Program Reviews

I absolutely loved my six weeks in Arusha, Tanzania. Its so diverse here, you really have the opportunity to get amongst it all. I spent a lot of time with the children doing all sorts of things, like playing games, teaching english in the school etc however there was more then enough opportunities to get involved with things that keep the orphanage running. I spent time cleaning, lugging water and dirt, serving the children for lunch and occasionally dinner, gardening and basically anything that needed to be done. Be prepared to get dirty because a lot of what needs to be done is on the ground like laundry and dishes etc. I have to admit none of that matters because it is so easily adaptable at Matanyok. The Mumma and Pappa of the orphanage were amazing and really made me feel like one of there own daughters. They often would invite me around for dinner with them and the children "now thats a crazy process, feeding all their little mouths". I absolutely fell in love with the children of course, at first they are a little shy but once they learn your name and see you more then once they are also in love. The joy you get from telling them stories and playing activities will give you life long fulfillment and only inspire you to carry on your journey and continue to volunteer. I look forward to the next time I am back to see how much has grown and changed.

I just finished my week in Ukraine, and I can honestly say it was one of the best experiences of my life. So much that I plan on coming back for 5 weeks when I am done school this year. I had been looking forward to volunteering in Ukraine for a while now and my coordinator was very fast at answering any questions I had at least two months prior to my arrival. My week was very organized, I got to do so much for the time I had, see children from different orphanages, visit the area, enjoy plenty of the local food and plan activities for the children. Another aspect of this trip is that, other than my love for Ukraine as a country and its beautiful culture, I was amazed by the children's view of happiness and their profound respect for one another. They were caring, grateful, protective, always smiling and very loving. All they wanted was to play and enjoy their afternoons together. It was so precious and simple. I also got to teach English and, my Ukrainian/Russian grammar being far from perfect, my coordinator Alex acted as a translator and everyone was very helpful and understanding when he was not around. As there were different types of orphanages, children differed on mental levels or physical illnesses, but I could never tell, because you'd be surprised how much children can communicate simply with a smile or a laugh ! It is the most rewarding feeling. All together it was a truly touching experience and I plan on keeping in touch, sending toys, crafts and pictures during the year (they promised to show me pictures of their art) and am very excited to make new memories with them in 10 short months !!!

Karine Wlasichuk, Montreal, Canada
Autumn, 2015

This description is from the email I received from Love Volunteer (LV): "We work with schools and orphanages in and around Ulaanbaatar. They're generally lacking resources and so support from volunteers is greatly appreciated. The work is varied but volunteers who are assisting in a school will work with local staff and one-on-one with students. As they settle in they can take their own lessons."

The program was marketed incorrectly and NOT as described through our communications with Love Volunteer nor the coordinator.

First of all, when I showed up in Mongolia, I was picked up by the director's daughter, which is fine, because he had told us that he was out of the country. However, when we were dropped off at our apartment, there was not further instruction and we had to figure it out on our own. The next day, a local high school kid, who apparently volunteers with this program, came to give us a city tour, and told us that school was not in session, because it was their spring break, something we were unaware of. So basically, the first week of my 4 weeks, was wasted.

The 2nd week, I arrive at the school assigned with another volunteer to discover that we were volunteer at a private school, NOT an orphanage as expected. These were rich city kids and some of them even owned brand bags and iPhones.

We got in touch with the LV coordinator and told her the situation. She immediately contacted the coordinator to understand what was going on. Apparently, she was also unaware of the situation. She was good about keeping in touch with us and ended up returning a portion of the cost back to us.

We also met with the coordinator to understand why a non-profit was working with private schools and where is the orphanage as advertised? Basically, the orphanage camp is only ran during summer. Though he didn't explicitly say why, it seemed like he puts volunteers in private schools as a way to make some more money from volunteers. Also, only about 20% of the total cost goes to anything to help orphans. The rest is marketing, housing, and salary. NOT ok.

I was really upset with how the whole thing turned out. I received a portion of the money back and left the program to find my own volunteer opportunity. I DO NOT recommend this program, though I do appreciate Love Volunteer's efforts in resolving the issue.

I was in Moldova for one month and I had a wonderful experience. Svetlana was extremely welcoming and met us at the train station when we arrived. My home stay Alyona was one of the nicest people I've ever met, she was so accommodating and we still stay in touch from time to time.

I imagine it would be a little difficult at times if you didn't speak Russian or Romanian but for me I had ample chance to practise (my Russian) and it helped me in the town and in the village. When I was volunteering there were 4 of us and so we also volunteered in a nearby village, which was extremely rewarding because I could really see how the children and adults improved over the month I was there.

Many people in Moldova are very motivated to learn English but they have a real shortage of teachers and Svetlana works extremely hard to provide lessons and opportunities for everyone, which is why it was such a great opportunity to be able to help her.

I was very happy when I found Love Volunteers. Not only do they have programs all over the world, they are also economical! I took a bit of a risk when signing up to go to Zambia as there weren't any reviews of LV volunteers there. That being said, it was the best decision ever!

I saw other programs available for Zambia at twice the price! I ran into some of the programs in Zambia and am glad I didn't end up signing up with them. With the local NGO LV partners with you get more of cultural experience and you live in the bush! Don't let that scare you thought, you still get a chalet with showers, toilets, nets, pillows and great cooks. Most importantly you get to know the locals, whether it be the locals whom you'll work alongside with or the locals whose house your building or the neighbours.

The NGO also has an option for a Botswana Safari which is reasonably price considering you go to different parks, accommodations and transportation.

If you want the real Africa, go to Zambia. If you want to truly contribute to the local community, volunteer with Love Volunteers. All the money you pay (except admin fee) goes to the local NGO, which in turns buys material for volunteers, hosts you, feeds you, and employs locals!

I couldn't have hoped for a better experience. Thank you to the LV team, the NGO, and the local Zambians!

To start, volunteering in Moldova is a true volunteering experience. Unlike some other programs, which seem to treat volunteering more like a component within a holiday package, the position here as an English teaching assistance will feel like a full-time job. That being said, the position and its responsibilities are not daunting. Svetlana, the program coordinator, does everything she could to make sure that volunteers feel comfortable with their assignments.

In a way, too, by participating in this program, I feel like Moldova gave even more to me than I gave to its people. Both its land and its people preserve a beautiful soul that has almost been entirely forgotten by other parts of the world. Almost everyone I met there is extremely sincere and good-hearted. Spending time with these people, you will learn something about yourself too.

My main complaint with Love Volunteers is that they are simply a middle man. They hooked me up with a local NGO, which was great because I would have never found that NGO by myself. The problem is, for the two months I spent in Cameroon I paid Love volunteers upwards of 800$ in total. If you go directly to the NGO's website, it would have cost me 200$. Im pissed that I payed 600$ extra for basically nothing. They are making a massive profit off every good-hearted volunteer trying to make a difference in the world. Not sure I would give the local NGO a five star review either, but it was a good experience & I was well cared for the entire time I was in Africa.

Svetlana was a very supportive coordinator and constantly checked in to see how I was doing, even when I was traveling. I had a very welcoming host family who had hosted several volunteers in the past, and they provided me with a comfortable and authentic Moldovan experience. Causeni was very safe and I was perfectly at ease walking around alone. Even the local children ran around unsupervised. The most important advice that I would give is to approach the experience with an open mind. The living conditions in Moldova aren't as glamourous as they are in the West, but they are quite comfortable and I believe that the quality of the fruits and vegetables is better than the kind you find in the West. There was a water outage for 3 days during my stay, but it didn't impact my experience that much. The stores in the town center had everything that I needed and there were many convenient currency exchange locations.

My time in Moldova was one of the greatest experiences of my life! I'm already planning my trip for next summer so I can stay for even longer. my host family were possibly the most generous people I've ever met and despite their lack of English and my lack of Romanian or Russian I made such a great bond with them. I also made many friends and most importantly the teaching felt very rewarding.

Do not go into this trip expecting to make friends with loads of other volunteers. For one, there are never more than 4 volunteers at a time and also for a week of my trip I was the only volunteer! However, this I surprisingly found as a positive. It made me strive more to connect with the local people and therefore I did and learnt a lot more about their culture and felt like a part of their community.

I could not recommend this trip highly enough. Moldova is a beautiful country with the most welcoming people.

My experience volunteering with the children and getting to know the locals was amazing. I knew very little about Ukraine and its history befor arriving. I spent my days teaching English and face painting. However I would not recommend volunteering through love volunteers. The overall experience with the Ukraine coordinator was horrible. I've never felt so deceived and controlled by anyone like that before. My first issue was paying $535 for staying there for two weeks. I had no idea before my arrival the state of Ukraine's economy and how drastically different it is from the USA or any other European country. I didn't think it was reasonable to charge that amount since you could have breakfast for less than $1 and rent a for a room is $40 a month in the city center. The amount I paid for room and board for two weeks is what a school teacher makes working full time in 6 months. I also went out of my way to try and connect with other teachers. When Alex found out I talked with other people he became very irritated. Staff members told me Alex said it was "forbidden" to talk to me and only allowed through him. He also insisted I was working at a summer camp for orphans or extremely poor children. I later found out it's a sanatorium which I wasn't familiar with and any Ukrainian child can attend regardless of their background. The worst part for me was when he would go out of his way to introduce me to orphans. He would translate the children's responses and I would just stand there looking at their sad blank faces. I felt like he was using the children's sad stories of being abandoned or orphaned tragically to convince me that there were orphans there. Near the end of my stay I confronted Alex about my issues with him. He told me he didn't like "my kind of woman" and insisted he never lied and the cost of living is much more so the prices were reasonable. I believe that the coordinator and the host family work together to profit massively off of volunteers. I wouldn't recommend going through love volunteers if you're interested in volunteering in Ukraine.

If you're interested in Ukraine there are other options. This review is not intended to deter people from volunteering there. I received so many hugs, bracelets, and hellos from countless children. I'll never forget their sweet faces and gentle nature. There was also never a moment i felt unsafe.