Welcoming More Volunteers !!

The sky is clear blue; the rainfall has lost its way. The brightness of Autumn and the wait for winter, the clear Mountain View and the perfect weather makes it way for us to get busier for the Global Village Teams from October to November.

October –November was indeed the most eventful month for all of us at Habitat Nepal. The number of Global Village teams coming in and going out kept us busy, excited and it certainly moved us closer to our mission.

We hosted a total of 8 teams during October and November. To start was the 13 member Dutch group led by Don Van Dasler from October 15-22 in Morang. Their stay of one week was fun filled and very productive. Rajesh had a lot to learn and share after the build.

Dan Stowers led an 18 member team to Tikapur, Kailali from October 16-27. This experienced team leader was an asset to the team as well as the community and was successful in completing two houses and renovating two houses.

Mike Rodrique led a big team from Oct 28-Nov 11. It was a 25 member group who completed 4 houses within two weeks. The host coordinators Narayan and Sujit had an excellent time throughout the build and so did the team members.

To follows them was the team from HFH Knoxville who went to Kavre. It was a 14 members team led by Tom Pfalzer. They built two mud and stone houses and filled their stay with laughter and fun as well. Rima hosted the team and came back with a big satisfied smile.

Then, we had more exciting times coming. There were three teams arriving on Nov 6, 2011 and working till Nov 18. Steffan McNally from UK led a team to Morang from Nov 6-17. The ten member team built a bamboo house and left home with fond memories. Rajesh did an extremely good job once again.

Jennifer Isely led her team to Chitwan from November 6-18, 2011. It was a jovial 16 member team. They built a brick house there. Rashmi, the Host Coordinator returned home with a lasting friendship.

Suzanne led her 13 member to Pokhara and built 3 cement block houses. The cooperative team gave Habitat Nepal another big support and our host coordinator Sujit an eventful two weeks.

To end the busy times was an open team from UK. The 13 member team led by Andy Clarke from Nov 13-25 in Jhapa and hosted by Sandip was a good end to the October- November months.

To sum up, we built a total of 17 houses. Kudos to the team leaders and their fabulous team who made it all happen. Thanks to them for fulfilling the distant dreams of 17 families and bringing an impact in the communities and their lives. We would love to have you all again! J

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Global Village : So far in 2011

The Global Village in Nepal was at its busiest phase in the first half from January to June 2011. We hosted a total of 17 teams and built 39 houses within six months. The teams came from all parts of the world and worked in various areas speaking more of how we live in just one world. The houses in the Eastern parts were mainly built of bamboo. In Pokhara we built houses out of cement blocks and Kavre houses were built of bricks and mud. The volunteers built brick houses in Chitwan. With varied locally available materials and respectively different ways of building, the teams got a fresh experience in each area.
We got to see enthusiastic youngsters from international schools in Malaysia, Denmark and Canada having fun and learning how life can be at different places at the same time. Similarly, the teams from USA and Netherlands showed their expertise and gave us many things to learn about. The youth groups from Japan taught us that it’s possible to speak the language of love be good friends if you have a heart rendered to service.
All in all, every team left with fond memories, valuable experience and tons of stories to talk about. HFH Nepal also learned with each new team, about how to make the program more effective and provide an overall cultural and construction awareness. The host coordinators also had their share of learning experience.
It’s not just building houses that make Global Village teams different. It’s the whole process of working together, building bonds between people of very different walks of liking and finding it all worth working for in the end.
Let’s hope the second half of the year goes better than ever and we get more smiles everywhere…on the face of the home partners, the volunteers and all of us who thrive for it!

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The Shadow of Everest

The Shadow of Everest

It’s a difficult task to sum up 14 days of our recent Habitat for Humanity trip to Nepal, considering all aspects of work, tourism and play. Maybe it was the cultural observations we made; maybe it was the immense variety of people we encountered; maybe it was the landscapes and views that filled our eyes of a totally different world; maybe it was all of the above and so much more…
In looking for a way to best describe the feelings we all shared, I sought to embody all of the thoughts and feelings we conveyed through writing. Each member of our team was assigned with a daily document to catalogue what we saw, how we felt, what we experienced and even how we were changed. Using an online tool, I amassed these journal entries to create an interesting picture.


This graphic demonstrates the words we used most frequently in the largest font. This encompasses what was difficult to communicate about our experience since there is so much to share. Some words are obvious: names, flights, hotels, Everest and so on. But what I found interesting was the enormity of words like team and people. These two words seem to exemplify, at least in part, our trip. Because it was our goal to change the lives of people, most of whom we had never met and most likely will never see again. The first and maybe more obvious group we wanted to help were the people in a small village on the outskirts of Itahari in south-eastern Nepal. It was our intention from the start, in collaboration with Habitat for Humanity, to help those who needed it most, and in that way we succeeded beyond measure. We managed to complete two homes in a period of roughly 5 days, through cutting, chopping, cleaning and weaving bamboo and even getting down and dirty with some cow dung to plaster walls. It was with the hospitality of Nepalese people that we were also able to visit the monkey temple and a local school. We achieved a great deal in the short time we had and even better, got to thoroughly enjoy it.
Admittedly, we each grew as individuals, learning about what it feels like to be so far away from home, to trust your friends and team members and to help those who can’t help themselves.
Now, our visas have long since been marked, our boarding passes no longer needed, our legs finally unfurling from tight airplane seats, our jet lag subsided, our souvenirs collected, our aches and bruises mended, our hunger satiated, our regular bathing recommenced, our schoolwork begun… All of our experience, it would seem, has finished.
But that is the true beauty of having gone on this trip. It resonates in our minds, hearts and souls that whenever we see one another passing in the halls or have the faintest recollection, we are reminded of what could be simply 14 days, or a multitude of plane rides, or a five day workweek on the other side of the globe or… The trip of a lifetime in the Shadow of Everest.

Sukhbir Bolina
Team Leader
Canada
March in sunsari

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Another milestone achieved…one step closer to the mission!

The month started with our very first team from Malaysia. The youth team from international school of Kuala Lumpur built three houses in Kavre. The build went from April 1-6. It was interesting to see how the young group of 24 worked so hard and had fun at the same time.
The second build was an inspirational build too. The US Team to Pokhara from April 3-16 got three houses done too. With a mixture of build, cooking and fun, the team left with fond memories and lessons on living life to the fullest.

The team in Chitwan from USA completed yet another successful build from April 10-23. They proved how much they valued bringing change to other’s life by working under the scorching sun and making the home partner very thankful and happy.
To end such a great month, we had the Nepal clan team from Netherlands from April 23-30. This was the first team from Netherlands too and it was great they left Nepal with a long list of wonderful experiences and a promise to come back again.
All in all, all the teams and support staff deserve a big applause for putting in such great effort and let another month pass my where we completed a total of eight houses. I hope such times come by where we get to do more, achieve more. Let’s pray for it and move ahead!

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March Builds 2011

Two successful GV builds were hosted in the month

of March in Jhapa and Itahari respectively. Two

successful builds four complete houses and

a whole lot of happiness.

Jhapa House

The first build was Jack’s Team, very experienced and efficient. Without many instructions, the team was actually to get so much done without the mason’s assistance. And yes, it was great to see what a fun team it was. The build was coordinated by Nikita, Rajesh and Ekraj with an immense amount of support from Kanchana Village Bank. The home partners were equally great. It was heart touching how the volunteers and home partners used their own language but still communicated everything needed. All in all, the days between March 6-19 passed with lots of builds, happy faces, and cultural interaction.
Team Bolina was no less. The youth team from St. Johns accompanied by their two lovely teachers was really great. With singing, dancing, playfulness and a productive build, the team too got a lot of work done. Partners from Bipanna Mahila with host Rajesh put up an excellent job to give the kids, the home partners and everyone the best of times.
With a bit of hiccups, a whole lot of fun and another step closer to our mission to have home for everyone, the month of March was a great one… We hope April brings in more colors to everyone’s life!

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