This project is only suited for very serious volunteers.

As my project is still in the start-up phase, while there is a tremendous workload, I have very little time available nor the patience to baby-sit for volunteering kids which are just seeking a nice exotic break or like to travel given all and everything a humanitarian touch/excuse.
I’m mainly interested in value adding young professional volunteers who either just finished their college education or equal, or semi-retired professionals at the end of their career. As I’m active in a highly sensitive sector, mainly dealing with sexuality and violated girls, I also prefer to have female volunteers. Of course for other non-health/medical volunteer functions I have no gender preferences. Last but not least, I definitely need to assure that the health volunteers dealing with counselling, teaching, the care off, etc..., sticks purely to a more open, honest and therefore more effective and scientific sexual education approach (The European Approach), not affected by any religious, cultural or traditional influences or by personal opinions or sexual preferences.

Introduction:
“Bery’s Place”, is primarily a very small and intimate, highly dedicated sexual health-, abuse- and violence facility to provide a wide range of medical, para-medical and mental health services to young paediatric/adolescent pupils, residing on various Ssese Islands. Secondarily “Bery’s Place” offers also temporary shelter as well as counselling services for the physically or emotionally abused youngsters in need of such temporary shelter and/or related care and services. “Bery’s Place” is a private initiative of a Belgian humanitarian, who wants to give young, infected, affected, abused, violated or vulnerable youngsters, a chance to have a worthwhile future, without becoming a young victim of their society, culture, tradition or just due to poverty or.... due to a lack of alternatives. This, by providing initially the necessary clinical and para-medical aid to heal the more superficial wounds as well as the necessary counselling, educational knowledge as well as the ever so important Life-Skills that might help them to deal with the less visible wounds. If we, over a period of time, are also able to add some vocational skills, then we really achieved our objectives.
All employees, co-volunteers or partners share that vision and are aware of the role we play in the local physical and mental health care industry and expect everyone to function as a value adding positive example all- and anytime. This to ensure that the trust invested in us, will never be damaged by any of our staff’s inappropriate action and/or behaviour.
It takes a special person to help us to cater and care for our special kids.

At “Bery’s Place” we specialize in caring for the used and abused or kids at risk and we know it takes special people to do such a job. Special people, who are compassionate about helping fragile children who recognize that their interaction with these children, can/will leave a lasting life-experience, hopefully a positive one.

Therefore, “Bery’s Place” is as of September/October 2007 looking for a variety of unpaid volunteers, like;

- Cooks/Bakers
- Vegetable and Landscape Gardeners
- Builders/Carpenters/Masons/Multitalented & Creative Handymen
- Brick Oven Builders for baking, broiling purposes
- Website developers
- Fundraisers, Marketeers
- Sexual health counsellors
- Nurses, Midwifes, OB-Gyn doctors
- etc....

Application Procedure
As we are as of September 2007 in Uganda and difficult to reach, your applications have to reach us either by e-mail or by postal Air-Mail. Please send your cover letter, in which you introduce yourself, your motivation, your personal objectives, your character description, together with a detailed CV to give us an idea of your background, family situation, your upbringing, education, life-experiences and/or particular skills/talents. Please add a picture of yourself.

Please send such to :
Mr. Bery Glaser
c/o Bery's Place
PO Box 14
Kalangala/Mweena, Ssese Islands, Uganda
or by e-mail to with a copy to

As personal face to face interviews are not feasible, please ensure that your written communication is extensive and sufficiently helpful to decide purely on such.

Conclusion :
Don’t feel too intimidated by the above, as we are really nice, although highly professional operating humanitarians. If you believe that you have the required abilities and talents, the affectionate, kind and caring as well as an open, pleasant and outgoing personality, if you like to improvise, socialize and interact with others, if you like to serve ……. then don’t hesitate, as … I want you !!!!

Other General Information :

Housing :
Location : A 150m2, free standing brick house on a 1.5 HA beach-property, located within the Kasirye's Plantation on the outskirts of Mweena (a fishing-landing site) on Bugala Island, the main island and district capital of the Ssese Islands.
Facilities : Currently all of us, meaning staff, volunteers and even patients are sleeping in one house, cared for by a local housekeeper that cooks, washes and cleans for us. In this simple but comfortable beachfront house, I can provide for volunteers, one common room with 2 single and 1 double bed. Additionally, a clean common flushing toilet and a decent shower. Otherwise all other rooms are common, therefore not really providing much privacy if such is needed.
Utilities : No access to grid electricity although we have one solar panel for the charging of batteries and mobile phones as well as a small 2.4KW generator for the occasional laptop or powertool use, or even in the evening a DVD. Therefore also no access to fixed phone lines, DSL-Broadband, internet. (Alternative: a suitable Pocket PC) Water : Water is relative clean spring water, but as the spring is not capped, we use bottled water for drinking purposes.

Expenses : (Please understand that we are working and living on islands, requiring that all and everything has to be purchased and transported from the mainland by boat / ferry which is time-consuming and adds expenses to all and everything.)
Volunteers are paying for their own expenses, meaning ; personal inoculations / vaccinations as required, national- and international flights, a decent health-, accident-, hospitalisation- and repatriation insurance, ad-hoc funding for any extraordinary or medical expenses until the insurance takes over, local transport, etc.. as well as common shared living/staying expenses like meals (min. 3 daily), beverages (bottled water, thee, coffee), laundry, generator fuel, cooking gas, general housekeeping, fixed and other variable expenses, etc... (all together 30,-USD a day for each person, payable after your arrival in advance.) In addition, any other private purchases, excursions and/or other personal perks.
But, should you, prove by your attitude, performance, initiatives, etc... that you don't just see us as an exotic and inexpensive vacation-resort, as some "volunteers" did in the past, then I'll gladly relief you partially of your day to day living expenses, and will even reward you in one way or another.

Liability : Bery's Place, the founder, the host, etc... can't be held responsible / liable for any expenses, fines, costs or dues you generate / encounter during your visit. Of course, if in need, we will help you practically as much as we can, but can't be held responsible for any expense connected to you or such.

International Flights : Please inform us in advance as I'm able to get via Brussels Airlines / American Airlines a NGO tarif as well as additional luggage allowances, besides a great service.

Closing Statement : Of course, we understand that you have many more questions, and we are gladly willing to answer these in all detail. Therefore, don't hesitate to contact us should you be unable to find answers locally or via the internet to such. I'll gladly respond and assist, but please….understand that I'm there for patients, therefore count on your creative talents and abilities to overcome basic challenges yourself.

Looking forward to cooperate with you and …

see you in Kalangala, Mwena