4361(I)_Volunteer experience gives a deeper meaning to my life

Interview with Salesian missionary volunteers in the EAO (2)

April 27, 2017

By Nicholas Ynami, (SUO) - Salesian Lay Missioner

Balat, Vietnam, 27 April 2017 --

Your motivation to embark on the SLM journey?

My SLM journey really started with my love for the Salesians. I went to a Salesian elementary and middle school in California run by the FMA sisters and the SDB priests. My school was on the outskirts of the city and serviced many poor families, most of whom (including my own) had parents who were immigrants. My class consisted of 35 people who had at least one immigrant parent and belonged to working class families. We all paid a cheap tuition to go to school, but amazingly, we all managed to get university degrees and have respectable jobs.

Fast forward to my time after graduating university, I worked in the hospitality industry for 4 years (1 year for Singapore Airlines, and 3 years for Sheraton Hotels) where I was quite good and successful in my job, but was not happy with what was doing. As I was contemplating a career change, I remembered my 9 years (Kindergarten-8th grade) in a Salesian school, and how I owe a lot of my success to the Salesians. I decided to help the Salesians in any way I could, and as I was searching for short-term volunteer opportunities (maybe help with a summer camp or volunteer part time at a school for one semester), I came across the SLM program, which I saw as a great opportunity to give back my service to the order.

So I would say my motivation to embark on my SLM journey was my Salesian background, it is a motivation that has continued with me throughout my mission life. When I enter a Salesian house, I feel like I am home, and I am taken back to the day when I was a poor inner-city boy. I remember Fr. Al, one of the SDB priests who taught me, telling me when I graduated 8th grade and went to high school: "You are part of the Salesian familiy, once a Salesian, always a Salesian", that attitude has always stuck with me.

Your preparation before departure and how do you feel about it now (adequate, missing)?

The SLM program has a very good and organized preparation program. As part of our application process, we are required to attend one "discernment weekend", where we are given a crash course on Salesian spirituality. Once, accepted into the program through "mutual discernment", we have a training and orientation roughly one month before we embark on our missions. The training consists of three weeks, which is broken down as such: week 1- cultural sensitivity and awareness training, week 2- service week, and week 3- spiritual growth and retreat.

It is very difficult to really train everyone in a specific or personalized sense, because there are many SLMs that go to many different sites around the world. However, the broad training is so general that it applies to all Salesian sites and also helps us with adjusting from our American culture to a different culture in the world. It is also very difficult to generally train about specific community problems and challenges, because each community has its unique set of challenges. That being said, I believe the preparation process for us is as good as it could be due to the limitations of the diversity of sites we send people to.

The SLM program has one of the best preparation programs for any Salesian volunteer organization that I know of. It is organized, it gives us the basic tools that will help us in common situations, and answers a lot of general questions. Beyond that, the things that lack are the logistics of a community to community basis. Having volunteered in South Sudan last year and Vietnam this year, I can confidently say that I currently feel as if the preparation has applied to general aspects of both diverse countries and situations. There is always room for improvement, but overall, it is a very solid preparation program.

The best of your Dalat experience as Don Rua community member

The best of my Da Lat experience as a Don Rua community member is being with the brothers. We are all roughly around the same age, so it is no surprise that we act like friends and colleagues. One brother mentioned to me that between the current volunteers and the brothers, he sees no difference among us. We participate in the community life events because we love to be there, and the community has been more than accommodating to us to make sure we know we are a part of the community. I remember one time I went out for one week to get my visa renewed and upon my return, I was asked if I missed my family, I proudly told them that I did not miss my family in the U.S. because I knew that I was not going to see them for a while, but that I missed my family in Da Lat!

The brothers, who are my main focus of my service, are what makes this mission so special to me. I think they are the best of my Da Lat experience because they not only study diligently but also help me in anyway they could. Some brothers take it upon themselves to take me out to sight see, teach me how to ride a motorbike, and take me out to drink coffee once in a while so we can share.

Aside from the fun activities, the brothers also find a way to impress me as a teacher. My proudest moments in the Don Rua community are speaking to (now talkative) brothers, who before did not speak a single word of English to me when I first arrived. I remember having them in class and seeing them participate after months of hesitation, whereas before they could not speak a single word. I am so touched to see that some of these brothers who used to run away from me to not practice English, are now the same brothers who look for me and scope me out eager to practice their English.

What do you think about possible SLM Vietnamese version (maybe first domestic, then also international)?

I think a possible SLM Vietnamese program is a great idea! I teach a lot of university students, who have expressed to me their desire to volunteer like I do when they graduate college. Furthermore, some are already volunteering or will volunteer this summer in the various camps and activities that happen in the community and out in the other more rural mission communities. The university students are the key demographic of the age group you would be looking for in terms of a volunteer program. I know that the majority of Salesian volunteer organizations around the world are comprised of mainly young people who recently graduated university, so the mere fact that a lot of current university students (target audience age) are contemplating this idea of volunteering and actually doing it, is already a step in the right direction!

In terms of resources, I think that is where we might hit a roadblock of the language. However, it could also be a good experience for them and make some of these young volunteers more open and adept to speaking better English, and learning new cultures without fear. If the English among the young people who chooses to volunteer can improve, there is a great possibility that an international volunteer program could work because without language, it will be very difficult for them. Domestically, there are a lot of works to be done, and with language not being a problem, there is a chance for a very successful domestic program.

My only two cautions would be that the volunteers improve their English, and to be culturally aware and open minded. Knowing English is very important, because it is the language most used as well as the language that will probably be used in their mission site, so I recommend English fluency be a requirement. Being culturally aware and open-minded is also very important, because for someone who has never left their country, finding out that countries in other parts of the world have different customs, morals, and etiquette standards can lead to many unnecessary conflicts, which is where I could see a training program really being useful.

Thanks for your support and your help to us volunteers!

SLM website: https://www.salesianlaymissioners.org/home/