIPTION
General INFO on MTV vacancy:
Hosting center: KEPEP Lehainon
Starting: Mid June 2010
Period: minimum 1 month, max 8 months
Location: Lehaina- Ileia perfecture, PELOPONESE region
Just 20’ by bike form the beach
Post: volunteer -activities with disabled kids and assisting the staff
WHO WE ARE
COORDINATING Organization:
ELIX
ELIX, Conservation Volunteers Greece, is a non-governmental not-for-profit organization promoting voluntary service and education, since 1987. It is based in Athens. The main value of ELIX is the personal development of individuals as citizens of the world, through active participation in projects for the common good. ELIX organizes international voluntary projects for the protection of the environment, conservation of the cultural heritage projects, as well as social service projects. At the moment in the office consists of 4 member staff (Elena-Project Manager, Mina- Volunteers Coordinator, Dora- communication Responsible and Georgia- financial Responsible )
HOSTING ORGANIZATION:
KEPEP Lehainon
KEPEP Child Care Center was established in 1987. The personnel are consisted by 85 persons and 8 volunteers. Currently, the Center hosts 83 children with various serious disabilities - mental and physical. We use to call them kids although their age goes from 6 to 28 but they always act and look like kids. Some of the hosted mentally handicapped children are also physically handicapped. Forty of them are able to move but the rest are incapable of moving and are obliged to stay in bed. Some of the therapies and activities offered in KEPEP are physiotherapy, logotherapy, ergotherapy, psychoanalysis, gardening, and excursions. A programme aiming to improve the abilities, condition and caring of the children, is ran daily in the centre. What is missing is an active group of volunteers that could help the staff and run alternative activities for the childrens' free time. What the children need is a physical contact, a hug, a smile, songs from the people around and love.
POST DESCRIPTION
Tasks
Volunteers will be involved in the following activities:
1) Provide company and support to the kids hosted in the centre,
2) Assist the professional staff during meals, visits to the doctors and hospitals whenever needed etc
3) Take the children out for a walk, with or without a wheelchair
4) Organize the childrens' free time activities
You will have two parts in your job, the first part we call it “program”. This means that you start at 8h20 in the morning you bring kids to their therapy and bring them back.
The second part is that you start at 10h20 in the morning and take kids into the playroom and do activities with them. You will eat lunch in the centre around 13h then you will have free time until 6 when you go back to the centre and work until 8h in the evening.
The holidays are 2 days per month plus the national or religious holidays (25/03, 2/04, 5/04, 01/05, 24/05, 15/08, 28/10, 24&25/12, 31/12, 01/01, 06/01)
Accommodation: The volunteers will be lodged in small prefabricated houses in KEPEP groundyard with other volunteers (EVS). They will be given a bicycle to circulate. It takes 5’minutes to go from the center by bike and 20’ to the closest beach(Kilini).
Food: 2 meals are provided inside the center every day for the volunteers
el_gr Courses are also provided once per week
Insurance will not be provided by ELIX. Volunteers from the EU are advised to bring their own (EHIC card for Europeans).
Travel Expenses: ELIX cannot afford the MTV’s travel expenses. Bicycles will be provided to the volunteers to move from KEPEP to the town or to the beach.
NOTE: NO EXTRA FEE required, NO POCKET MONEY given
Applicant requirements:
It is important for the volunteers to know that they will work together with the staff of a public service such as KEPEP that copes with many shortages of human and other resources. They will also work with at least two other international EVS volunteers.
There is a major difference between staff and volunteers, as no responsibility will be put on volunteers. They will be assisting the staff in different units of KEPEP and that’s why they have to be cooperative.
It is important that the volunteers be aware of the fact that they will live in a small community and will work with seriously handicapped and mental disabled people. Volunteers should be patient and resistant to psychological stress and ready to help with smile, love and creative proposals to help these kids. An internet/telephone talk will take place before their arrival in Greece.
A very important and involable rule is that the volunteers are not under any kind of drugs addiction, since KEPEP is a medical centre where somebody may have contact with them. Of course all these drugs are highly protected by the stuff but we do not wish to be in this kind of trouble in any way.
The project is very hard and of much importance. It is one of those projects that constitute a life experience . Previous experience with disabled persons will be appreciated but it is not obligatory
However it is definitely needed high motivation to meet such a sensible and hard world and contribute to the real joy for those kids.
Any interested volunteers should send the enclosed application form along with a short resume to their sending organisation (the organisation who sent you this information). Please do not apply directly to ELIX
The closing date for applications is 30th of June 2010
Sending organisations should send applications and resumes to:
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
ELIX- Conservation Volunteers Greece
