How to Volunteer? Perspectives
Background Information on the Following:
Julie Johnston Tom Wilmore
:: Julie Johnston
 “I started dreaming about a trip around the world when I was 12 years old. But when I finally had the chance to make this dream come true in 1994, something didn't feel right. I didn't want to be merely a tourist. I wanted to be more than just a traveller. I wanted to give something back, to contribute something, somehow, somewhere along my journey.
     The very day this realization dawned on me, the latest Seva Foundation (my favourite charity) newsletter arrived in the mail. An "ad" in a purple box caught my eye: "Curriculum Developer Needed." I knew this was the opportunity I'd been thinking about. As a teacher and education coordinator, I'd done lots of curriculum development. I called the number right away, had a long chat with Dr. Suzanne Gilbert -- and the rest has become a big part of my history.
     Five trips to India and several projects later,I feel a part of the Aravind Eye Hospitals extended family. During my first visit (two months of my round-the-world trip), I worked with American
volunteer, ophthalmic technician extraordinaire Susan Spinola (now a regular volunteer), and Aravind's nurses training coordinator, Sister Alees, to reconceptualize the ophthalmic assistants training curriculum. This collaboration led to the first JCAHPO accreditation granted outside of North America. Working with a new batch of nursing students was an absolute delight!
    
I also designed a training logbook for nursing students; developed and taught a compassion and human relations module; revamped the ophthalmic residents orientation seminar; designed a training manual for intraocular lens manufacturing; developed an orientation and training program for hospital housekeeping staff; and did a workshop on employee performance appraisal and developmental supervision for supervisory nursing staff. A number of these projects were carried on and completed by later volunteers in collaboration with Aravind staff.
     My longest project, kickstarting and editing the Quality Cataract Surgery Series (a series of seven instructional manuals on Aravind's best practices in high quality, large volume, financially sustainable cataract surgery in a developing nation context), gave me another four trips to India. I am currently helping to revamp the Outreach Manual -- from home this time. (The internet has made "virtual volunteering" possible.)
     I'm sure that every trip, what I received outweighed what I contributed. Between intercultural learning, making new friends in India and from around the world, the opportunity to use my professional skills in a completely new setting, wonderful hospitality, time enough to travel and see southern India, and the chance to witness an award-winning health care system grow and take shape, being a volunteer at Aravind was a gift from start to finish. We volunteers work hard -- it's not a lark! -- but it's a worthwhile experience that will touch your life for a long time.

TIPS:
  1. Dress appropriately, for the weather (cotton rules in hot climates), the culture (women, no legs or shoulders showing is most respectful), and the professional workplace (you might be sent back to the Guest House if you show up to "work" in shorts or jeans). Respect local customs.
  2. Don't choose India if you don't like Indian food. (Yes, it's happened ... volunteers arriving with several duffel bags filled with North American food. It's not only an insult to the hosts, it's also a barrier to intercultural experiences.)
  3. Take your malaria medications. Be safe rather than sorry.
  4. Don't be shy. Seek out opportunities to explore and learn as much as possible about Aravind and India. Come with an open mind and an open heart.”

:: Tom Wilmore – Austin, Texas, USA

      I was responsible for the original connecting of Aravind to the internet. When I arrived in Madurai in January, 1996, they were trying to get an automatic connection to the internet via a dial-up connection. The dial up connection was at 1200 baud, which was quite slow even at that time. Cable internet connections had been around for a few years in the US at that time, but South India was a bit behind that. Since it was behind, they had not seen the scripting that was used to automate dial-up connections. I had worked with scripting quite a bit at work and at home, and knew immediately how to make their connection to the internet work. Then they hit the real problem--the calls were over the old phone lines (probably left over from the time of the British) and had to be made to Chennai, a distance of about 400 km. The connections rarely lasted 5 minutes. When they were sending faxes internationally it cost them about US$3 a page, whether it was a successful send or not. When they were able to change to sending emails, this cost fell quickly and drastically.
      That was the only thing that was on my to-do list when I got to Madurai. After that, I tried to cooked some Mexican food (usually called Mad-Mex at the time!) and about anything else I could find to do that was fun. I fixed hydraulic door closers, copiers, anything, as long as I could find something to do.
      I also complained about the heat. I gave up what little Austin, Texas has to offer of a winter that year, but the summer in Austin sure seemed mild to me after 3 months in Madurai!
      What I learned there I still cherish, and use. I learned how to cook lots of Indian food, and about lots of new Indian food I was unaware of coming from the US. I love masala dosai, idli and sambar! I learned to be more patient. Things will happen, or they won't. Don't worry too much about it. Worry won't make it happen faster. And I learned quite a bit about a culture that is very different from my own. It was a lot of fun.