“We want to leave traces, and we want to change something for the better,” says Claudia Stöckl about her work for the organisation ZUKI – A Future for Children.
The Podcast interview with Claudia Stöckl was conducted in German. You can listen here. Find highlights of our interview in English in this post.
Photo Credit: ZUKI – Zukunft für Kinder
Many of you will know Claudia Stöckl as the charming host of the weekly radio show “Frühstück bei mir/Breakfast at my place”. For more than 20 years she has sneaked into the homes of celebrities to share breakfast with them.
This summer, she was awarded the Austrian Radio prize for her journalistic work.
But she not only deserves awards for being Austria’s best radio moderator but also for her dedication when it comes to her volunteer work with the Vienna based association ZUKI – A Future for Children.
Alongside Marlies Steinbach, she is committed to getting kids off the street in the Indian city of Calcutta, providing them not only with a roof over their heads but also with food, medical care and education. Thanks to ZUKI, hundreds of children have found sponsors and a new perspective on their future.
Photo Credit: Sissy Steinbrecher
For Claudia, it all started ten years ago with a trip to India.
Like many India travellers, Claudia Stöckl felt deeply touched when she experienced the poverty in India so close up. She returned to Austria wanting to help in a sustainable way. At a fateful Easter dinner with her family, she learned about the work of a small, ambitious association called ZUKI.
The rest is history.
Shortly afterwards, she signed up for her first sponsorship of an Indian child.
In this Podcast interview (conducted in German), Claudia Stöckl reveals why she wanted to support a girl, and how the close relationship she has developed with her sponsor children over the past ten years has impacted her personally.
“If we want to contribute to redistribution [of resources], we need to improve the living conditions of people where they live,” says Claudia.
However, for Claudia Stöckl, the mission did not end with supporting a girl with sponsorship. Instead, she became the famous face and ambassador for ZUKI, relentlessly motivating others to take on sponsorship for these children as well.
As an honorary management member behind the scenes, she is active in charity events, fundraising, and strategic decisions. In her free time, she writes reports on the association’s work and its ambitious team in Austria and India.
They are rightly proud of their achievement raising the number of sponsored children up to 300 within a few years.
When you listen to Claudia, who talks about her sponsored children with this magic sparkle in her eyes as she describes how much joy and fulfilment her task brings her, you can’t help to wish that everyone can find a cause to support that they can feel so passionate about.
Not everyone succeeds in committing to a cause because it needs much more than just the desire to help.
It is damn easy staying in the comfort zone. You have to give yourself a little push. Click To Tweet
Volunteering takes commitment and time. It demands a lot of effort from Claudia when she tries to reconcile her voluntary work with her time-consuming job as a journalist.
“One must be able to unite that in one life. It’s a huge challenge with the 60-70 hours I work per week. In the evening I write ZUKI newsletters and attend meetings. My vacation is not a vacation but a work trip to Calcutta. Of course, there is always the joy of connecting and meeting these children. But I have not recovered when I come back to my journalistic work, but I am quite tired after two weeks of India in the heat, dust and dirt after every day was spent writing reviews, running management and teacher meetings. It is quite far from this egoism, which is often implied by others (about the reason why people volunteer in the first place),“ Claudia describes.
Photo Credit: ZUKI – Zukunft für Kinder
On the flip side, it does not need a million euros to make a lasting change in people’s lives.
“This may sound obvious, but if you go through the world with a smile, then you already send a message. It makes people feel positive. And similarly, your good deeds make an impact as well. It does not need one million Euros – sure, they are nice. But what I have learned in these eleven years of social work, the most important thing is that you allocate the money well,” Claudia says.
Without a doubt, ZUKI spends its donations well. Like that time when they made it possible for an Indian girl with a vascular malformation to receive an operation in Austria. While the girl was in Austria, Claudia took care of her together with several foster families.
“I still have such a deep connection to her today and the fact that this girl would have died if I had not taken the initiative – that rewards me for everything,“ she says with a smile on her face.
She is also proud of the ZUKI graduates who are proof that the commitment, dedication and love that all employees, donors and volunteers are investing in the project is paying off.
As street children, they arrived at the ZUKI village. Today, they are self-confident graduates with vocational training, able to provide for themselves and their families.
On the essence of life Claudia Stöckl says:
I believe that life is all about contributing for the better, to take someone by the hand and then let them go again. That is the real beauty. Click To Tweet#impACT
We agree with Claudia that it is actions that matter.
“I believe very much in deeds: look around and think about who is not doing so good in your environment and do something about it.”
Here is how you can take action for ZUKI
- Are you interested in sponsoring a child? Send an e-mail to office@zukunftfuerkinder.at to Marlies Steinbach, the indefatigable Sponsor-Mom, who will give you detailed information about ZUKI sponsorships.
- Currently, ZUKI is collecting donations for financing four wells for their projects in India, which cost 1800Euro each. Every contribution counts! Please contact the ZUKI-Team by sending an email to office@zukunftfuerkinder.at
- Are you in Vienna on Oct. 18, 2017? Yes! Wonderful! Join the ZUKI-concert. 100% of revenues support ZUKI. Get more information here.
- Check out ZUKI’s Facebook page to receive news from India. Do not just like the page, but share it with others if Claudia’s work in India touches you.
