The Omprakash Foundation

Thank you for contacting us. We appreciate your interest in our cause and volunteer work as well as your patience for our reply. Let me introduce our organization to you.

We are L.I.F.E. Luchemos para una Infancia Feliz y con Esperanza, a non profit, family run organization working in socially impoverished neighborhoods, mainly in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Our objective is to raise the children’s standard of living and their environment, giving them new opportunities that will allow them to develop better.

We don’t have rented staff; everyone works as a volunteer without a salary including the permanent staff of about 6 people who also work and study aside from volunteering and running L.I.F.E. Lili, my mother, is the founder and director.

We have a high rotation of volunteers since most are foreigners who are studying, traveling or doing an internship and stay for 2 months approx, sometimes a few weeks or even several months. You decide for how long you want to volunteer according to your availability and the duration of your stay.

Housing: We have rooms for rent, currently between U$S 400 and U$S 450 to offer our volunteers in the nicest and safest neighborhoods in town. These funds contribute to LIFE projects!!

Language skills: you don’t need to speak perfect Spanish in order to volunteer with us. There are usually other volunteers who can help you communicate even if your Spanish is basic.

Our different programs cover the following areas: Literacy, Recreation, Sports, Health and Hygiene, Nutrition, Primary Medical Assistance, HIV/AIDS and other STI’s prevention Civic and Social Rights, Human Rights, Women and Children’s Rights, Responsible Family Planning, Accident Prevention, Micro Commercial Initiatives, Humanitarian Assistance, Counselling and Advice as well as Vocational Orientation.

Most volunteer activities take place Monday through Saturday in the afternoon and twice a week during the morning. Volunteers work in community centers/soup kitchens and hospitals in socially excluded areas of Buenos Aires City and the surrounding suburbs.

The office is an administrative site where all volunteers meet and collectively travel to volunteer sites. For afternoon activities meeting time is at 3:00 p.m. aprox. and return usually before 8.

Weekly Activities currently taking place:

• Juegoteca: This playroom is a recreational environment designed to foster creativity and help children discover their own identities and resist the negative forces they might encounter in their daily environment through a positive alternative that helps elevate self confidence and self esteem through healthy, responsible recreation. Juegoteca takes place twice a week in different locations and has four components: outdoor games, board/table games, handicrafts, and story reading. Volunteers are also encouraged to bring in their own skills and develop activities (teaching singing, origami, theatre games, etc).
• Birthday parties: We celebrate all the birthdays of the month at each community center on a different week. LIFE created this program to give happiness and entertainment to disadvantaged children. We carry out this event in different community centers and soup kitchens for kids. Volunteer work consists of putting up decorations with balloons and party ornaments, entertainment with clowns, music, games and dancing, a snack, birthday cake with candles for all (as well as previous preparation), birthday presents and photo souvenirs, often the only photo they will have of themselves.
• School support. The objective of this program is to help the children review what they learned in school, or to newly learn what perhaps they should have learned in school. There are often 40-45 students per teacher in their schools and the teachers are underpaid and often without patience necessary to teach so many children. The children that live in these neighborhoods are often undernourished and as a result have a shorter attention span and find learning and retention more difficult. Volunteers will look to see if students can read and do math appropriately for their age. They will also do what they can to encourage kids to keep coming to school support. Throughout the year, different numbers of kids will come: when it’s exam time more kids come and when there weather isn’t nice, there will be less.
• English classes: The main goal here is not that the students leave speaking fluent English. If they learn even some English, that is super. But again, this is a program to provide them with a safe space where learning is encouraged and where they are getting attention and support and positive reinforcement is given. Don´t worry if you don’t know how to teach English. If you have your own lesson plans or want to develop them, great. But if not, you can work with another volunteer who has more experience.
• Fundraising. This takes place on Saturday and Sunday in the morning/early afternoon at a park highly visited by tourists where we invite people to make a donation and learn more about how to contribute to LIFE.

Important Points:

1. Weekly Volunteer Schedule: During the weekend volunteers will receive a newsletter listing the activities for the following week. They will need to sign up by e-mail confirming which activities they will be participating in during the upcoming week. When you leave BA, we remove you from the weekly mailing list upon request. There is a general mailing list though for general information and updates on LIFE if you’re still interested, if not just let us know.
2. Transportation fees. We travel by cab to most of the programs for security and time reasons. LIFE cannot afford to pay for the transportation of volunteers so we ask that each volunteer contribute to a taxi-fund. (If you come with a program that organizes work with LIFE, this is likely included in the fee you already paid them) Volunteers only pay for transportation to activities that they sign but for but to make things easier in the office, we charge the cab fare weekly and in advance. We require a $50 pesos weekly deposit in advance that must be renewed week by week. The sum of each cab fare will be discounted from the $50 pesos deposit. We need previous night notice to cancel attendance, or before 10 a.m. the same day!! Otherwise, the cab fare will still be discounted from your deposit because we book the vehicles in advance according to your confirmation. LIFE cannot afford to pay for attendance canceled at the last moment when the cabs or van have already been ordered. When you finish volunteering with us we will return whatever money you did not use. Note: In the weekly volunteer newsletter taxi costs to volunteer sites will be listed. It will also note if it is round trip or one-way. If it is one-way then the volunteer will need to bring change for the bus or rail, as it is not included in the price listed in the newsletter.
3. Weekly Activity Coordinators: To give each program more consistency, we always request volunteers who will be staying for several months to assume responsibility as a coordinator by being present every time the activity takes place. They will be familiar with the details of the program and will orient new volunteers as to what must be done, when, where and how, as well as keep records and report progress and needs to LIFE.
4. Internships: There are also longer term positions available that imply a different level of commitment and responsibilities within our organization for administration, finances, research, development, projects, etc.

Monthly Activities:

§ 1st Tuesday of the month there is a reunion of volunteers to give everyone a chance to meet one another, learn about what is happening with all of LIFE’s projects, and to provide a space to solicit volunteer suggestions for program improvement.

§ Once a month we do a humanitarian brigade to an Indigenous Guarani community in the province of Misiones which is 1.500 kms away from Buenos Aires. There are 80 families (around 500 people) in the indigenous village that we visit. We bring food, clothing and other needed items. We do recreational activities, hygiene projects (clip nails, check for lice), HIV and other STD prevention activities, collect trash, cook food, etc. The cost is U$S 300 and covers transportation, lodging, food and contributes to buying the needed supplies. Volunteers have the option of visiting the Iguazu Falls at the end of the brigade.

Volunteer rules of conduct:

§ All volunteers need to sign the LIFE code of conduct in which you will find a more detailed description of what LIFE expects of volunteers. You will also need to fill out the volunteer questionnaire with your personal information.

§ Among other things, volunteers are here to serve as positive role models for the children. Often in these communities there is a lack of positive adult role models and so we would like volunteers to provide an example for the children. We ask that volunteers do not smoke when visible to the children, that they do not curse, and that overall, they act in a positive, respectful manner—while still having fun!

§ We ask that volunteers phrase things positively instead of negatively. For example, if someone is doing something they should not be doing, don’t tell them not to do it, but rather suggest more positive things they could be doing instead. Similarly, say things generally instead of directly aimed at an individual. An example would be, instead of saying “Roberto, stop breaking toys” we could say to the whole group “lets treat the toys nicely.” As a volunteer, your main role is not to reprimand the children.

§ Do not ask about parents. 50% of the kids do not live with their father and 20% do not live their mother. If you need to, ask which adults they live with.

§ Do not ask about school. Some kids do not go to school because their parents do not send them and might feel uncomfortable or embarrassed if asked and will lie or pretend to be a student.

§ Do not promise anything! Not to kids, parents, adults who come to pick up kids, soup kitchen workers or anyone. Lots of times volunteers see kids without shoes or diapers and are very motivated to help and make promises to bring things, and then do not and then LIFE has to keep these promises and it often ends up costing a lot of money. Also, if we give something to someone, everyone is going to ask that we give them the same thing. Please do not give your email or phone number either because people will not hesitate to call and e-mail asking you for things. If you have a donation and would like to help a child, family, center or project please direct it through LIFE. Contributions and fundraising initiatives welcome!

Photos and Filming:

§ It’s ok to take pictures, please ask program coordinator when it’s appropiate and respect children or parents who don’t want them taken.

§ Please share the photos you take with us so that we can use them to show our supporters the work being done!

§ For filming: please request LIFE authorization in advance, explain purpose and provide copy for LIFE.

Safety Measures:

§ we travel altogether by cab to the different places

§ a coordinator who has been to the activity before and knows the place will go with the group

§ do not carry values

§ dress simple

§ keep low profile

§ stay with group

§ don’t wander or explore on your own

§ wear LIFE t-shirt

Other important information:

• Volunteers need to buy and wear a LIFE t-shirt. The cost is 15 argentine pesos. (if you come with a program that organizes work with LIFE, this is likely included in the fee you already paid them) Wearing a t-shirt will identify you are a volunteer, as opposed to a lost tourist, journalist, social assistant, etc. This is a safety measure. Another reason is that when photos are taken it is important that volunteers are seen as such to show what we are doing.
• Feedback: Please provide us details on progress, problems, inconveniences, situations, ideas, suggestions, comments, opinions, misunderstandings, inquiries.

• We promote and encourage: personal initiatives, contributions in all areas and fields, development, organization, fundraising, campaigns, follow-up.

• Your work and time enables us to provide and teach:

§ opportunities, possibilities and resources to keep the children off the street

§ academic instruction and formation

§ entertainment

§ attention

§ affection

§ dedication

§ good habits

§ improvement in different areas

§ manners

§ vocabulary

§ culture

§ wear LIFE t-shirt

• We provide certificates for all our volunteers at the end of their stay. Please request yours before leaving Argentina.

If you have not yet arrived and would like to start helping us from where you are now, it would be very useful if you could collect clothes, shoes, etc. (for children and/or grown-ups too) to bring along with you. Another idea whether you are here or not, is to invite friends, family, colleagues, community, acquaintances, etc. to make a contribution to help fund LIFE projects. Donations are welcome in cash, cheques, bank transfers, online, offline, credit/debit card etc. We can provide details upon request. Small donors, such as former volunteers back at home now, are our main funding and support source.

Please let us know if you have further questions and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible. If you are already in Buenos Aires you’re welcome to get started right away. All you need to do is request to be put on the weekly mailing list, arrange to have an orientation meeting and confirm your attendance to our activities by e-mail. Thanks again and welcome to LIFE. God bless and keep you.

Looking forward to your soonest reply.

All the best from BA, LIFE Staff

L.I.F.E. Argentina www-lifeargentina.org

Peña 2121 C1116ABB - Ciudad de Buenos Aires

Of. +54-11-4806-0640

Cel. +54-911-6359-2330 / Cel. local 156 359 2330