The first session of INVOLVE was well received by the participants.
“The group is interested to learn more about the strong tradition of volunteerism in Saskatchewan and Canada, and to discover the ways in which they can bring their own volunteer experiences to organizations in Weyburn,” said Heather Ritenburg, from the University of Regina. “They are curious to learn how their volunteer experiences may be similar to and different from volunteers in Saskatchewan.”
“Overall, I think it was very successful in that the group was very passionate about becoming more involved in their community,” said Jhaldair Roye, information services advisor with Southeast Newcomer Services. “With the many exercises that were done, individuals were able to learn a great deal.”
During the INVOLVE meeting, participants looked at the strong tradition of volunteerism in Saskatchewan and Canada. The participants shared stories of the types of organizations they have volunteered for and the kinds of projects that they have worked on.
It was also an opportunity for participants who are newcomers to learn more about volunteerism, which is a huge part of Canadian culture. “The only disappointing aspect was that we were hoping to have more local input, as one of the main component of our first session was discussing how culture affects our view on volunteerism, leadership and decision making,” said Roye. “The hope is to have people not only learning about volunteering on a leadership level, but also interacting and learning from each other’s perspective. “
There will be three more meetings throughout the month of March. “At our next meeting we will be learning about boards of directors and the governance of non profit organizations,” said Ritenburg. “While many of the participants have had these sorts of experiences in their home countries, there may be some differences in the roles and responsibilities of board members.”
Southeast Newcomer Services aims to help newcomers to integrate into their communities. “At times, newcomers don’t know where to start in this regards and I believe this is where programs such as these can be very effective,” said Roye. “We want to help support newcomers to contribute in all aspects of our community and its development.”
“From the discussions I have had over the course of the past few months, people would like to participate in more recreational or family events. The common issue I hear amongst newcomers is the difficulty in meeting people,” said Roye.
“With that in mind, we have organized two sessions on learning how to curl and skate within the past few months. We will be having our annual community gardens project, as soon as the weather warms up. There is a learn to swim program being held at the Leisure Centre as well.”
For more information on upcoming events, residents can find Southeast Newcomers on Facebook. Their programs are open to the entire community. For further information and to register for programs, residents can call Jhaldair at (306)-637-4920.
