Education, Careers & Professional News
University student sees the world through volunteerism
Chang Che-chen, a student at National Taiwan University`s Department of Bio-Resources and Agriculture, had a different idea on how to spend his vacation. He decided to be a volunteer in an organization that helps the needy in various countries. He spent time in India providing assistance to persons there as well as other countries in the area. In some cases he would serve as an instructor in schools that were attended by impoverished children. In other instances, he would travel long distances delivering rice to relieve hunger among needy people. There was even an example in which he washed clothes for those who were seriously ill. Chang said that in participating in these volunteer activities he was able to see how volunteers from throughout the world gave of themselves, and this made him even more determined to follow the route of volunteerism. Chang said that he hopes that he will be able to enter the Taiwan Youth Overseas Service this year to do his compulsory military duty in volunteer work overseas. Chang said that would enable him to embark upon a journey of discovery.
For a 20 year-old university student, traveling is usually something that is considering fun. However, for Chang, journeying overseas is something more than recreation. It offers a deeper significance of enabling him to ponder life.
When Chang heard that National Chengchi University was establishing a training program to train people interested in volunteering overseas, Chang, who has always been interested in volunteerism, said that he immediately went from National Taiwan University over to National Chengchi University to take the elective course. After several months of planning, in January of this year he embarked on a 56-day journey overseas that enabled him to take part in public welfare activities in seven countries.
Chang said that the first stop in the journey took him to India, while the final destination was in Guangxi province of China. Altogether he visited India, Burma, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Hong Kong and China during the seven-country trip.
In the past, Chang had experience in traveling on his own. However, this trip was a little bit different. He faced a number of challenges in his journey and more than a hardship or two. For example, in his first stop in India, he ate something bad. Not only did this result in diarrhea, but he ended up getting food poisoning as well. Nonetheless, in order to get through the entire journey, he said that he carried on despite the discomfort.
During his travels, Chang visited a number of volunteer organizations and took part in volunteer service projects. On his trip to India, for instance, he served as a volunteer at Mother Teresa`s Home for the Dying and Destitute in Calcutta. When he was in Thailand, the TOPS organization arranged for him to better understand support being given to refugees in Thailand. He also had the opportunity to go to Thai villages and help in pre-school education for children. When in Cambodia, he paid a visit to a cultural and educational service foundation set up by a private Taiwan institution and was able to go to an orphanage and a women`s training center. In Vietnam, thanks to the assistance of Taiwan`s Compassion International, he was able to visit an orphanage in the Vietnamese city of Hue.
Chang said that in the past he has heard much about the poverty in India and in Indochina. However, seeing it with his own eyes was an entirely different experience. He said that the trip through these nations made him realize how truly lucky he is. He added that he came to understand how so many things in life simply cannot be predicted.
There is a saying that while people cannot change the length of their life, they can decide how to make life more meaningful. Chang said that the 56-day journey that he was on helped to clarify for him the path of his own life and enabled him to see exactly what he was meant to do. As for the future, Chang still has to face his upcoming military service. He said his father wants him to eventually return to Taichung to work there. However, Chang said that he believes that he will be a volunteer for the rest of his life and that he will service in a variety of volunteer-related organizations.