La Casa de Maytén: Volunteering / Voluntariado

Volunteering with La Casa de Mayten Voluntariado en La Casa De Maytén

Volunteers are the heart and soul of our project, and we are very grateful and proud of all the wonderful human beings who have come from all over Peru and more than 35 different countries to help us, sharing themselves, their abilities and their talents with people in our community. As part of a genuine fair exchange, we offer volunteers our modest house, food, and internet access, and a unique opportunity to get to know and be enriched by the special people we work with, in exchange for their tireless work and utmost dedication to the aims of the project while they are with us.

Los voluntarios son vitales en nuestro proyecto y estamos muy agradecidos y orgullosos de todas las personas maravillosas que han venido de todo el Perú y más de 35 paises a construir, cultivar y compartir sus habilidades, experiencias y talentos con nosotros y nuestra comunidad. Como parte de un intercambio justo, nosotros ofrecemos a los voluntarios: estadía en nuestra humilde casa, tres comidas al día, acceso limitado a internet y la oportunidad única de conocer a y ser enriquecidos por las extraordinarias personas con las que trabajamos. A cambio pedimos su trabajo arduo, creativo, flexible y dedicado a llenar las necesidades cambiantes y lograr los objetivos de nuestro proyecto durante su estadía.

We carefully recruit and select volunteers to fit the needs of the project at any given moment. While we believe that any well-intentioned person willing to work hard can develop a fruitful relationship with us and with the communities and people we work with, and while we always encourage people to dig within themselves and discover new ways of sharing themselves, we tend to seek volunteers who have already shown in their lives a commitment to working for the wholesome well-being of others, especially children and teens, and who know from experience the invaluable rewards one gets when giving selflessly and genuinely in often limited and less than ideal situations. .

Nosotros buscamos y seleccionamos a nuestros voluntarios muy cuidadosamente ya que despues de 10 años de arduo trabajo cultivando una relación sana, amorosa y respetuosa con nuestros chicos y la comunidad LCDM, sentimos la gran responsabilidad de invitar a personas que puedan ayudarnos a llenar las necesidades del proyecto a partir de sus experiencias con el voluntariado, capacidades y sueños, y que aporten al crecimiento y enriquecimiento de esta maravillosa relación que tenemos con nuestra comunidad de LCDM.

We need creative and socially committed people who are physically, mentally and emotionally able and prepared to work hard and handle the many challenges, unexpected situations, and difficulties one does face when working in neglected, historically poor and violent communities still recovering from a natural disaster. Having basic knowledge of the Spanish language is VITAL.

Nosotros necesitamos personas creativas, honestas, abiertas y socialmente comprometidas que esten física, mental y emocionalmente capacitadas y preparadas para hacer trabajo arduo en un espacio maravilloso pero muy limitado y para manejar diversos retos, situaciones inesperadas, y dificultades que uno encara cuando se esta trabajando en una comunidad historicamente olvidada, donde se dan diversos cuadros de violencia y donde aun se recuperan de un desastre natural. Hablar español es VITAL y necesario para nuestro proyecto!

We look for volunteers who embrace diversity, have open minds and hearts and an ever-growing perspective, want to work hard so that wholesome well being is a shared experienced for all and genuinely bring their academic/professional/life experiences, energy, passion, talents and resources to our community with the intention of sharing from an honest, courageous and conscious place whereby, the volunteer understands that the opportunity to BE and GROW with another human being or a group of people is an invaluable and infinite gift. We, certainly, welcome you with this understanding.

Nosotros buscamos voluntarios (as) que valoren la diversidad, tengan mente y corazones abiertos, una perspectiva creciente y expandible, que quieran trabajar para hacer del bienestar integral una experiencia vivida y compartida por todos y quienes traigan sus experiencias academicas, profesionales, personales, energía, pasiones, talentos y recursos a nuestra comunidad con la intención de compartir desde la honestidad, valentía, y la conciencia de saber que la oportunidad de SER y CRECER junto a otra persona o a un grupo de personas es un regalo infinito e invaluable. Nosotros, definitivamente te invitamos a nuestra casa, trabajo y comunidad, con este entendimiento

The number of volunteers we accept depends on our financial situation and the current needs of the project. We generally get many more volunteer inquiries than we have time to answer, so please understand if you have written to us and did not receive a response. Please note that our team is very small and we only respond to volunteers who match our criteria. To streamline the process of selecting volunteers, we have created a volunteer questionnaire (see below).

Please note the following:
LCDM cannot and will not pay for flights, bus tickets, or any travel expenses. We do not accept volunteers for periods longer than 2 months. We will not respond to your inquiry if you do not read all sections on this page and complete our inquiry questions.

POR FAVOR, TENGAN EN CUENTA QUE NOSOTROS NO PODEMOS PAGAR sus vuelos, pasajes de bus, o cualquier gasto relacionado a su viaje. No aceptamos voluntarios por más de 2 meses y no responderemos a ningun email o mensaje sobre voluntariado a menos que hayan leido toda la información en esta pagina y hayan respondido a todas nuestras preguntas en el cuestionario listado abajo.

Some of the things volunteers can do at La Casa de Mayten include: conduct workshops for kids, teenagers or adults; organize fund-raising circles of support and activities; participate in exchange programs as mentors/chaperones; work with local entities to organize educational and integral health campaigns; give free medical/dental/psychological attention or consultation; organize cultural/recreational activities/events; help create a custom-made LCDM social network; monitor, maintain, and update our blog and social media accounts; help create print or multimedia pieces; promote our project and recruit volunteers; help attract potential financial supporters; help design and build homes or our community center; share all house-keeping responsibilities, etc. We are generally open to proposals from experienced volunteers who can bring a special program, skill, or initiative to work on with our community.

Anyone wishing to volunteer will need to be ready and willing to do physically demanding work, endure long working days with kids, and live in less than ideal conditions (sometimes no-water days, temporary black outs, dusty environment, no air conditioning).

La Casa de Mayten offers FREE ROOM and BOARD and INTERNET SERVICE. We usually have hot showers, but not always. Our house is modest which means very few electrical appliances, no sofas, no tv, no sheets, no dish washer, no washer or dryer, no oven, basic kitchen.

Chincha is three hours to the south of Lima, Peru´s capital. Transportation from Lima to Chincha is easy, inexpensive and safe, and buses leave every 15 minutes 24 hours a day. Chincha is minutes away from beaches still free from tourism and over-development and surrounded by vineyards. We are also close to the mind-blowing Nazca lines, Huacachina Oasis, Paracas National Reserve, and Lunahuana. Chincha has a lively central market full of delicious fresh produce and friendly people. Local transportation is very cheap and restaurants serve generous portions of delicious food for as little as $2-3. It can get very hot here in the summer and only mildly cold in the winter, and the climate is very dry all year round.

Chincha is very new to tourism, so in comparison to tourist hotspots it might seem very dull. It is very dusty here, and the tapwater is not safe to drink. Medical services are inexpensive by most standards but often mediocre in quality. Petty thieves are rampant, and violent crime is on the rise in our neighborhood and in many others, making some areas unsafe to walk around by yourself, even during the day.

While La Casa De Mayten does not charge volunteers anything, we do ask that you consider making a donation to the project in the form of money, food, needed equipment, medicines, personal hygiene items, or much needed supplies for workshops. Can you donate/bring any of the needed items listed below?

Workshop Materials: pencils, crayons, notebooks, colored pencils, water colors, body paint, tons of glue, scissors, macramé, recreational games, glitter, carpentry-related tools, lots of markers, highlighters, soccer/volley/foot balls, blank paper, construction paper, bookbags for kids, age-appropriate music CDs, books in Spanish or bilingual dictionaries (your native language and Spanish)

Equipment: laptops, digital cameras (old ones are fine), digital camcorders, voltage transformer, microphones, SD memory cards, external hard drive, headphones/headset, DVD player, projector screen, battery charger + rechargeable batteries, flash lights, work gloves, dust masks.

Personal Hygiene Items: individual shampoo and conditioner, soaps, tooth brushes, toothpaste, combs, individual towels, anti-bacterial sheets, sun block 45+spf, insect repellent

Medicines: all first aid items, cough medicine, pain and fever-reducing medicine, minor stomach conditions medicine

Appliances to help make volunteer life more comfortable at La Casa De Mayten:

Coffee maker, juice maker, baking items, bed sheets, electric fans.

Because shipping things to Chincha can be unreliable, we sometimes ask volunteers who are coming from other countries to personally bring us something that has been offered as a donation. So please ask about anything you might be able to bring before coming.

VOLUNTEER QUESTIONNAIRE

If you are interested in volunteering with La Casa de Mayten, please answer the following questions in an email to lacasademayten@gmail.com. If you don't complete and send this questionnaire, you will NOT be considered.

What do you value? Tell us a bit about yourself and how did you learn about LCDM?
What is your educational and professional background?
Describe your Spanish-language experience and ability. What other languages do you speak?
Describe any experience you have volunteering, working with children, or doing any other kind of social community work.
What special or hidden talents/skills/abilities do you have that you think might come in handy when working with us in Chincha? (e.g. cooking, break-dancing, etc)
Why do you want to volunteer with La Casa de Mayten, and what do you want to get out of the experience?
Please read our vision, mission, values and objectives pages and briefly explain how you think your set of skills, talents, and passions fits in with who we are and what we want to do.
When would you be able to come to Chincha and how long can you volunteer for?
Is there anything that can potentially limit, affect or impede your work as a volunteer in our community that we should know about?

CUESTIONARIO PARA VOLUNTARIOS.
Si estas interesado (a) en hacer voluntariado con La Casa de Mayten, por favor, constesta las siguientes preguntas en un correo a lacasademayten@gmail.com. Si no envias este cuestionario completo no serás considerado (a).

¿Qué valoras? Cuentanos un poco sobre tí y cómo escuchaste sobre LCDM?
¿Cuál es tu historial educativo, profesional, academico?
Describe tu capacidad y nivel linguistico en español. ¿Qué otros idiomas hablas?
Describe las experiencias que haz tenido haciendo voluntariado, trabajando con niños y jovenes, o haciendo cualquier otro trabajo comunitario.
¿Qué talentos, habilidades especiales o escondidos tienes que crees puedan ser útiles cuando estes trabajando con nosotros? (Ex: cocinar, break-dance, malabares, artes marciales, tocar un instrumento, acrobacia, etc)
¿Porqué quieres hacer voluntariado con La Casa de Mayten, y que esperas obtener de esta experiencia?
Por favor lee nuestra visión, misión, valores y objetivos y brevemente describe cómo tus habilidades, experiencias, sueños y talentos encajan con quienes somos y lo que esperamos hacer y lograr.
¿Cuándo estarías disponible para hacer voluntariado y por cuánto tiempo?
¿Existe algún dato o factor que pueda limitar, afectar o impedir tu trabajo como voluntari(a)? ¿Existe algo que nosotros debemos saber sobre tí o tus antecedentes?

Please note the following:

LCDM cannot and will not pay for flights, bus tickets, or any travel expenses. We do not accept volunteers for periods longer than 2 months. We will not respond to your inquiry if you do not read all sections on this page and complete our inquiry questions.

Please also keep in mind that La Casa de Mayten constantly works with children and teenagers and it is very important for the work we have been doing with them for over 9 years that everything we do contributes positively to their integral growth and health, and to the experience we all have here. For this reason, expect some house agreements (rules).

We are very grateful to our past volunteers from all over the world and Peru for working tirelessly shoulder to shoulder to help us bring more opportunities and health to our community in Chincha. We are very proud of our friendship and thankful for the financial and moral support we get from several of them and for the many who return to work with us. Thank you guys!

Thank YOU for carefully reviewing this page and reaching out to us. We are working to build a diverse community of people who are enriched by the experience of connecting with each other meaningfully through hard work and commitment to collective well being and integral health.