MANNAM branches

I am an Office Worker!! I am a member of MANNAM!!

 I am an officer of a building company. I have been engaged in there for 3 years.  It was April 2012 when I started to join MANNAM. I had been tired of my repetitive life. At that time, one of my friend told me about one volunteer association called MANNAM and recommended to join the volunteer group. Honestly I had never heard the name before. Anyway he told me that it could bring me some happiness. At first, I turned it down because I thought I should spend lots of time and money if I joined there. Working in my office was hard enough for me. But he kept persuading me. He said I could feel happy while I helped people in need.
"You just need a little bit of spare time and passion.", he said.
So I decided to join MANNAM Volunteer Association.

 Before, I had been New Zealand for a while so I knew about the feelings of staying abroad. I knew well how difficult it was. So I started to help them with teaching Korean language and Korean culture to adjust this strange land. It was very easy for me to make them understand my culture,  but it was something special for them. The foreigners really thanked me for helping them. It was also great I was able to know about their countries and cultures.
 I felt great while I helped them. Amazingly, volunteering was healing my stress.

A few months later, I got a chance to manage sports teams. Through sports, we could get closer each other. It refreshed my boring life and brought happiness to me. Before doing that, I was a person who just knew oneself only and didn't care others so much. Now, however, I feel very happy that I could help someone.

 The best memory I have during activities is 'The Children Abuse Prevention Campaign' held on Children's day 2012. It was a campaign that we tried to let people think about how many children were under unfair situations and participate in the campaign through doing variety performances. We did Flash Mob to gather people and make them aware about the serious social problem with pictures and articles.
To prepare this campaign, we gathered some foreign friends who were interested in volunteering and talented at dancing. Thanks to the volunteers, about 100 people  were able to join Flash Mob. We practiced only twice before the event. But did a great job. And we made some clay toys to offer every children we met there.
 A lot of people watched our Flash Mob and hundreds of children enjoyed our program joyfully. I felt so amazing that we had made this wonderful event by ourselves and also could reduce this terrible problem at least once by doing this campaign. How worthwhile it was! I will not forget this forever.

 As an office worker and also a member of MANNAM, I have been volunteering on every weekends, helping Korean language class, joining orphanage volunteers, visiting a hospital to treat sick children and so on. It really brings me happy and pleasure. I have got much more passion about the world peace through those activities within MANNAM. If we share our thoughts about peace and love with our neighbors, I think the world peace is possible.

Thank you.

Written by
Min-uk Choi

A MANNAM EVENT in SEOUL

It was Korea's Independence Day in 2011. MANNAM Volunteer Association memorialize meaningful days in Korea.

The meaning of Independence day in Korean is recovering lights. Korea was rolled by Japan and there were no freedom and peace. So many patriots had joined in the independce movements. Korean desired to regain their country. Finally, they recovered the light. MANNAM memorialized that day and thank the patriots.

Furthermore, MANNAM always thank for people all over the world who gave their hands and fought for Korea.

We shared warm heart with MANNAM Volunteers!

MANNAM Volunteer Association Jeonju branch members made donations and delivered briquettes to the neglected social groups.

Dec. 1st. 2013, 40 members of MANNAM volunteer visited Imun, Jeongeup, Jeollabukdo, Korea. They gave 1000 briquettes to the neighbors in need.

It was more meaningful that the briquettes they delivered were purchased by some foreign volunteers for the people who could not go through this winter without any help.

One of the volunteer, K.Pratop, Indian, interviewed "I join this volunteer for help neighbors in need. I feel great and volunteering all together makes my heart warm."

Hong-gyu Yu, the village headman, said "The old couple who have lived in this village for 20 years are public charges. They are sick with illness and one of them is a blind. I had been much worried how could they go through this winter. And now, the volunteers deliver those briquettes for them. Thanks to the volunteers, they can stay warm in this cold winter."

MANNAM Jeonju branch has become more active in their volunteer works. Aug. 4th. 2012, they sold foods and made money in an event. And sent to the Seoul, Joenbuk childhood cancer centers. Aug. 17th. 2012. MANNAM volunteers held a charity event and donated money to the Red Cross in Philippine to help people who suffer from the huge flood.

Beside that, they held a child abuse prevent event in the Jeonju zoo, offered face painting, flashmob, making peace tree for children. They go an orphanage every month with foreign volunteers.

Principles of MANNAM

Principles

1. Embody the spirit of pure volunteerism and work to promote unity among the people and cultures of the world.

2. Offer our time and skills to aid the communities by participating in events and festivals that promote the principals of peace, unity and volunteer service.

3. Strive to be a source of light and hope for others, not accepting payment for services rendered through MANNAM.

4. Grow in our efforts to aid, uplift and enrich society, starting within our immediate  communities - reaching out to the world.  We will uphold the principles of justice and equality for all, irrespective of race, culture, religion, gender or political persuasion.  We will not discriminate against any group or individual longing to work towards the goal of peace and unity for all humanity.  

I love MANNAM!!

Joining MANNAM Volunteer Association is great experience for me.
I go an orphanage with foreign friends and share our time with the children. I help foreigners with Korean. I help some foreigners who are not get used to stay here in Korea. I tell them about Korea and they tell me about their countries.
I feel so happy that I can help people. I can learn from them as well.
Meeting people gives me a lot of lessons. So I love to be one of the MANNAM member :)