ISV Impact Volunteers - Round-up Group 6 (Final Group)

It's been a long time coming but check out the images of our final group of impact volunteers of the Winter Season 2012! This group helped with a really vital project long over due in Chintsa. Chintsa had no "official" crèche or crèche building although loving local lady Bantu takes in small children and cares for them while their parents and carers were at work. Our final group of volunteers helped to make Bantu's dream come true and built her a safe place to care for a play with the youngest children of Chintsa.

Check out our slideshow of pictures below:

Part 2: Volunteers Charlotte & Laura - the end of the adventure!

Here's the second part of Charlotte's awesome vlog documenting her return here to volunteer on the Wild Coast Schools Program with friend Laura...

Part ii.

So, time in Chintsa isn’t the same as time as anywhere else. Where has two weeks gone? Frankly I have no idea.

Kids walking into school in the morning

Chintsa East school is brimming with enthusiastic kids, who pop up at the start of school asking “Grade 2 computers?” and when the answer is yes, you get a sunny and excited smile. After finishing building mind maps using Microsoft Word we mixed things up a bit and studied landfill sites! Grades 6 and 7 started to make their own Powerpoint presentations on the topic. Volunteer Steffi and I have learnt the important lesson of strategic seating in the classroom and behaviour noting!

The Other Half; Reflections on an Extraordinary Volunteer Experience in South Africa

When Andrew arrived in Chintsa in 2011 to volunteer with a group of ten other International Student Volunteers (ISV) I'm not sure he was quite prepared for the extraordinary experience that he was about to embark upon. Since his time with VA32 in South Africa, Andrew has put energy into reflecting on what he learnt about himself in relation to the Chintsa community and his home community and we are lucky enough to have been included in those reflections and thoughts.

Andrews blog "An Extraordinary ISV Experience in South Africa" has been published on the ISV website:

An Extraordinary ISV Experience in South Africa 

"Four barren walls sit roofless above a decrepit foundation. In a small village on the Wild Coast of South Africa, this hollow structure echoes of failed government policy and the lingering effects of apartheid. Its initial intentions stood for a noble cause: to bring an additional classroom to an over-populated school. Yet, its realization was halted due to dried up government funds. Instead, it sat vacant for years, occasionally harboring valueless items from local villagers in need of storage..."

Guest Vlog Part 1: Volunteers Charlotte & Laura hit Chintsa to volunteer with VA32

       

A lovely guest vlog by returning volunteer Charlotte who first volunteered in 2007 and returned to Chintsa for a month this Aug/Sept with her friend Laura...

Part i. 

Stunning view from the Buccaneers road

Five hours of bumpy road later, after Port Elizabeth we reach the paradise that is Chintsa. With a sunny day to greet us it was great to hop into VA32’s Quantum. We meet Naomi the volunteer co-ordinator and pop to the office for a spot of volunteer orientation from the bubbly Karen. Meeting familiar faces along the way (one of VA32’S founders Mike and tour guide Denver were both around). I became tour guide for Laura and we explored Chintsa, ending with a drink at Buccaneers Backpackers looking over the sea.

ISV Impact Volunteers - Round up Group 5! (Plus Chintsa's very own SCARED)

The last two ISV teams may have left Chintsa a few weeks ago but neither they nor the hard work that they put in here in Chintsa have been forgotten! This awesome team totally brightened up Chintsa with their musical ways and fun "Scare" tactics (Milton & Denver will never be the same again!) as well as putting in some much needed hard work uplifting the Bulugha School Creche. Check out our slideshow below of their time in Chintsa...

If you cannot view this slideshow properly click here to visit the set on Flickr.

A Note from Past Volunteer Claire & a VERY Successful Fundraising Event!

A note from past volunteer Claire who joined the Wild Coast Schools volunteer program in 2010 for 4 weeks and recently organised a big fundraising concert in France, to support the VA32 volunteer programs which receive no government support:

Hi everybody!

I'm so, so glad the donation will help and I am absolutely thrilled I could keep on supporting Chintsa. I've fallen in love with the place, the kids, you guys and the amazing work you're doing every day to improve everyone's standard of living.

Volunteering in the Big Green E Machine!

Inside the Big Green eMachine

This week has been an exciting week for the Big Green E Machine. We are now running off solar power! In addition, the Big Green E Machine is up and running with educational computer games. This week we are working with the younger learners at both Chintsa East School and Bulugha Farm School, focusing on letter recognition.  The learners absolutely LOVE going for lessons in the Big Green. One of our volunteer groups contributed headphones so the kids can even learn with sound. The kids were so thrilled when they put their headphones on...you should've seen their faces! All of them came out of the Big Green with huge smiles.

The new solar panels which now power the Big Green!

Nici teaching in the lab

Our learners hard at work :)

Naomi