Global Volunteers staff are some of the most dedicated and resourceful people on Planet Earth! Read about their commitment to service, admiration for volunteers and what motivates them to give their best to make every service program the best experience for all involved.
Your Guide to Volunteer Travel in Nepal, Stephen Raja Chinnappan. Stephen Raja Chinnappan was born and raised in Bangalore, India. He joined Global Volunteers in 2001 after serving as a free-time tour guide for volunteers in Chennai. After being promoted to Country Manager, Stephen led volunteer teams until the India program was suspended in 2018 […]
Volunteer Team Leader Lucy Heegaard (left) began volunteering with Global Volunteers in 2015 in St. Lucia. She then served in Poland in 2017 and went through Team Leader Training later that same year. She has also updated her training twice since then — in December 2019 and April 2022. She served in Cuba in 2018 […]
Volunteer Team Leader LaVerne Lewis first served with Global Volunteers in 2012 in Tanzania and then went on to serve in China and in Greece. She attended Team Leader Training in 2018 and then led her first team to Cuba in 2019. She attended Team Leader Training in April 2022 as well and is leading […]
Volunteer Team Leader Virginia (Ginny) Giffin began volunteering with Global Volunteers in 2008 in Ecuador and then in Poland in 2009. She went through Team Leader Training with Global Volunteers in 2009 and has since led eight teams: one in Minnesota, two in West Virginia, four in Montana, and one in Cuba. Ginny was a […]
Volunteer Team Leader Louise Mollick (second from right) began volunteering with Global Volunteers in 2015 and has served as a team member or Volunteer Team Leader four times in Cuba and once each in India, Montana, Tanzania, and Vietnam. In this first-person story Louise describes how she was forever changed when serving on her first […]
Volunteer Team Leader Michael Harris first served with Global Volunteers in 2016 with his daughter, Alyssa. He immediately sought out additional ways to stay involved with Global Volunteers and attended Team Leader Training that same year. He has since led teams in Montana every summer (except during the COVID pandemic). Mike is a retired educator […]
Nayman Chavalla joined the Global Volunteers Reaching Children’s Potential staff in 2020 as Tanzania Country Director. Having served as General Secretary to the Bishop of the Iringa Diocese of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania, Global Volunteer’ host partner, from 2006 to 2020, Nayman was well-acquainted with Global Volunteers and CEO and Co-founder Bud Philbrook. […]
Volunteer Team Leader Dr. Mindy Lull (top left above) participated in her first service program in 2014 and has served every summer since. She first traveled with a group of pharmacy students to the Blackfeet Reservation in Montana. She later completed Team Leader Training to become a Team Leader. She has brought additional groups of […]
Volunteer Team Leader Julie Knudsen began volunteering with Global Volunteers in 2006 and has served as a team member or Volunteer Team Leader on 13 programs: six times in Cuba; twice in Vietnam; and once each in Minnesota, Montana, West Virginia, South Dakota, and Tanzania. Julie is a licensed clinical social worker and currently works […]
Volunteer Team Leader Karen Wark began volunteering with Global Volunteers in 2016 and has since served as a team member or Volunteer Team Leader on 25 programs: nine times in Montana, seven in West Virginia, four in Cuba, twice in Vietnam, and once in South Dakota, Romania, and Ecuador. Karen grew up in a family […]