Projects Abroad changed my life.

I volunteered with Projects Abroad in their PAHRO (Projects Abroad Human Rights Office) department in South Africa as a part of the two-week special volunteer programs that Projects Abroad offers. As a minor, this was by far the ideal volunteer situation for me. I felt extremely safe and welcomed into the home of my host mother, and placed in this home with two other volunteers in the same program as me, so we were able to commute to work in the mornings safely in a group.
To be entirely honest, the work we were doing was not top-notch or life-changing for the individuals in Cape Town's townships that we were 'aiding'. The woman in charge of our group was distracted, unorganized, and not particularly helpful. However, what I have learned and gained from this program has truly changed my life. The people that we were there to help, the women and children of Cape Town's townships, impacted my life more than I can simply describe. The individuals there shared such a profound sense of community and joy for life, despite their very unfortunate living conditions, and the other young people in my volunteer group shared my passion for helping others and really taught me a lot about life. My host mother is one of the most wonderful people I have ever met, we still keep in touch and she taught me about the South African ideology of "ubuntu", which I have carried with me since leaving the country and this has truly become my motto in life.
Since returning from the trip, I have attempted to continue in this spirit of ubuntu and raise money for the building of a safe house in one of the townships. I still keep in touch with the wonderful members of my volunteer group, as well as my host mother.
In short, it was the people that I encountered, not really the program itself, that truly made this trip as wonderful and life-changing as it was. My entire view of things and take on the central ideology of my life has changed because of this trip.