Deciding where to volunteer and what activities in which to participate in has been a complete evolution. We started with a simple search online for volunteer opportunities near places we plan on visiting. This quickly became overwhelming as there are hundreds of companies that offer volunteering abroad.
After pouring over all the options, we thought we'd narrowed down our options. But only a couple months ago, Sam found an e-book online called 'The Underground Guide to International Volunteering' that was written by a career traveler, Kirsty. She has her own blog at www.nerdynomad.com and it served as a great resource for us.
Kirsty's e-book broke down further the different types of volunteering abroad, and inside, she shared her personal experience with volunteering abroad. We realized that most of the previous volunteer programs we looked at were really for profit companies located in the U.S. or the U.K. Some charge outlandish prices to volunteer abroad. They take advantage of the volunteers who are just really wanting to help others, and they can take advantage of the people in the developing countries in need of help as well. We don't believe all of the companies do this by any means, but this altered our perception completely.
After reading 'The Underground Guide to International Volunteering,' Sam and I made a commitment to only volunteer with local non-for-profit programs. So......we started our search all over again.
We are so happy with all of the choices we've made for volunteering abroad and we're looking forward to each one. Below is a description of all the places where we will be volunteering on our journey. The "Donate" button on our home page is so that all of you (our friends and family) can help contribute to the cause of each volunteer site. We are fundraising so that we can purchase materials that the different sites need to expand and thrive.
Kipepeo Community Empowerment Program (KCEP)
We are so excited to help out with this program for 4 weeks in November! We found it through websites recommended from the e-book we read about volunteering abroad. Two key aspects are that the program was started by Julius Kuya, who grew up in the community himself. Their focus is helping all the people in the community improve, but become self-sustainable at the same time. They aslo have many areas in which to help, so that Sam and I can use our skills that will benefit the community the most! We will doing everything from helping with their microfinancing program to helping with HIV/AIDS awareness. Below are several websites and blogs that have details on KCEP and fundraising.
"We are a community-based organization in the Emuhaya district of western Kenya, started in October 2009 with the goal of spearheading community-driven development initiatives to empower needy people in the local villages. We do this by providing services and assistance for the right livelihood of various groups in need of support through programs such as HIV/AIDS education, capacity-building, organic farming projects, art and clay works, computer services, eco-tourism, and microfinance."
On their main website homepage, there is a great 9 minute video that some of the past volunteers helped to create, and it shows you a little more background into the community and the projects that they have a passion for.
Kipepeo Community Empowerment ProgramWebsite - http://kipepeo.moonfruit.com/
Volunteer Kipepeo Fundraising Blog - http://www.fundraisingforkipepeo.blogspot.com
Location - https://maps.google.com/maps?q=kisumu,+kenya&aq=f&ie=UTF-8&hl=en
International Primate Rescue
Sam and I had planned to volunteer at the International Primate Rescue at the beginning of January, which is located the captial of South Africa, Pretoria. After our first experience with Kipepeo Community Empowerment Program, we came to the conclusion that we feel more strongly about helping people within the communities where we are staying. We made a small donation still to International Primate Rescue, but will be looking for a place to volunteer in Cape Town, South Africa now within the community.
Upon coming into Cape Town, South Africa, we discovered James House through a recommendation on TripAdvisor and decided to see if they needed any help. School will be starting back up in the middle of January for the children in this community and hopefully we will be making lunch for them, helping them with homework, and just playing with them. The James House organization started as an orphanage, but now try to improve orphans' lives by providing them counseling and helping them to stay with other family members safely in the community. We are excited that we have found this gem and are excited to get to work with the kids. We are only sad that we will only be able to spend a very short two weeks with them.
James House:
Website: http://www.jameshouse.org.za/
Location: https://maps.google.co.za/maps?
Galapagos ICE
Our third location for volunteering will hopefully be in the Galapagos Islands! We actually do not yet have our plans for staying at this site complete yet. We plan to apply just before we leave at the end of October because they aren't currently accepting applications for volunteers until October 10th. Cutting it CLOSE! But we fell in love with the site from the first time we found it!
This is similar to the Kipepeo Community Empowerment Program in that it focuses on the sustainability of the community. Their main focus is on education, healthcare, and maintaining the ecology of the commuinty. I hope to help with the high blood pressure and diabetes clinic, and hopefully Sam can play a role with their construction and other green projects. We plan to stay at this location for about 5 weeks. Hopefully we will know a bit more about this program before we leave in October!
Galapagos ICE Website: http://galapagosice.org/
Location - https://maps.google.com/maps?q=Puerto+Ayora,+Galapagos+Islands&aq=f&ie=UTF-8&hl=en
Haiti
Our final volunteer destination hits a little closer to home. We will be spending our last weeks of our 6 month trip in Haiti. Sam's church back home in Evansville, St. Joseph, has a sister parish in Haiti. Father Gene, the priest at St. Joe's, as well as some of the members of the parish make the trip to Haiti once or twice a year. We have no idea what we will be helping with yet, but plan to do all we can to help the people of the little town called Plaine-du-Nord. They have a community medical clinic as well as needs in their primary and secondary schools. We also have work out details with this location. We will be making our visit at the tail end of our trip in April/May 2013.
Link to information about Haiti Mission on St. Joseph's website: http://www.stjoeco.org/haiti_mission.htm
Location - https://maps.google.com/maps?q=plaine-du-nord,+haiti&aq=f&ie=UTF-8&hl=en
Location - https://maps.google.com/maps?q=plaine-du-nord,+haiti&aq=f&ie=UTF-8&hl=en
Love the itinerary and how you're combining several trips and service opportunities together. You guys rock! Lots of blessings & prayers,
ReplyDeleteBrendan, Laura, Dominic & Lilly McKenzie