“So, how did this happen?! When did you decide?” Volunteers are often asked that question when they’re heading to or returning from volunteering abroad. Any serious volunteer would embrace that the decision to pack a bag and live in an unfamiliar land for a few weeks or months comes after a lot of deliberation. A dear friend who spent months in Kenya with Namunyak Maasai Welfare said that she encountered a dazzling spectrum of emotions and questions before arriving at the decision to volunteer abroad, and that it wasn’t a cake-walk when she returned home to creature comforts she had taken for granted all of her life, to family and friends who seemed different, for they hadn’t shared her life-changing experience. The decision to give up personal time to work with a local community-led organization in a developing country is rarely straightforward, and the experience brings with it several stages of reflection:
Soul searching: Can I do this? Do I have anything to offer? It’ll be a crazy long flight. The food will be so different. I won’t know the language. Different culture! I really want to be part of a solution, I want to help, but can I really? Will I be able to adjust?
Investigation: Who should I volunteer through? Who should I volunteer with? What issues do I truly feel passionate about? Who can I trust? Why is one organization more expensive than the other? Will my hosts be compensated for me to be there?
Preparation: Who will be my primary contact? What clothes should I pack? Do I need vaccinations? Should I learn a few phrases in the local language?
And then you arrive: I’m here! What should I do first? Culture shock! I feel so welcomed with so many friendly smiles!
Left: Sterling Dragooat Mountain View Eco Farm, 2013 | Right: Jami Rudofsky at Common Ground for Africa, 2007
The volunteer stint nearly always ends sooner than expected. Weeks fly by and before you know it, it’s time to take the bus to the airport. While you have missed your family and friends, your favorite food and maybe even your bathroom, it’s often harder to return home:
Reverse culture shock: Why do people at home waste so much food? Can I really go back to taking a 14-minute long shower? Why do all my friends seem so different to me than before?
Reflection: Who am I in the world? What can I do now that I’m home? Why can’t I concentrate on anything else? How can I continue to have meaningful experiences in my everyday life?
And finally, you embrace your experience and celebrate: I went, I witnessed life in a community on the other side of the globe, and I’m home safe. I have so much to be thankful for and friends I will never forget. I can take on anything!
And your life changes forever.
At Village Volunteers, we like to help volunteers through these stages. We understand your fears: the long plane ride, staying healthy, whether you feel like you can have an impact, be accepted and needed. But once you have packed and prepared, got your visa, your vaccination shots and are on your way, you get on that airplane and a relief spreads over your body – you are on your way. That feeling is amazing, a moment of pride for having done something bold and unselfish with your time and money.
Fearing the unknown is natural. We at Village Volunteers and our alumni are here for you to share our experiences and provide you an understanding of what to expect, and talk about what you experienced when you return home. We often put potential volunteers in touch with alumni before the journey, and what they hear is usually inspiring, educational and motivating.
Safety and health are perhaps some of the biggest concerns volunteers have for their trip. Our program directors are conscious of your health and safety as being paramount. We place implicit trust and confidence in our program directors who put measures in place to ensure that as many contingencies as possible are covered.
Truly, everyone who volunteers has the sense that they will get much more out of the trip than they give. Any initial trepidation they have at the preparatory stage inevitably gets overshadowed by the thrill of the experience. And we couldn’t be happier than to help you tailor an immersive, meaningful, responsible and safe volunteer experience … just let us know when you’re ready to pack your bag.