Volunteers | Piña Palmera’s necessities
“If you are coming to help us, we would prefer that you stayed home. If you are coming to work with us, welcome,” a community in the Philippines.
Since the founding of Piña Palmera, we have welcomed volunteers from all over the world to join us and work with us in our programs.
Our expectation is that volunteers be willing to participate in all of the areas of Piña Palmera. It is quite common that volunteers´ expectations change during the course of their work here.
They often arrive with many ideas of how they can contribute to our projects because they have an area of expertise. However, these plans are likely to change. Often the volunteers value their time in Piña Palmera more as a life experience, with a focus on their relationships with those who live here.
Flexibility and patience are two of the most important things that a volunteer can bring to Piña Palmera.
For those who may be considering coming to Piña Palmera as a volunteer, the Volunteer Manual is required reading. Within this manual there is detailed information on the following topics:
For answers to any other questions, please contact us. We normally ask that volunteers stay 6 months, but if that would not be possible, please contact us so that we can explore other possibilities.
Volunteer Requirements:
Be willing to ask questions before judging
Immigration:
There are some required legal procedures for foreigners who come here. The visa for volunteers is called FM3. Volunteers may contact the Mexican embassy in their home country for information on obtaining their visa before coming here. We can send documents which will be requested by the embassy via email.
In the case of a student wishing to conduct a research study, fieldwork, or social service in Piña Palmera, a letter from the school or institution which explains the objectives of the project or time spent in Piña Palmera will be required. This document must be translated to Spanish by a certified translator.
In case it is not possible to obtain a visa before volunteers arrive, they may (depending on their nationality) enter Mexico as tourists and then have Piña Palmera help them change their migratory status to an FM3. In order to process it here immigration requires a copy of the volunteer´s bank statement from his/her country of origin. Immigration also requires that the volunteer brings his/her passport.
The current cost of the FM3 process is approximately $1900 pesos (US $190). To find out the exact current cost, prospective volunteers may contact the Mexican embassy in their country of origin.
Room and Board:
For $150 pesos per month (US $15) we offer volunteers the opportunity to live in Piña Palmera as they work here. This amount covers utilities, cleaning products, and other costs for maintaining the dormitories. Volunteers share a dormitory style room with one or two other volunteers. The kitchen and bathrooms are shared among a few volunteers. The Center offers three humble meals per day for volunteers.
Money:
For immigration purposes, the officials want to see that volunteers have approximately US $1000 in a bank account from their country of origin and this may be proven by a bank statement. In Zipolite we do not have a bank or an automatic teller machine. The closest banks and ATM´s are in Pochutla, a 30-minute drive from Zipolite.
Vaccinations:
We recommend that volunteers are current on their routine vaccinations. In addition, the United States Center for Disease Control and Prevention recommends the following vaccinations for travelers to Mexico: Hepatitis A and B, Typhoid, and (in certain cases) Rabies (as seen athttp://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/destinationMexico.aspx, on May 23, 2008). For any further questions, we recommend that volunteers visit a clinic which specializes in travel medicine for the tropics.
Additional Links:
Since the founding of Piña Palmera, we have welcomed volunteers from all over the world to join us and work with us in our programs.
Our expectation is that volunteers be willing to participate in all of the areas of Piña Palmera. It is quite common that volunteers´ expectations change during the course of their work here.
They often arrive with many ideas of how they can contribute to our projects because they have an area of expertise. However, these plans are likely to change. Often the volunteers value their time in Piña Palmera more as a life experience, with a focus on their relationships with those who live here.
Flexibility and patience are two of the most important things that a volunteer can bring to Piña Palmera.
For those who may be considering coming to Piña Palmera as a volunteer, the Volunteer Manual is required reading. Within this manual there is detailed information on the following topics:
- What is Piña Palmera?
- The life of the volunteer
- Programs within Piña Palmera and the volunteer´s role and activities
- Information on the rights and obligations of the volunteer
- Precautions to follow within Piña Palmera and within Zipolite
For answers to any other questions, please contact us. We normally ask that volunteers stay 6 months, but if that would not be possible, please contact us so that we can explore other possibilities.
Volunteer Requirements:
- Volunteers must be 18 years of age or older.
- Volunteers must be open to new communal living experiences.
- Volunteers must be interested in the topic of disability and rural issues. (However it is not necessary to have experience working with these issues!)
- Volunteers must be willing to share their time with everyone in Piña.
- Volunteers must be willing to learn Spanish. (The locals do not speak English here!)
Be willing to ask questions before judging
Immigration:
There are some required legal procedures for foreigners who come here. The visa for volunteers is called FM3. Volunteers may contact the Mexican embassy in their home country for information on obtaining their visa before coming here. We can send documents which will be requested by the embassy via email.
In the case of a student wishing to conduct a research study, fieldwork, or social service in Piña Palmera, a letter from the school or institution which explains the objectives of the project or time spent in Piña Palmera will be required. This document must be translated to Spanish by a certified translator.
In case it is not possible to obtain a visa before volunteers arrive, they may (depending on their nationality) enter Mexico as tourists and then have Piña Palmera help them change their migratory status to an FM3. In order to process it here immigration requires a copy of the volunteer´s bank statement from his/her country of origin. Immigration also requires that the volunteer brings his/her passport.
The current cost of the FM3 process is approximately $1900 pesos (US $190). To find out the exact current cost, prospective volunteers may contact the Mexican embassy in their country of origin.
Room and Board:
For $150 pesos per month (US $15) we offer volunteers the opportunity to live in Piña Palmera as they work here. This amount covers utilities, cleaning products, and other costs for maintaining the dormitories. Volunteers share a dormitory style room with one or two other volunteers. The kitchen and bathrooms are shared among a few volunteers. The Center offers three humble meals per day for volunteers.
Money:
For immigration purposes, the officials want to see that volunteers have approximately US $1000 in a bank account from their country of origin and this may be proven by a bank statement. In Zipolite we do not have a bank or an automatic teller machine. The closest banks and ATM´s are in Pochutla, a 30-minute drive from Zipolite.
Vaccinations:
We recommend that volunteers are current on their routine vaccinations. In addition, the United States Center for Disease Control and Prevention recommends the following vaccinations for travelers to Mexico: Hepatitis A and B, Typhoid, and (in certain cases) Rabies (as seen athttp://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/destinationMexico.aspx, on May 23, 2008). For any further questions, we recommend that volunteers visit a clinic which specializes in travel medicine for the tropics.
Additional Links:
- Activity Projects_2008
- Informative Letter to Volunteers
- Volunteers on Community Outing
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