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Weekly 5: Places to channel your volunteer spirit
Do you like to help people and give back to the community but have yet to find anywhere? Many in Jakarta, bipeds or tripods (there are some three-legged dogs, too), need your help
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Do you like to help people and give back to the community but have yet to find anywhere? Many in Jakarta, bipeds or tripods (there are some three-legged dogs, too), need your help. The tasks are usually simple, from volunteering at orphanages to providing companionship to the elderly.
Orphanages
Several social institutions in the city take in orphans. One of them is the Sayap Ibu Foundation, which has been sheltering orphans, especially those born out of wedlock since 1955.
Orphanage head Carolina E. Dodds said that the orphans needed extra care because they had not received care or attention from their parents since the day they were born.
Volunteers' main duties are to take care of the infants and toddlers and to teach, as well as play, with the older orphans. Sayap Ibu is on Jl. Barito II No. 55, Kebayoran Baru in South Jakarta.
Other orphanages are open to volunteers too, like Lestari Sayang Anak on Jl. Terogong No. 10 B in Cilandak.
Health helpers
Spend some time with ill children. It could change their lives and yours for the better.
In Jakarta there are a number of foundations that focus on children with cancer, such as the Indonesian Childhood Cancer Foundation.
The foundation has permanent and temporary programs for volunteers. The permanent volunteers join the Family Support Group, which facilitate activities for the kids during their recovery. Meanwhile, temporary volunteers help out at events such as Cancer Camp.
The foundation is located on the 4th floor of Dharmais Hospital in Slipi, West Jakarta.
In addition, the Indonesian Planned Parenthood Association, which focuses on reproductive health, is seeking volunteers to warn people about sexually transmitted diseases, such as gonorrhea, herpes, syphilis and HIV/AIDS.
Volunteers inform the public about preventive measure.
Four, or three, legged friends
If you love animals, there are a lot of needy creatures in the city. There are also lots of ways you can volunteer to help care for animals. One of them is to join the Jakarta Animal Aid Network (JAAN).
Since it was founded in January 2008, JAAN has rescued a number of stray animals from the streets, as well as protected species from the illegal pet trade. JAAN has an ongoing need for donations as well as volunteers to help with fund raising, finding foster homes and coordinating donations for the animals.
Besides JAAN, there is also adopsianjing.com that needs volunteers to survey potential pet adopters, to provide transportation and assist animal rescue operations.
City cleaners
Do you want to play a part in making Jakarta a clean, happy city? If so, there are city cleaner communities such as Bersih Nyok (Let's clean up).
As a volunteer with Bersih Nyok your contribution will not be limited to trash collecting on the streets, but will also cover raising people awareness about the importance of living in a clean environment.
There are also other communities, such as Community Care for Ciliwung. This group focuses its activities on cleaning and properly disposing of trash from the Ciliwung River, which flows through Bogor and Depok in West Java.
Elderly care
In Jakarta there are also nonprofit organizations that focus on the less fortunate elderly population.
Pusaka 61, an organization under the Social Affairs Ministry, works to ensure that those who do not receive proper care due to limited finances can receive assistance. Besides collecting donations, the organization also sends volunteers to on home visits to keep them company.
Many expatriate associations in Jakarta also have social welfare programs which cater to the elderly, children and the underprivileged.
For more information contact the Australia and New Zealand Association (ANZA) of Indonesia (anzajakarta.net), American Women's Association (awajakarta.org) and the British Women's Association (bwajakarta.org).
