University of Washington Hindu YUVA Volunteers at the Annual WACAP Kids Day
The University of Washingon, Seattle chapter of Hindu YUVA volunteered with WACAP (the World Association for Children and Parents), an international adoption agency whose goal is to provide a home and a family for every orphan. WACAP works in many countries, particularly Russia, China and Ethiopia. They try to find families for orphans in their own home countries, but if this is not possible, they bring them to families in the US who want to adopt kids from outside. Over the years, a fairly large number of orphans have been adopted by families in the greater Seattle area. The WACAP annual kids day aims to bring together all these kids and their families for a picnic, giving them a chance to have fun together, get to know each other, and help the families connect to other families facing similar challenges of raising a foreign child.
On the day of the event, a group of about 20 Hindu YUVA volunteers reached the venue at around 9:45 am. After the initial introductions, they were assigned different tasks, ranging from directing families to the registration desk to setting up tents, play areas etc. At around 11 am, the picnic got underway. There were various fun activities for the kids, including hula hoops, spin art, tattoos, face painting, magic shows, a jumping jack, etc. Hindu YUVA volunteers were involved in all these activites, making sure that the kids had fun and were safe. From 12-1 pm, they organized lunch (sandwiches/chips), making sure all the 300+ kids and their families got enough to eat, and also made and served cool lemonade to give everyone some relief from the summer heat. After that, the activities continued for some time, and they helped make sure that all the leftover food was taken home by someone. Finally around 2pm, they helped wrap things up, clean up the picnic area, take down the tents, and transport all the equipment back to the vehicles. There was a final group huddle to celebrate the successful completion of the event.
Interacting with the orphans of diverse backgrounds/ages and watching their happy faces at the picnic was a memorable experience for all the volunteers; everyone enjoyed themselves thoroughly. The WACAP organizers commended Hindu YUVA’s enthusiasm and readiness to help out with everything. UW Hindu YUVA plans to continue community service by organizing and participating in one sewa (service) activity every month.
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