The Cardoner Volunteer Program is a year-long volunteer service opportunity offered to both alumni/alumnae and faculty members of Ateneo de Davao University.
As part of the over-all social formation track of the university, the program seeks to strengthen the social spirituality of every Atenean, translated into volunteerism and service for and with the marginalized and vulnerable sectors of society.
The volunteers will commit themselves for a year of service and will be integrated to the partner communities / institutions which has specific set of needs that can hopefully be addressed by the volunteer and the program as a whole.
The volunteer program is named after the Cardoner River, a river in Catalonia, Spain, where St. Ignatius was moved by a transformative experience. It is hoped that those who will join the volunteer program will also encounter the transformative experience that flows like a raging river, in the active building of friendship, encounter, and dialogue.
Who can volunteer?
Graduates and Faculty members of Ateneo de Davao University can be part of the Cardoner Volunteers.
An aspiring volunteer should be self-motivated, mature, healthy, and willing to undergo a formative encounter.
He or she must show interest to grow in the areas of spirituality, social justice, peace, care for the environment, and inter-religious and inter-cultural dialogue.
Cardoner Volunteers
He was a graduate of Bachelor of Arts in English at Ateneo de Davao University. He was deployed at deployed at St. Aloysius Gonzaga Institute of Higher Studies in Taunggyi, Myanmar. He is currently the Coordinator for Trainings and Special Events of the Madaris Volunteer Program.
After college and working in the real world, I’ve realized that I have lost myself in trying to grow up and become a proper adult. I’ve worked in various companies and organizations and have never felt the fulfillment I was seeking and have only felt it when I volunteered for AOSF back in college. Ever since then, I believed giving myself up to service and a greater cause will help me forget myself and find my bigger purpose. Hence, my decision to give everything up to volunteer for Cardoner.
Christine Grace RutaShe was a graduate of Bachelor of Science in Human Resource Management at Ateneo de Davao University. She was a Cardoner Volunteer deployed at St. Aloysius Gonzaga Institute of Higher Studies in Taunggyi, Myanmar.
Volunteering is a calling and an opportunity to share a part of me and become a medium for change and progress. I did volunteer because I want to put my skills into good use and to test my limits as somebody who really wanted to be an active member of the humanitarian services.
Joni Angeli NuenayShe was a graduate of Bachelor of Arts in Psychology at Ateneo de Davao University. She was a Cardoner Volunteer deployed at St. Aloysius Gonzaga Institute of Higher Studies in Taunggyi, Myanmar.
She was a graduate of Bachelor of Arts in International Studies at Ateneo de Davao University. Jane was a Cardoner Volunteer deployed at Xavier Learning Community, Chiang Rai, Thailand.
He was deployed at Xavier Learning Community, Chiang Rai, Thailand.
After his volunteer service, he went back to Thailand to study at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok.
What are the skills and qualities needed?
Where are the areas of deployment?
The St. Aloysius Gonzaga (SAG) Institute of Higher Studies was established on August 1998 at the invitation of Archbishop Mathias U Shwe to the Society of Jesus. Since its inception, the SAG has been providing courses in Communicative English to high school graduates awaiting entry to universities and other institutions of professional learning both in Myanmar and abroad.
In 2012, Fr. Mark Raper, President of the Jesuit Conference in Asia Pacific, invited members of the AJCU-AP to assist Jesuit Schools under the Jesuit Mission in Myanmar. At present, AdDU is involved in assisting SAG through Capability Enhancement Program in partnership with the School of Education.
For more information about SAG, kindly click here.
It aims to equip these young people to become competent leaders by forming them in the Jesuit tradition with the hope of enabling them to help their communities and the greater society as well.
For more information about XLC, click here.
The Ateneo de Davao University is the implementing arm of the Madaris Volunteer Program (MVP) which is a joint project of the Catholic Association of the Philippines (CEAP) and the National Association of Bangsamoro Education, Inc. (NABEI). The Program is an apostolate presence where volunteers engage in a dialogue through witnessing.
It fosters cooperation between and among the Madaris (Islamic Schools) community members and non-Muslim volunteer teachers toward improving the quality of the Madrasah sector in the Philippines. The MVP is a 10-month volunteer service program for the people who want to work for social justice, interreligious dialogue, while living in the Bangsamoro communities.
For more information about MVP, kindly visit http://www.teachmadaris.org/
Cardoner Volunteer Formation Program
Formation is the holistic preparation to be undergone by all Cardoner Volunteers. It seeks to dispose and condition each volunteer’s preparation for their one year integration. The formation track shall be designed in such a way that the physical, psychological, emotional, mental, and spiritual aspects are nourished and harnessed.
Most of the formative activities are done before deployment, however, a regular formation activity through processing / reflection are done at least once every two months to consistently update the growth and development of every volunteer and provide them avenues to deepen their experiences during the volunteer work.
A Mid-deployment formation session is also scheduled to asses the condition and growth of every volunteer during the half way of their deployment.
After their year of service, the volunteer will undergo a post deployment formation which includes a retreat to help them process their experiences and guide them in their reintegration journey.
Pre-deployment Formation
The volunteers will undergo a pre-deployment formation program which includes an orientation seminar and disposition setting. They will attend technical skills, and life skills training. They will also be equipped through stress debriefing and management, intercultural communication, and first aid sessions. They will also be made familiar with the area situation and integration tips. The pre-deployment formation is capped with a retreat .
Mid-deployment Formation
During the sixth month of their volunteer service, a mid-deployment formation session is also scheduled to assess the condition and growth of every volunteer.
The mid-deployment formation program includes processing and reflection sessions, volunteer development updating, mission updating, and program planning with partner institution.
Post-deployment Formation
After their one-year volunteer service in their assigned partner community, the volunteer will undergo a post deployment formation which includes a retreat to help them process their experiences and guide them in their reintegration journey.
The post deployment formation program includes post processing and reflection, journey mapping, evaluation and assessment, and retreat.
Cardoner Volunteer Stories
For more information, kindly contact:
Ms. Aivy Rose N. Villarba
Cardoner Volunteer Program Coordinator
Telephone: (082) 221 24 11 loc 8329-8330
Mobile: +63917 110 3347
Email: cardoner@addu.edu.ph
Email: arnvillarba@addu.edu.ph
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