Wednesday 22 May 2019

It takes a village

Through the contact form on our blog, we recently received an email with the following question: “How do you organize yourselves so that the complex work of settlement and support can happen for multiple families without burning out your team of volunteers?”

It's an important question, and not an easy one to answer. Each of the three families that we have sponsored so far arrived after the first year of settlement of the previous family was over, so that made things easier. But having enough volunteers to carry out all the tasks needed is no easy feat, especially for the latest arrival, a single mum with four children, who needs a lot more support than the previous families.

Being a group made up entirely of volunteers can be a challenge. It means that people are not always available, and not always reliable. Everyone has busy lives outside the Ripple group – work and family obligations, holiday trips and so on. A number of people who joined the group four years ago have since dropped out, while others who are nominally members only sporadically chip in. Community sponsorship groups such as ours are vulnerable to this kind of fluctuation and unpredictability – unlike churches, for example, which can pull in volunteers from a wider congregation.

Newcomer and group members' kids mingle at an Easter party
We have learned a number of lessons of how to make it work, despite all the challenges.
  • For the latest settlement, we actively recruited new volunteers who have daytime availability (since many of the ‘old’ members have full-time jobs). All of them are absolutely amazing, always ready to step in when help is needed. We even found a wonderful volunteer ESL teacher who is teaching the mum at home, since she cannot attend formal classes due to a lack of access to childcare.
  • Being a volunteer in our group is ideal for people who want to be flexible and who have only a limited amount of time. Except for the English lessons, the need for support varies from week to week and people can volunteer whenever it fits into their schedule. 
  • Several of our new volunteers live close to the family’s home, which makes volunteering easier, especially if support is needed at short notice. 
  • Online tools are our friend when it comes to organizing ourselves – especially a shared google calendar and a messenger group where we post updates and ask for support, as well as google docs to share information. 
  • We have had the same chair and several key members since the beginning, which allows for continuity. 
  • Regular meetings with all volunteers, as well as regular message exchanges, help keep up a sense of community and being 'on the same page'.
  • Last but not least: We all agree that supporting this beautiful famil is extremely rewarding! We genuinely enjoy hanging out with them and probably get as much out of the experience as the family does. 





                                                                                                                         By Claudia Blume