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Mummon Kammari

Mummon Kammari organizes volunteer activities for the well-being of older people.

Mummon Kammari

Mummon Kammari roughly translates to granny’s own, cozy room. In our name, it has a double meaning: our gathering place is cozy and welcoming, but the rooms of real-life grannies can be lonely places that they are unable to physically leave without someone else’s assistance. Our volunteers both create the lively atmosphere of our gathering place and visit older people in their own homes.

Mummon Kammari volunteers…

  • assist older people with skills of an ordinary person.
  • support and complement the work of professionals but do not replace it.
  • commit to confidentiality.
  • do not accept financial compensation for their assistance.
  • respect each other’s and the older person’s opinions, beliefs and lifestyle.

We wish to remind you that…

Volunteering can take different forms in different organizations and in different parts of the world.

  • Volunteering with older people often requires patience! Usually, it takes time to set things up for a volunteer to visit an older person in their own home or in an assisted living facility. It is important to create a safe atmosphere around volunteer visits. Respecting the older person’s own pace plays a key part in this.
  • Unexpected delays and pauses in volunteer activities are to be expected. For example, it is not uncommon for older people to be hospitalized.
  • Although no special training is required, new volunteers should meet with a Mummon Kammari employee a few times to learn about us and about their volunteer role.
  • It is often impossible to quickly find a volunteer task for only a few weeks.
  • We do not offer full-time volunteering programs. Usually, it is possible to volunteer a few hours a week at most.

Do I have to speak Finnish?

  • Majority of the older people we serve do not speak English. All new volunteers should be able to engage in conversation about ordinary, everyday topics with older people.
  • While you have perhaps heard the phrase “older Finns are the best teachers of the language”, this is usually not true. Volunteering can be a great opportunity to use Finnish language. However, it can sometimes be very challenging to communicate with an older person. Many of them speak in a dialect. Medical issues that affect hearing or ability to speak clearly are also common.
  • Regardless of Finnish language skills, everyone is welcome to participate in the activities held in our gathering place and all Mummon Kammari events.
  • It is also possible to book an introduction in English for your international class or group of students. Contact us for more information: mummonkammari@evl.fi

We thank our…

  • Over 700 current volunteers
  • Partners, supporters and sponsors
  • Interns assisting us as part of their studies
  • Past volunteers who have built the Mummon Kammari of today