After living in Tokyo and working in multiple Asian countries for three years, I found that the best way to learn about new countries and cultures is through the people living there. Volunteering provides a great way to immerse yourself in a country’s culture by living and working there. Spending several months with the Rukmini team in Nepal was perfect.
Like many of you, I’d read about so many of Rukmini’s activities but participating in them is totally different. So I decided it would be fun to share some of my favorite experiences with you from the perspective of a visitor living and working in Nepal.
Keeping Girls Healthy
When you read about Rukmini’s annual health checkups for their Bahini, you probably think of your annual doctor visit. It wasn’t anything like I’d imagined nor could it be with 40 girls, not a few siblings. The girls, ages 6 to 18, arrived at Manamohan Memorial Community Hospital one morning in late May. They came in small groups escorted by mothers or in some cases, their Glow Club mentors. They girls were quiet, some were probably scared if this was their first checkup. They waited patiently, moving from one test area to the next and I had fun entertaining them with some songs. The test schedule included:
- Registering each girl although I’m not sure what information was required.
- Blood tests just like ours and only one little girl needed to be held and soothed.
- Eye exams were done outside with team members taking turns pointing to the row of letters the girls were asked to read … just like our eye tests.
- Hearing tests as you’ve got to hear your teachers in school.
Empowering Girls to Achieve Their Goals
Growing up today is challenging for every child. Glow Club is a weekly after school program Rukmini provides for girls in 5th through 8th grade, in the schools they partner with. It provides a wonderful safe space for the girls to develop self-awareness and find their voice. Here are some of the remarkable activities I experienced while visiting different clubs at four of Rukmini’s schools:
- The girls taped sheets of paper on their backs and invited their friends to write words describing how they saw them. The most common words were beautiful, always happy, kind, helpful, etc.
- One activity focused on healthy eating as snacks are a problem in Nepal. The girls had to list both healthy and unhealthy foods they eat, plus identify how many cups of water they drink each day, to help them understand the importance of hydration.
- The exercise on menstruation practices was eye opening. I was shocked to learn about restrictions like girls and women can’t … touch family members, enter the kitchen, sleep in their usual beds and more, during menstruation.
- Personal goals was an activity I loved because too often, girls don’t recognize they have choices. My favorite activity was hearing the girls share their dreams. Here are the most amazing goals the girls shared – opening an old age home, providing free meals and checkups for poor people and unifying people from different cultures. Know any children in developed countries with similar goals?
Teaching English to School Children
One of the best things I did while volunteering in Nepal was teaching English to fifth and sixth graders. Their energy was amazing and we had a great time as my teaching techniques evolved:
- Week one, kids wrote down questions to ask me as they’ll not comfortable speaking English because school focuses on reading and writing English.
- Switched to a digital white board where I shared photos, words and had the kids matching English words to photos like fruits, sports balls, uniforms, etc
- Taught kids songs which I used when things got rowdy and they loved them!
Rukmini a Key Part of the Community They Serve
Mobile phones are huge in Nepal but they haven’t replaced the strong interpersonal relationships you can only build through face-to-face communication. In the US we travel extensively and sadly, we’re so busy we don’t know our neighbors well.
Here are some of the amazing ways I interacted with people in the Pharping community as a member of the Rukmini team:
- I was invited to the wedding of a school principal’s daughter. We had to scramble to find a Nepali Kurta (long shirt over pants) for the big day.
- We visited the home of another school principal (his wife is on the Nepali board of directors) whose daughter had just broken her foot.
- Another visit to a third principal’s home on the way back to Kathmandu from our Rukmini guest speaker. We all picked fruit to take home from their garden.
Marketing Training for Rukmini Team
The Rukmini team in Nepal does a great job taking photos of their activities, and writing “reports” or blog posts that are shared via our newsletter and website. Per their request I’m working with them to make their content more informative:
- Titles with emotion will motivate readers to click to learn more.
- Tell your story with photos and add captions as many people scan rather than read web content.
- Formatting paragraphs so your article is easy to read.
- … and more tips on using social media effectively.
Did this glimpse into Nepal inspire you?
The work Rukmini Foundation is doing isn’t just important—it’s transformational. Every day, we’re breaking barriers to keep girls in school, empowering them with education, and proving their incredible value to their communities. Through my experience, I am even more impressed by all the great work the team in Nepal is doing, but I also know that we can’t do it alone. We thank all of our donors and supporters for making this important work possible.
