Volunteer projects in Kenya with Love Volunteers
Join Love Volunteers and their local partner organizations to connect with and help the local Kenyan communities throughout the country. Explore Kenya's beautiful scenery and wildlife. By working with schools, orphanages and health clinics, Love Volunteers is able to offer a wide variety of volunteer projects. Projects are flexible for volunteers and can start any day throughout the year.
Volunteers can work with disadvantaged young children in orphanages and schools to support and educate them. Teaching programs allow volunteers to work in high schools or elementary schools and with rural tribes. Teachers are needed to teach every subject, including English. The HIV/AIDS program promotes awareness and medical visits. Medical volunteer projects are also available depending on the experience and qualifications of the volunteer. Love Volunteers also offers community development and refugee support projects. Visit the Love Volunteers website for more information!
Reviews
100%Overall
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100%Overall
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Since my first visit, I have since returned to Kenya and the Love Volunteers program 2 more times. I believe my actions can be more powerful than words. I took the time, energy and money to return because the program is well run, and the work you do makes a difference. When I first arrived at the IDP camps (that is the program I chose) almost 3 years ago there was no hope whatsoever. Families were going hungry, kids were not at school, and these families had little hope. Visiting the camps today you will see a stark difference. Children are in school, crops are planted, families are employed, and there is a new sense of life. Without the organization and wonderful people involved, none of this would have been possible . I recommend this placement to anyone who is willing to bring ideas and make a difference.
100%Overall
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The best experience ever, it really opens the eyes but also makes you aware that even as an individual you can contribute and make a difference. Everyone was so welcoming and friendly. I was met at the airport by the Love Volunteers representative and stayed the first night with his family. After that I was in the volunteer house with several others and a wonderful house mum. I was given several options for work but for me caring for the very young children in the orphanage was best. This was an experience that will stay with me for life and will make sure I do it again. Love Volunteers were really good with their organisation and communications and I felt supported and safe all the time.
80%Overall
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Me and my husband went to the massai program together and we had an amazing time ( if you don`t mind my husbands reaction to the malaria tablets...) We stayed with a familiy a couple of hours drive from Nairobi and it felt like another world :-) We did a garden project were we gave the local ladies seedlings and small plants,and we showed them how to take care of them,we also made a garden at the local school. We felt our work made a difference in the community and the people were really gratefull. The only negative point is that we had to make up our own project since the NGO were not informed what project we were joining (they were told we were teahing...) We had a great time our six weeks in Kenya and we lived with a including an very welcoming family that took us in as an extention of theire own family :-) The staff at the NGO was also easy to get in touch with so we felt very safe and well taken care of. The only ting I regret about the trip is that I brougt way to many clothes ,so there was no room to bring all my gifts and souvenirs home.... It`s difficult to write a review just from the top of my head,but I`ve told LV to give my mail adress to anyone of you who want to ask questions,I`ve also written a short review on LV and facebook sites.
80%Overall
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I experienced every spectrum of emotion during my three weeks. It really was difficult at times. I'm probably older than the average volunteer and work as an IT Manager. I'm used to being able to achieve things that I set my mind to, so it was definitely an experience to me to be in a culture where that wasn't necessarily the case. Went on safari and it was phenomenal!
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Alumni Interviews
Meet Henny Kildahl, Kenya volunteer alum
Henny Kildahl is from the rural part of Norway, he studied agriculture and works as a chef, and these two things combined were a good mix in Kenya. Henny went together with her husband (we were both 30 years at the time of the trip). They stayed from the November to December 2011.
GO: Why did you decide to volunteer with Love Volunteers in Kenya?
Henny: I decided to volunteer after we went on our honeymoon to Kenya, we met the most welcoming people we had ever met. They didn't have a lot of material things, but the had so much happiness and positive thinking in their life. Also my husband had worked in the army for some years and he now wanted to do some work as a civilian an on his own terms.
GO: Describe your day to day activities as a volunteer.
Henny: We were most of the time our own boss, we made our own project based on our skills and what we though was most valued in the community. Our day started around 8 in the morning, we worked until lunch and then we had a brake when the sun was at it warmest, then we got back to work in the afternoon.
The projects we did were a garden where we gave the community ready to plant seedlings and learned them how to take care of the plants. We also did a garden for each class at the local school so they can grow their own vegetables and get knowledge on how to take care of a garden. We got to decide our selves when we wanted to work and when we wanted to take a day off, I am an addict to keeping busy, but it can be quite easy too get a bit lazy I think, it really is another way of living than what we are used to, so be prepared to slow it down before you go.
GO: What made this volunteer experience unique and special?
Henny: I have no other volunteering experience so I`m not sure what I expected and what made it special in terms of volunteering. But we lived with an amazing host family and I think that's really important to make it a good experience, and since we stayed for over six weeks we felt like we became a part of the family. I have a special place in my heart for Kenya and getting to live there and see the day to day life in a regular family made that place even bigger.
GO: How has this experience helped you grow personally and professionally?
Henny: The experience will impact my life forever I think, I've started to be more positive on a day to day basis, I've changed my appreciation to things I took for granted before. And I'm also sure I will support anyone I know that want to volunteer in the future. I also feel I've had an amazing opportunity to share my new-found knowledge about volunteering and the massai people if Kenya to the people around me. And by telling about the experience my niece (4-years) already want to help when she grows up.
Further Info
About Love Volunteers
We are just a handful of passionate people working hard to help volunteers and local communities around the world. We don't have huge overheads - no company cars, no downtown office - we're just volunteers who thought we could do a better job. We work with local organisations wherever we can to keep administration costs to a minimum and also to return as much money and skills to the local communities where we operate. We can offer the lowest possible fees, but also ensure that you are immersed in the local culture and are actually making a difference!
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I spent 7 weeks in Kenya in 2012 and loved every second of it. I meet amazing people, both Kenyans and other volunteers from around the world and felt that the work we helped with was extremely worthwhile.
I spent most of my time with the host family about an hour our of Nairobi near the IDP camp. The 'mama' of this family looked after me like my Mum would and I was welcomed into her family completely.
I volunteered at the IDP school and spent my time working on a reading programme 1:1 with the kids and running small medical clinics for any children that had wounds etc that needed looking after. After school finished we spent time playing with children or visiting families who lived in the IDP camp - seeing how they live was an eye opening and life changing experience.
The pogramme set up is amazing, the country coordinator and the staff from Love Volunteers kept in touch the whole time I was there making sure everything was ok. I was able to help with some special feeding programmes in Kibera, Nairobi and around the IDP camp, a big free medical clinic at the IDP camp and also fit in a safari, trip to a Massai village and a few trips to the Massai markets for souvenirs.
My trip to Africa was something I had been wanting to do for a very long time and through Love Volunteers and the people in Kenya it was even better than I imagined it would be, I can't wait for another trip back to see my 'Kenyan family'.
Critical Feedback:
I wouldn't change anything about my trip to Kenya. There were moments where I was out of my comfort zone but they just helped to make the trip all the more amazing.