experiences in the USA, like travel journals, ethnographies, etc.
Thanks for sharing the perspective.
Caroline
On Nov 7, 4:19 am, toyin adepoju <toyin.adep...@googlemail.com> wrote:
> ---------- Forwarded message ----------
> From: Mama OSARO <osem...@yahoo.com>
> Date: 7 November 2010 05:41
> Subject: [edo-nationality] A Nigerian's Experience As Volunteer in The
> United States
> To: edo-national...@yahoogroups.com
> Cc: edo-nat...@yahoogroups.com, voicesofedowo...@yahoogroups.com
>
> A Nigerian's Experience As Volunteer in The United States
> Usman Sunday Trust magazine
> <http://www.sunday.dailytrust.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=se...>-
> Feature
> <http://www.sunday.dailytrust.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=ca...>
>
> On an international visit, a Nigerian journalist explores the
> institutionalized culture of volunteerism in the United States through the
> International Visitor Leadership Program.It is quite interesting that the
> United States President, Barack Obama, is a product of community service
> reform, which he now champions. Hear him: "I started my career more than two
> decades ago as a community organizer on the South Side of Chicago, working
> with churches to help neighbourhoods that had been devastated by plant
> closings. Block by block, we fought to create job-training programs, improve
> housing conditions and help people live their lives with some measure of
> dignity. And eventually, I realized that I wasn't just helping other people
> — through service, I also found a community that embraced me, a church to
> belong to and the direction I'd been seeking. Through service, I found that
> my own story fits into a larger American story." (Barack Obama: A Call to
> Service).
>
> As a result of that renewed commitment to public service, Obama pledged to
> make service a cause for his presidency through the "Serve America Act".
> From April 12 – 30, 2010, the US. State Department and the Meridian
> International Centre in Washington D.C., brought together up to 100
> non-governmental organizations' leaders, civic and community activists,
> government officials, educators and journalists from 93 countries, to
> examine volunteerism and community service in the United States. There can
> be no better avenue to achieve this objective than through the International
> Visitor Leadership Program tagged "Volunteerism: United We Stand."
>
> We arrived Washington D.C. just when the cherry blossom festival was about
> ending. During the city tour conducted by veteran, Philip Brown, the decor
> of the cherry trees were visible right from the Pantormic River; the
> fragrance was inviting. I noted with great interest that people in the
> capital city see it as an obligation to nurture and save the trees because
> they are invaluable assets to them. The history of the cheery trees was
> itself a symbol of community service and culture of giving.
>
> After series of meetings, interactive sessions, workshops, couple of
> hands-on volunteer activities and home hospitalities with American families
> across the United States, I realized that the culture of giving in the
> United States is an institutionalized phenomenon, from cradle to the grave.
> I came to the conclusion that the American people have an unbeatable charity
> record in the world. According to a survey, over 300 billion dollars was
> given away by Americans to charitable causes in 2009. These charities were
> not given away by wealthy people like Bill Gates or Winfrey Oprah or their
> likes; it was given, and is still being given, by the poor American people.
> Poor people in the U.S. give much higher percentage in terms of materials
> and labor to charity than the rich, precisely because they are close to the
> problem.
>
> The first thing I did when I stepped into my room at the Marriot Hotel in
> Washington DC was to turn on the TV, and I saw a program on the Lemonade
> Day, in which a nine- year old girl was shown making lemonade on the street.
> The day is specifically designed to introduce kids to entrepreneurship. The
> little girl was asked what she was going to do with the money from the sale
> of the lemonade. I was amazed by the kid's reply, "I will give some part of
> the money to my school and give the rest to my mum." Where did this kid get
> this idea from, I asked myself. The answer came to me later in the course of
> the program.
>
> The week-long Washington program was very tight, with the whole group
> simultaneously involved in workshops on volunteerism, NGO management,
> volunteer recruitment, etc. During a presentation on History and State of
> Service in the U.S., founder and CEO of the organization, "Be the Change",
> Mr Alan Khazei, presented a challenge to the group to work together on the
> idea of creating an international network that will spread the message of
> volunteerism globally, while supporting each other worldwide. This
> challenge was accepted, and a new global organization was established called
> the International Volunteer Service Network, with the logo VOLiNTEER; each
> participant an ambassador of his country.
>
> On the last day in Washington, the group participated in volunteer
> activities at different places according to city groups. My city group,
> Indianapolis Group (Blue Group) served at the Washington D.C. Cosmopolitan
> Community Church that promotes gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender
> equality. Together with students from George Washington University, we
> packaged the monthly grocery bags for distribution to seniors in the
> neighbourhoods.The church, known as We Are Family, is very well known for
> assisting seniors with questions on their medicare, organizing to protect
> their homes amidst upscale development and companionship in their homes. It
> was amazing, as I told a reporter from the Examiner newspaper in San
> Francisco during an interview, that was published, how such a group that
> could be termed as outcasts in my country, could engage in such a selfless
> service to the community. By the end of our stay in Washington D.C., we were
> equipped with tools and concepts on volunteerism and social
> entrepreneurship, as well as hands- on in practical volunteerism.
>
> The group of 25 to Indiana, Indianapolis, had first hand information on the
> culture and environment of the city before getting down to real business. We
> had the opportunity to observe and interact with volunteers engaged in the
> preservation of the rich cultural history of the Conner Prairie Interactive
> History Park.
>
> We were introduced to the living history of the museum that preserves the
> William Conner home, which is listed on the National Register of Historic
> Places that creates part of life in Indianapolis in the 19th century on the
> White River. My host during the home hospitality, the Johnsons, were a nice
> family. I was elated when I discovered that Mr. Patrick Johnson could speak
> a little Hausa. He was on volunteer mission to Zinder, Niger, and had just
> moved into Indiana six months back with his ever smiling wife and two cats
> bought from Dubai.
>
> The workshop at the International Centre of Indianapolis, University
> International Centre on Philanthropy, broadened my knowledge of service and
> social entrepreneurship acquired in Washington D.C. The discussion which
> involved managers of volunteer groups, university lecturers and students,
> centred on "Functional Approach to Volunteers' Motivations" and how
> volunteerism impact on the immediate environment. Every student of the
> university was expected to put on some specific hours of voluntary service
> as demanded by the school curriculum.
>
> Practical of the discussions were clearly visible when we visited selected
> volunteer centres such as Second Helpings, Keep Indianapolis Beautiful and
> many others, for updates and assessment of the workings of volunteer
> organizations in Indianapolis. The peak of these visits was the visit to Eli
> Lilly, a major pharmaceutical company in Indianapolis. We were introduced to
> practical concepts of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). President of
> the company, Mr. Robert Smith, spoke on Global CSR demonstrated by the
> company through its partners in areas such as education, health, high tech,
> etc and how it impacted positively on the society.
>
> We arrived Jackson, Mississippi, just when the metrological centre was
> issuing warning on the anticipated tornadoes. Heavens be thanked, the city
> program was less strenuous. For this city program, I was paired with Mr
> Arpan Shrestha, a journalist from Nepal under the guide of Mr. Ryan Moore.
> The Madison High School in Jackson was our first point of contact. As
> journalists, we had intense session with students of the communication
> department. The quality of page design of the newsletter and year book the
> students publish can be compared with some national dailies in Nigeria.
>
> At that lower class in the high school, the students are expert web page
> designers and managers. I watched with rapt attention when a multimedia
> teacher played to me a video advertisement produced by a pupil in the class.
> We were briefed on how service is introduced to the students through the
> school. These reporters/editors volunteer their time and expertise to
> produce the newsletter; there are also fee-paying students who sponsor its
> publication. One ways to get money for the production of the newsletter and
> year book was for the school authority to allow students wear pyjamas to
> school and pay certain fees for that.
>
> We also had the opportunity of meeting the Senator Frazier representing
> Jackson County and the Mayor at the Legislature in Jackson. Senator Frazier
> is one man in love with Africa; his office was full of African souvenirs. I
> was surprised to see souvenirs from Kano and Nasarawa state legislatures in
> Nigeria, signed by the states' respective speakers. Mr. Frazier told me he
> was in Nigeria during late Abacha regime, and even slept in Kaduna
> Government House. He also informed me he met with the governor of my state,
> Namadi Sambo, not long ago, now the Vice President of Nigeria. He introduced
> us to the workings of the legislature in Jackson.
>
> We also visited selected volunteer centres, and was finally assigned to
> participate in a volunteer activity at the thrift store of the Salvation
> Army in Jackson. The Salvation Army, according to classified report, was
> among the top 10 influential volunteer groups in the United States. It
> played significant role during hurricane Katrina and the subsequent
> tornadoes in some counties in Jackson, Mississippi. We hurried the program
> before the tornadoes. Evening of the same day, we went for home hospitality
> with the Ruben and Hattie family at 5150 Inn wood Drive.
>
> The whole group of participants regrouped in San Francisco on the final
> week. We were engaged in Interfaith Focus, a panel discussion on the power
> of faith-based service with representatives from Interfaith Center at the
> Presidio, Catholic Charities, the Jewish Vocational Service, the Islamic
> Networks Group, Glide Memorial United Methodist Church and the Congregation
> of Emanu-El. For the first time, I appreciated the power of social media
> networking in a technology session by representatives from Volunteer Match,
> The Extraordinaire, Facebook and Google. We were honored to be addressed by
> California's Secretary of Service and Volunteering, Hon. Karen Baker, at the
> end of a conference on Corporate Social Responsibility Conference sponsored
> by VISA Inc. with representatives from VISA, Oracle, IBM, PG&E, Intel,
> Institute for Social Entrepreneurs, Social Imprints, Room to Read, and
> Taproot Foundation. Highlights of the program in San Francisco was Reception
> with California First Lady, wife of the Governor of California, Hon. Maria
> Shriver, at Glide Memorial Church and another one reception at the City Hall
> with Mayor, Galvin Newsom. We took time off the tight schedule to cheer with
> the crowd in support of the Giants during a baseball game, courtesy of VISA.
>
> For the second time, I experienced working side by side with American
> Volunteer groups at the Crissy Field and the Presidio National Park
> sponsored by Oracle. I had interesting discussions on the state of
> volunteerism and American family life with a volunteer while plucking weeds
> in the field. The little time we had during the volunteer activity enabled
> me to discuss more with different people about their culture and ways of
> life than the presentations we had and people I talked with on the streets
> in San Francisco. The field was dead quiet and sometimes, you find yourself
> alone with a fellow volunteer. That allowed for one on one open discussions
> on issues that came to mind. I loved that.
>
> The last public event was a grand reception sponsored by the Institute of
> International Education (IIE), West Coast Center. It was a social event for
> networking, reflection and appreciation of events in the last three weeks.
> Karin Eisele, Executive Director, IIE West Coast Center, Katka Letzing,
> Director IVLP, West Coast Center and Alma Candelaria, Director IVLP at the
> State Department, addressed the participants. At the reception, participants
> presented the website of the global volunteer network volunteers (www.volinteer.net) with the assistance of the State Department and the
> Meridian Institute. The network, according to our resolution in the letter
> signed by all the participants to the office of the U.S. Secretary of State
> Hilary Clinton, is to serve as a forum or monitor for the participants'
> efforts in propagating volunteerism in their region in order to foster
> unity.
>
> My greatest challenge throughout the program, especially in San Francisco,
> was the cold weather. I agree with Mark Twain's comment on the sharp weather
> in San Francisco: "The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San
> Francisco." Despite all odds about the weather, the tight itinerary kept us
> warm, and "I left my heart with San Francisco." The three-week program
> broadened my horizon and world view.
>
> More specifically, it has introduced me to the culture of giving in the
> United States and the country's constitutional democracy. I came to the
> conclusion that the American people excel among its peers by this singular
> action- giving back to the community. This concept of service or
> volunteerism has been so institutionalized that it has become a way of life.
> This also has given power to the people and cultivates the spirit of
> nationalism in the citizens.
>
> Americans value service, no matter how little. According to estimates of the
> three-week program, the participants collectively performed 15 to 20 hours
> of volunteer service, up to 2,000 hours of volunteer service travel in over
> 50 cities across the United States. This I learnt, and hope to apply back
> home in whatever way I can.
>
> *Usman writes from Kaduna*
>
> Rosaline Etiti Okosun
> President/Founder - Association Against Women Export (AAWE)
> Website address:www.aawe.net
>
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