Romania Service Program

I leave tomorrow for Romania. There are 5 of us on this team - going to care for abandoned or disabled infants and toddlers at the Tutova Clinic. As a single mom myself, I can only stay for 1 week. Others on the team will stay for 2 or 3 weeks.

My travels will take me through Amsterdam to Bucharest. My Romanian colleague, Dan, will pick us up at the airport Saturday afternoon. Then we travel to Barlad, which I believe is a 4 to 5 hour drive. The actual service program begins with our evening meal on Saturday. I can't wait to see my other Romanian colleague, Mihaela, and meet the volunteers.

The Tutova Clinic cares for severely underweight babies who arrive shortly after birth to be nurtured back to health. The babies are generally scheduled to stay at the clinic for about a year, or until they can be reunited with their families. Unfortunately, in 25% of the cases, the parents never return.

Stay tuned for daily updates - that's the goal anyway!

Bonnie

Reflections from a Tutova Clinic Volunteer

Written by Sabrina Shaner

I worked in the Tutova failure-to-thrive clinic. I bonded with the children at the clinic quickly, by the second day many were greeting us with hugs upon arrival in the morning. It was very hard to leave them after 2 weeks and I continue to think of them often and try to figure out ways I can help from afar.

The children surprised me every day. They are resilient, happy, loving fighters that made me laugh, smile and cry every day.

This experience serves as a reminder that you should not sweat the small stuff. I hope this experience will help me to forgive and forget the small frustrations at work, in life, etc. The babies in Tutova reminded me that the important things in life – things worth worrying about and fighting for – are happiness, health, and love.

Finally, I completely agree with the statement that we were “waging peace through building understanding between cultures.” I believe that the more knowledge you have about another culture, it will help you understand them and thus makes you more tolerant of that culture. I wish more people were able to have the experience I did in Romania!!

Sabrina

New Photos from our First 2011 Volunteer Team!!

Please enjoy some of our most recent Romania photos, courtesy of Volunteer Coordinator and Romania volunteer Nancy Hinschberger. Thanks for sharing, Nancy!!
















Team Barlad, January 2011

"Spring into Service" in Romania!!

“Spring into Service” with Global Volunteers to receive a special limited discount offer for our March and April teams!

Four or more volunteers who apply by January 31 for any of these 28 teams in 16 countries will receive a discount of $200 off our standard service program fee, per volunteer, for one-, two- or three-week international programs or $100 off our standard service program fee, per volunteer, for USA programs. No other discounts apply.

Please encourage others to volunteer in our five fundamental project areas: education (especially promotion of girls education), labor and community infrastructure, health care, child care, and food and nutrition.

Call us at 800-487-1074 for details and we'll assist you every step of the way. Our worldwide host communities can’t wait to welcome you!!

Check out this link for more details & service program dates: http://globalvolunteer.org/special/springspecial.asp

Romania Service Program Dates, March & April Teams:
5-Mar-11 to 26-Mar-11
26-Mar-11 to 16-Apr-11
16-Apr-11 to 7-May-11