The Baby Care Centre opened up in September of 2005 after a couple noticed how many mothers were not able to work because of having to take care of their young children. Currently we are providing free child care, daily meals and play equipment in a safe and fun environment 6 days a week. By taking care of Tibetan families children during working hours, we enable parents to work full time so that they can improve their living conditions, become self sufficient and independent. In this way people can support themselves instead of relying on overseas donations, but also while contributing towards individual empowerment and communal well-being.
- We care for about 40 babies at a time from the ages of 8 months to 3 years.
- Our BCC has 5 trained and experienced full time staff all of which are local people of Tibetan origins. In addition to this we also have up to 10 international volunteers at a time who will work with the children for a minimum of 3 weeks (a period which allows the children to get familiar with our helpers with minimum distribution while enabling our volunteers to share an unforgettable experience).
- Our staff provides genuine love and care for all of our children with imaginative play time, storytelling, sleep supervision, feeding at meal times, cleaning and nappy changing (of which there is plenty)!
Information for Parents
- Application forms are available every December
- The parent(s) of the child must have a job
- Our maximum capacity is 35-40 children from the ages of 8 months to 3 years
- Decisions are made in February and the start of the new year starts in March
- If you would like any other information, contact our BCC manager
Information for Volunteers
- We have two different shifts (8:30-12:30, or 1:00-5:00), that you will work six days a week (Monday-Saturday).
- Responsibilities at the BCC include playing, singing, feeding, putting to sleep, and of course changing diapers!
- On every Friday (weather permitting) between 2:00 and 4:00, we take the babies to the main temple for some fun and snacks. It is beneficial for the babies to get out of the regular centre to play in the fresh air but it is also used as an educational tool. We want the babies to be able to partake in an activity within their Tibetan culture and by bringing them to the temple weekly, they have the opportunity to see a crucial aspect of Tibetan life with hopes of leading them to a habit of participating in Tibetan traditions.
- If you are helping for the minimum of three weeks we encourage you to partake in the temple trip, but if you are in the area for less time you can still help with this activity within the BCC.
- The BCC is open all times of the year except for the winter holiday for Tibetan New Year which is around February until March.
We are also in need of persons with specific skills for the BCC. During the day we feed the babies various fresh fruit and vegetables so having a nutritious background would be very useful. Another specific skill that is needed for the BCC is a background working with young children. Since the babies are all under three years of age it is helpful to have new and exciting ideas for the staff so they stay involved and learn new things.
The BCC provides free daily care for children for Tibetan families which typically could not afford it on their own. We provide good facilities and a caring, experienced staff. Our staff knows the children well, in addition to the specific needs of each child's diet. At the centre we take nutrition and our children's health very seriously by providing them with a daily variety of six seasonable fresh vegetables and every afternoon a fruit salad. Since we provide child care free of charge, we also ask the parents to volunteer for one hour every Sunday in order to help us keep the centre clean and be involved in their child's care. When I was a child I never received a nutritious diet, like the one we provide at the BCC. Being from a poor family, with three sisters and five brothers, I want to work hard for the children from poor Tibetan families. As the Baby Care Centre manager, I am proud to be a part of the direct assistance Rogpa provides for our community.
We depend on the involvement of Tibetan families and volunteers who run the Baby Care Centre providing care for the children- so if you would like to be a volunteer we would love to hear from you!