Experience in Kolkata, 2008
Initial Plans
Michael and Me
Plans to volunteer in Kolkata fell together like pieces in a puzzle. My friend Michael was headed there the summer after our freshman year of college through the University of Notre Dame's International Summer Service Learning Program (ISSLP). Michael and Tara, the other student going, went for two months to volunteer with the Missionaries of Charity in Kolkata. Going to India to volunteer started off as a joke between Michael and me, laughing it off like it was an impossible endeavor. However, the more it was mentioned to my parents, the more they were all for it! After awhile, it started to become more of a reality. My parents encouraged the idea and we started to formulate my summer plan. Since I was not applying through a program to receive funding, I wrote a letter to family and friends asking if they would be willing to contribute money to help cover expenses. Through the infinite generosity of countless people, enough money was raised to cover the cost of my trip.
Lodgings and Activities
Michael and Tara arrived in India in the beginning of summer, while I flew over in June, to stay for exactly one month. For the first few days of my journey, I stayed with family friends in New Delhi to hopefully adjust to the time difference and heat (that sure never happened!). From there, I flew to Kolkata where Michael met me at the airport. I stayed on the roof at the Bely Guest House with Michael, Tara, and a few other girls volunteering with the Missionaries of Charity. We were in two rooms on the roof, right across from the Motherhouse where all the sisters live! Some mornings I would sit outside journaling and look up to see sisters doing their laundry across the alley.
In order to volunteer with the Missionaries of Charity, you simply need to attend an orientation session informing you on the different places you can volunteer. I initially wanted to volunteer at Shishu Bavan, the orphanage, but in the end decided to spend my time volunteering at Kalighat, the Home for the Dying.
In order to volunteer with the Missionaries of Charity, you simply need to attend an orientation session informing you on the different places you can volunteer. I initially wanted to volunteer at Shishu Bavan, the orphanage, but in the end decided to spend my time volunteering at Kalighat, the Home for the Dying.
Tasks at Kalighat
Preparing lunch
- Wash breakfast and lunch dishes
- Do laundry for all the patients
- Distribute medication
- Hand out lunch
- For those with medical background, clean wounds
- Address any needs patients may have
- Spend time just sitting with the patients
- Massage and apply lotion to any areas that may be particularly sore or dry
- Help with physical therapy for some patients -- help them walk around, sit up, stretch muscles