Cavan teacher to volunteer in Jamaica

Fionnuala Flynn is a 20-year-old teacher from Cavan town, currently working in Coolock in Dublin. Later this summer, She's heading off to Jamaica as part of a volunteer project ran by Slí Eile, together with seven other volunteers from all over Ireland. During the Jamaican project, they will be based in Kingston, the capital city, often referred to as one of the world's most violent cities. The main work will be in a summer school for children, in the Jesuit parish of St. Anne's, West Kingston. Slí Eile runs three international volunteer projects - to Zambia, South Africa and Jamaica, and previously South America - for young adults, aged 18 to 35. In regard to fundraising, volunteers have to raise €1,200 for Slí Eile, to support their overseas volunteer projects and administration, as well as covering flights, accommodation, vaccination and expenses. Fionnuala told The Anglo-Celt that family and local businesses have been very generous in donating money to date. She will also be holding a non-uniform fundraising day in the school in Coolock, and will also be making use of sponsorship cards. The projects are based in the poorest parts of these countries, either rural or urban, and their goal is for volunteers to try to live in solidarity with the local community, helping however possible, whether it is in social or educational circumstances. Fionnuala says that many people have reminded them of the violence shown in Ross Kemp's documentary on crime in Kingston. They have been told to expect that the children they will be working with will have witnessed unimaginable violence and fear similar to this. However, Fionnuala points out that they have been reassured by previous volunteers that this will, though challenging, be one of the best experiences of their lives, and that the spirit of these children is incomparable. "Having done something similar before, I can identify with this challenge. Although, I know this will be different from the experience I had in Tanzania, as this is an urban setting and the experiences of the children are so extremely different," said Fionnuala. The Cavan teacher says that volunteers are often questioned about their reasons for travelling to these poor and often dangerous countries. "Personally I have found that most decisions to do so are based in a desire to change their own perspective and attitude towards the world and its people, rather than making any huge changes to the world." Fionnuala says it would be naive to expect to make a huge difference in three weeks. "Aside from a general interest in travel and culture, I feel people can themselves benefit hugely from living a less comfortable life, even for a while, and seeing how people cope with this on a day-to-day basis. Even though we may not make a huge difference to the situation in Kingston, if we can make one child happy for a day, it is an achievement. If we can return with a deeper appreciation of people and can relay this to others, and perhaps encourage others to do something similar, either at home or abroad, that is success," said the Cavan town girl. One of the most common remarks made by people who have participated in this kind of work is they learned more from the people in these countries than they could ever hope to teach. This realisation often replaces a sense of pity for these people with one of respect, a fact which raises questions about the true nature of "poverty" and common misconceptions associated with it. Slí Eile also organise orientation for volunteers prior to their departure date. This includes a weekend working together on team building skills as well as input from previous volunteers and advice on safety and health (vaccinations etc.) For more information about the trip and the project and sponsorship, contact Fionnuala at 086-1525243. The website is www.sli-eile.com