hi everyone
just joined
need help to find something to do
does any one know of volenteer groups i could join
being at home i am brain dead
nothing to heavy

Hi Manda,

me bored to be home too. If you did find s/t or have other ideas for join activities, you have another volenteer here

This may not be exactly what you had in mind, but if you can speak a little German and like to drive, then you could try this..

http://www.tixi.ch/helfer/fahrerin-werden.php

I've always thought of it as a worthwhile service.

my german is very poor for the moment but i know to drive and intent to improve german.
Thanks for your help

Hi there let me know were you are situated and maybe a can introduce you to some people i know

I am also interested in volunteering in the Zürich / Aargau area. I am extremely flexible in terms of time at the moment, although hopefully I will find a job. I can speak a fair amount of German -- everyone tells me I underestimate my abilities (ZMP with very good) -- and can understand a moderate amount of Swiss German as well. My Swiss wife has absolutely no clue where I should look, so maybe someone here can help point me in the right direction.

Have you tried asking at St. Andrews (Anglican Church in Zurich)? Maybe they have some ideas.

I'm in a similar situation. No work - at the moment. Going nutty - in the meantime. Volunteering sounds like a really good idea - thanks manda.

That sounds interesting - will call them and get more info.

Radar - Have you done it? Does one need to know their way around really well? I get lost easliy

If there are enough interested people here, maybe we could even try to organize something on our own. Something along the lines of tutoring disadvantaged students in English? Just an idea...

In the meantime I think I am going to contact Amnesty International in Bern to see if I can volunteer there. They will require German.

Amnesty: http://www.amnesty.ch/de/jobs/freiwillige

A few thoughts...

ZIWA (Zürich International Women's Club) is often needs volunteers to help with various things - and the club uses English as it's working language. The club is mainly activity based, but they also choose a charity to support each year for which they hold a variety of fundraising events.

(When we first moved here I joined as a way to find my feet and meet people. I'm not very active anymore, but the friendships last... )

You might want to look into joining any of the international clubs, or a local Verein catered to your interests (sports, hobbies, etc.) if your German is decent.

Other ideas:

WWF and Greenpeace and other environmental groups (like your local Wald- or Naturschutz group) regularly need volunteers, even if your German isn't great there are generally things to help with.

And most animal welfare groups need help... the critters will understand you whatever your language skills.

How about the local Altersheim (Senior citizen's home)? Many residents know English, and may enjoy a visit from an English speaker...

The umbrella organization for senior citizens is Pro Senectute:

http://www.zh.pro-senectute.ch/

How about the Red Cross?

http://www.redcross.ch/activities/vo...s/index-de.php

While the ZH office mostly asks for German speakers, why not offer your skills and see what they say?

And if you live in a small-ish town, why not talk to the Gemeinde? The folks there often hear of opportunities, formal or informal, where you could be of help.

And, check out the volunteer job bourse:

http://www.freiwilligenjob.ch/c/Frei...9/Default.aspx

(You'll need German for most of these, however if there is an organization that interests you, why not contact them and offer to help in another capacity?)

There are endless organizations needing volunteers. Any charity that interests you would be worth contacting. Most can always use a pair of willing hands, regardless of language skills. - often you just have to call and ask how you can help.

I can second the suggestion of getting in touch with the Red Cross. I've been volunteering for over a year now with my local chapter (Zurich) and they have different types of work depending on your particular aptitude and how much time you've got to give. For example, they're always looking for drivers to ferry older or disabled people to doctors' appointments and the like (they comp your expenses and I think even take care of insurance), and also have a type of Big Brother/Big Sister program for kids new to Switzerland, but there are lots of different things to do. They are also, at least in my experience, very good with getting you up and running with whatever you end up doing - it might include an informal training - and very my-door-is-always-open-for-you kind of people to work for (volunteering is work too).
If you like, I can put you in touch with the volunteer coordinator for Zurich (private message me if you're interested).

And a real good one, if I may say so. It would be nice to show the Swiss that there are advantages to having foreigners in their midst, no?

Since several people from different parts of Switzerland private-messaged me about how to go about volunteering for the Red Cross, I thought it'd be easier to post some general information here and share my experience instead of responding to each one individually.

There should be a coordinator in your area for volunteer work - just google "Rotes Kreuz" and whichever canton you live in, and you'll find the right chapter and, most likely, the person who oversees volunteer work. Each chapter will have defined several areas they focus on, such as asylum-seekers, the elderly, young people, disabled individuals etc. and the chapter's work, programs, day-care centers or whatever will reflect that.

When I began volunteering a little over one year ago, I was told there are a variety of volunteer opportunities available, some for regular work, some intermittent, and they range from visiting housebound people, which would obviously require a good grasp of the language, to stuffing envelopes and helping out at Christmas parties, which probably wouldn't require top-notch language skills, to driving elderly or disabled people to doctors' appointments - all sorts of stuff.

The best thing to do is get in touch with the local "Rotes Kreuz" and tell them you'd like to help out. Be clear on how much time you can give and when you are free to give it - say, on a set day every week/month, or whenever you can find spare time (I am pretty flexible in when I do mine, which was a big requirement for me).

My experience was that they did a good job of listening to me (I wasn't sure at the time what I wanted to do, I just knew I wanted to help out), while also telling me about what they were after. Ultimately, I chose to work with older people in my neighborhood, and am very happy with that, but also with the team of Red Cross people I work for because they are very good about keeping in touch and their door is open should I ever need to discuss anything.

good luck, and I hope your experience with it similarly rewarding!

Just to give some fedback here - I called the Red cross Zurich last week and made an appointment for today. (http://www.roteskreuzzuerich.ch) the website is in german though.

The lady I spoke to was very warm and open - expalined the kind of volunteering activities available - the pros and cons of each of them - most of the activities do require some German - although they didn't mind the level too much - they just try to find something that would suit the volunteer.

They'll get back to me next week to let me know what they have for my profile. So that'll keep me out of trouble for a while ;-)!Once they find me a something to do that I'm happy with - they provide training for it too! Plus I can enroll in some educational courses which they offer which are free for volunteers.

I think it's a great way for me to practice my german at the same time be of some use!

Thanks guys for the suggestions.

Excellent thread!

I'm interested in helping out asylum seekers. Bartholemew you mentioned the Red Cross sometimes does this. Are you (or anyone else) aware of any other organisations that deal with this issue?

awesomeness!
I was also looking for this stuff...the cleaning jobs have taken off nicely, but I still have some time to spare that I would love to use in this capacity.

Def. getting in touch with the Red Cross.

great thread indeed!

We are a small international group of people who sing for Charity every Christmas. We are not profis, just people who would love to do something for the less fortunate. Our target charities for the last 2 christmases were Aids And Child and the SOS kinderdorf...

In case you are interested in singing carols (A capella) for a good deed, please PM me...

We are in Zurich...

could you give me the number please
glad i posted this thread
manda

Hi manda,

if it is me you are referring to for a contact number, please send me a PM.

Mark, Caritas and HEKS would be a good place to start because apparently every asylum-seeker has the right to be accompanied by a representative of an official asylum-advocacy organization (eidgenoessisch anerkanntes Fluchtingshilfeswerk - hope I've done the expression justice in my translation) during any official hearings or dealings with the authorities, and Caritas and HEKS are very active in this. A friend of Mr. B's did this for awhile, and said it was eye-opening how badly some of these people are treated...
Asylum-seekers and displaced families are a big focus area for Zurich's Red Cross chapter, for instance the Big Brother/Big Sister program is aimed at children of asylum-seekers.
Perhaps it's worth checking with other, local faith-based organizations besides Caritas and HEKS, who have made working with asylum-seekers a priority?