Global Volunteers 2020Miguel Rodríguez, a psychologist and founder of Comunidad de Niños Sagrada Familia in Ventanilla, Peru, answers questions about inviting volunteers into the children’s home. While the Peruvian government offers no advisories or regulations about visitors in children’s homes and orphanages, Rodríguez, Global Volunteers’ community partner, defends his belief that short-term volunteers enhance children’s care, growth, […]
Global Volunteers 2020When schools were closed on March 11 in Poland, primary school teacher Katarzyna Niedziolka immediately thought of how much her students would miss their classrooms in Grala-Dabrowizna. And then, she said, she realized the suspension of classes until April 15 would also impact the program with Global Volunteers. She sent this message to Poland Country […]
Peru Country Manager Daniel Salazar offers a stirring reflection on displaced children’s action against a seemingly indomitable enemy – COVID-19. We’re reminded by Sagrada Familia’s community that in the face of fear and confusion, we all have a choice to respond with clarity and bravery. By Daniel Salazar COVID-19 hit Peru first at the beginning […]
Global Volunteers 2020Liz Díaz was 10 when Miguel Rodríguez found her selling candy on the street. He asked about her family and learned that conflicts with her mother had made it very difficult for Liz to live at home. Further, her parents were unable to provide adequate nutrition or education, so her future appeared very dim. Years before, […]
After quitting her job, Anna O’Neal embarked on four months of solo travel to figure out what she wanted to do next in her life. In her choice to travel solo to Tanzania, she joined our Global Volunteer team in Ipalamwa, Tanzania to help mothers and children. She said she sought an opportunity to challenge […]
Alumna Carol McNertney’s “second act” began with her students’ suggestion to expand her horizons. She writes how a promise to them led her on a true journey of the “heart” in her retirement – first to Montana, then to the Cook Islands. By Carol McNertney, Global Volunteers Alumna The Promise Everyone who commits to volunteering […]
Global Volunteer Linda Roberts has served six different partner communities since 2015, and has no plans to slow down. The Florida retiree, who says “volunteering adds purpose to her life,” last served in Anse la Raye, St. Lucia, helping the community plant 94 EarthBoxes in two weeks! She shares her journal entry describing how their […]
Seven–time Global Volunteer and Colorado retiree Rene Moquin employed his legendary optimism and enthusiasm to captivate students at Nguyen Binh Khiem School (NBK) in Hanoi, Vietnam. Through skits, music and personal charm, he urges them to “dream of new possibilities.” In these journal entries, Rene reflects on his singular experience and offers personal insight to […]
Can one or two weeks on a service program truly make a difference to people in need? Our answer is yes! Short-term volunteers bring a long-term impact to the communities that we serve, and we have hundreds of alumni stories to illustrate this point. Perhaps, even more poignant are stories shared by our international staff, […]
Jack Bryan, Global Volunteers Digital Media Coordinator, said he learned a lesson on “mothering” in Peru he couldn’t have learned anywhere else. Read his compelling story here: “All that I am, or hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.” Abraham Lincoln A growing body of scientific evidence reveals the extent that a mother’s […]