Program Reviews

This past summer, I found myself in the midst of the Perez Zeledon region of Costa Rica, where I ended up living in a small, rural village. Not only was that gorgeous little village my home, but I was also given the opportunity to travel to Carara, Tenorio, and Rio Macho, 3 national parks and reserves in Costa Rica.
Beginning on the first day, I felt as though our work was extremely gratifying, not only for us volunteers, but also for those whom the projects we accomplished affected. I became incredibly close with so many Ticos (the local youth), as well as the other volunteers.
Although some days were harder than others, I never had a single bad day throughout the entirety of the trip, and that was thanks to all of the staff and the Costa Rican people who always kept my partner and I company. They are the most generous, open people that I have ever met. Even people that you have never met before will willingly open their door and invite you inside, serving you the most wonderfully rich food and telling you stories about all aspects of their life, simply because you ask.
I worked with my partner on painting the community church, as well as the classic AMIGOS day camps with kids. Not only were these rewarding in that I was able to see changes in the physical church structure and also that I saw the opening up of the kids to my partner and I, but they were incredibly humbling, as I realized how little I truly knew about their culture and way of life, and how much they were able and willing to teach me.
In the parks, we were able to work side-by-side with other volunteers and Costa Ricans from different villages, which allowed for new friendships and stories to be made. Not only was I able to see and experience the daily life of a completely new culture to me, but I was integrated into a community that embraced all that I am and all that I will be. I will be forever grateful to the program and all of the people that supported it and my personal experience.

How can I describe my AMIGOS experience? To start off, it was the single most eye-opening, transformative, genuinely life changing experience in my life. I spent 7 weeks in a rural community in Boaco, Nicaragua in 2012 and honestly, I STILL think about it every day. AMIGOS works to improve sustainable community development and youth leadership in rural Latin American communities and in my opinion, is the absolute best volunteer program out there for high school and college aged students.
AMIGOS transforms your entire view on what it means to be a volunteer, and also helps you with leadership and communication skills. I will always remember the incredible people I met in my community, especially my awesome host family and the kids who never got tired of playing with my partner and me. I cannot thank AMIGOS enough for the incredible work they do in Nicaragua and throughout Latin America!

I have worked with AMIGOS as both a volunteer and a project supervisor in Nicaragua, Peru, and Panama, and I sincerely have a special place in my heart for Nicaragua. I volunteered there in 2009 in the region of Chontales, and had the most wonderful experience living with my host family, working with the local youth, and learning about Nicaraguan culture. Before I left for my 6 week trip, I spent the year attending meetings at my local AMIGOS chapter to learn about what I could expect to be doing over the summer, and how I could prepare myself. I still remember getting dropped off in my community, watching the bus drive away, and thinking to myself, "What am I doing here!" Those feelings quickly faded as I got to know my community and truly felt like I belonged there. My two partners and I worked very closely with the school throughout the summer, and our Community Based Initiative project was constructing a kitchen in the main school, and putting in a water pipe to the more rural school in the community. We also helped organize a fundraiser and were able to buy supplies for the community health center. It's been a little over four years since my first AMIGOS experience in Nicaragua, and I can't wait to return and see my host family, and the community that taught me so much about life. If you're reading this and considering volunteering with AMIGOS, do it!

Hi! I'm Meg Radunich, and I served as a volunteer in Guanajuato the summer of 2003. I made lifetime friends with fellow volunteers and project supervisors that I still keep in touch with to this day!

I felt safe and cared for by project staff and by my wonderful host family in El Salto. I came home after my 8 weeks with friends and a continued sense of community from AMIGOS. It was fun to help train the next year's volunteers as well. This is a life-changing experience, and I recommend it to any adventurous young person who has a desire to serve globally and also engage in life-long learning. Oh, and a plus is that you can come home and rock your Spanish class because you're fluent by the end of the summer :)

Seriously one of the best programs I have ever participated in... the positive impact on Oaxacan youth was amazing! Volunteers truly integrated into the host communities, leading educational workshops, fundraising for projects, and supporting youth-led community based initiatives. The connection with host communities was immediate and I loved learning about the strong indigenous roots. Truly one of the best summers of my life. Oaxaca city itself is amazing, and I would love to return back there for a few months if I could!

As volunteers, we'd wake up around 8 am and walk to a different house each day for breakfast lunch and dinner. The whole community knew that we were present and were very welcoming. The kids were extremely enthusiastic to play and work with us. Difficulties we had were just communicating with the president of the town to gather the materials we needed for the community project, but it worked out in the end. We had a rocky living situation in the beginning but that was also fixed after the first week. Overall, it was a great experience. The community was very welcoming, the town and scenery were beautiful and we had healthy meals throughout the whole trip.

The two months that I spent living in a small rural village in Oaxaca, Mexico has greatly influenced my life in numerous ways. Firstly, it showed me the privilege that I've had in my life. Whether it was the many showers taken with a bucket of cold water taken from a creek that made me realize that not everyone had hot potable water available to them at any time in in a nice clean warm bathroom; the short walk to the latrine that made me think about the absurdity that I not only have a toilet with water in it, but perfectly potable water nonetheless - in my toilet; spending all day every Sunday laboriously washing my clothes by hand while praising the person who had the good sense to invent washing machines and how spectacular it is to be hooked up to a power line that powers many appliances that do much of the work for you; or whether it was listening to my host dad's stories of the hardships of trying to cross the border into the US in order to make money to send it back to his family in Mexico that made me wonder at my good fortune to be born into a middle class family in the United States, I have gained an appreciation for much of the commonalities and hidden (and not so hidden) privileges in life. Secondly I gained a whole new perspective on different aspects of life: what is it about (money or family?), differences in gender roles between our two cultures (in the village there, woman did do all of the cooking and clothes washing for the whole family and men went to work, both were very involved in their children's development - I met some of the best dad's I've ever known there, and they found it hilarious (but accepted) when I asked to cook with the women of the village), people's goals, family relations, etc.

Now of course, not all of it was peachy. There were moments where I missed my family and friends in the US terribly and longed for heated house and my own bed. There were times that I thought my family in the US would be disappointed with my time there because sometimes, stuff didn't get done as fast as many Americans are used to it getting done. And there were times where all I really craved was some good ol' refined sugar and a hamburger. This however would inevitably pass, and taught me to not take for granted my family and my friends.

Yes, there were tough times, and yes, there were times that I laughed uncontrollably and had huge amounts of fun. In all it was an amazing experience that words cannot completely describe, but one that I wouldn't ever forgo if I had the choice to do it again.

Being an Amigo in Oaxaca, Mexico, was one of the best things I have ever done. I was able to meet people and explore their culture, language and different ways of thinking and living in a way that I would never have been able to do without AMIGOS. This experience widened my perspective and my quest for a deeper understanding of different people.

I recommended this to all who have an interest in Latin culture, service learning, and leadership.
While I was there we held educational summer camp classes for kids ages 7-12 about nutrition, health, the environment and natural foods.

I loved the experience but I'm not sure if I would do it again anytime soon. I remember crying the first 2 weeks because I wanted to go home since I was not comfortable in a house with a latrine. It takes some getting used to. Eventually I had to move to another host family which was a better fit host family for me. By the end of my trip I was crying because I didn't want to leave. The first month or two that I came back to the U.S., I was longing to be in the Dominican Republic and found any way possible of communication with my friends from over there. The phone bill even reached the $500 mark due to long distance calls.... Now I look back at it and absolutely loved that it happened but am not sure if I am willing to go through all of that emotional stress a second time. It was definitely a character building experience for me, and the challenge helped me to grow.