Meg Beneville:
\nNiko-Toma Volunteer Program at Kyoto University Hospital<\/p>\n
For my Community Involvement Project, I\u2019ve been volunteering once a week at Kyoto University Hospital through a program called \u201cNiko-Toma\u201d. \u201cNiko-Toma\u201d is a wonderful organization that aims that brighten the lives of children in the hospital, most of whom have serious illnesses and spend long periods of time there.
\nNiko-Toma plans many fun events for the children, such as holiday parties. My volunteer duties have been extremely varied so far. Many times I help out in the office with the other volunteers, sorting through supplies for future events, folding newsletters or making ornately decorated cards. The other volunteers are most middle-aged Japanese women, who are very warm and welcoming, and chat with me in Japanese while we work. It\u2019s great language practice, and very satisfying to feel like I\u2019ve become a part of the group.
\nAside from helping out in the office, I\u2019ve also had some great opportunities to interact with the kids. The Halloween party was absolutely adorable- so many cute kids in costumes, and many parents who were delighted to have such a great photo op. One of the older patients there was a 17 year old girl who I had a fun time talking to. We took a picture together on her phone and exchanged email addresses so that she could send it to me, and we\u2019ve become \u201cinternet penpals\u201d since then. She\u2019s very creative and funny, and I hope talking to me is an entertaining distraction that helps to break up the monotony of her hospital stays. I\u2019ve been back to visit her in the hospital and we have fun talking in person as well, although I had to wear a mask since she has a compromised immune system, and this made it more difficult than usual to understand and speak Japanese.
\nAll in all, I\u2019m very happy with my experience at \u201cNiko-Toma\u201d. It\u2019s been very rewarding so far, and I hope my volunteer efforts are making a difference to the kids in the hospital.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Meg Beneville: Niko-Toma Volunteer Program at Kyoto University Hospital For my Community Involvement Project, … \u7d9a\u304d\u3092\u8aad\u3080