Program Reviews

This is what I sent to GLA after my kids trip.

I can’t even begin to articulate how wonderful this whole experience has been. 2019 I discovered you after Emma expressed interest in a peace Corp experience. To send my kids on a trip like this gave me a panic attack AND pure excitement.

I did an optometry mission trip to Honduras as a student. The joy, good hard work, bonding, experiencing and appreciating a different culture, the beauty, the non tourist life changing experiences, I wanted this for Ben and emma. And they got it!

I saw it in the blog pictures, in all the kids. And heard it in the many accounts of the trip. They cried in the last night. Likely a release of such an emotional trip. But also they will miss all their new friends in the hosts, mentors, and peers.

Thank you to all that made this happen. Your passion, dedication, time, personal communication, foresight, planning, April Fools joke! All of it. Thank you so very much.

I cried reading the last blog. Tears of so many positive emotions.

And Delta unaccompanied minor program ended up being a God send.

Bless you all.

Wendy and Josh Arrington

Dominican Republic Caribbean Service Adventure: An absolutely fantastic and genuine experience! This is real community service, working alongside locals and learning about the country. The education component and communal labor made it truly hands-on learning. It is NOT a glorified teen tour but the real deal, with fun activities and sights woven in very well. The group atmosphere was cohesive and warm, so many close and lasting friendships made. Absolute gold standard for true and meaningful community service and a super fun time.

My daughter went to the Dominican Republic for 10 days and absolutely loved it! She worked hard to help communities, had an eye opening experience, but also had fun and met many new friends. I definitley would recommend such a program. This type of experience broadens a students horizons and exposes them to environments and/or situations they might not noramlly experience. So happy I was able to send her on this trrip!

I had the most meaningful experience participating in the Fall 2020 Global Impact Virtual Internship. The extraordinary relationships I formed, the unbelievably rich and personal conversations I endured, and the charitable service work we as a whole completed made me look forward to the three times a week I got to participate (even in a zoom setting). I truly believe being part of the GLA community was a gift that not only helped me grow as a person, but formed lifelong connections with people I would not have met otherwise. I will always cherish the meaningful opportunities and worthwhile conversations that brought me and my peers joy and knowledge during a time of uncertainty and dismay.

I was under privileged compared to the other girls on the trip and they formed their own cliques within the first day. Some of the were really nice and included me in activities but if I was around some of the other girls it felt like they didn't want me there. The volunteer made me feel less alone but it would have been nice if I would have felt more welcomed by everyone throughout the trip. I also asked the girls to send me some pictures once we had service but none of them did. I feel like I missed out on a lot of memories and inside jokes. I don't have a lot of pictures from the trip because they were not sent to me after they agreed to send them.

Global Leadership Adventures is hands down AMAZING.....My experience in Ghana was absolutely incredible and I can honestly say it has changed my life forever. Ever since I was a little girl I have always had the dreams to help those in need and to travel. But I was often told I was too young and to wait until I am older and more mature. GLA believes that anyone can become a leader it doesn't matter how old you are. I am so incredibly happy that I decided to do this trip at 14 years old because it completely flipped my life around in the best way possible.

While in Ghana we were able to participate in so many amazing cultural experiences including Ghanaian dancing, Bead markets, and we were even able to attend Church.
The service aspect of the trip was also a part that left me absolutely speechless. We worked in classrooms of children ranging from babies to 6th grade helping with their overall care and also very important academic skills the children would need to move on to their next grade.
But the truly most impactful part of the trip for me was park time. We did this every single day of the program for at least 2-3 hours. This was the time everyone made the deepest connections with the children of krobo that I will cherish forever.

An aspect of the program I wasn't expecting to be as impactful as it was. Was the teens I got to experience the whole thing with. I can truly say that each one of them will be my lifelong friends and I am so grateful to GLA for giving me that.

I will be returning to the same program next year and plan to until I age out of GLA. I would encourage EVERY SINGLE PERSON to participate on this program and honestly any program GLA has to offer.

My daughter returned from Costa Rica saying it was the best experience ever. She had to travel out of the country on her own and handled flight delays coming back. She built strong friendships with all the other attendees and they are already planning reunions. They helped out with children in the community but also learned many new activities including surfing, zip lining, white water rafting. They did cooking lessons, dancing lessons. The facilities were also reported to me as being very nice and there was a special cook who offered a wide range of food. We ran into no problems except the reto4 hour flight delay but that worked out fine in the end. I would highly recommend this program and we already told our younger son that he can go somewhere through GLA when he is the same age.

I loved GLA program and I loved Thailand. I went two years ago and on another program now because I’m not in high school anymore and I wish GLA wasn’t only to high schoolers because it was the best two weeks. They had a schedule and followed it, you were never bored although there was designated down time to relax and chat. It is expensive yes, but 100% worth it for what it provides. I liked how it was both touristy but we did volunteering like it wasn’t just one or another. If you went on this trip, you will be able to explore Thailand. They make sure you can. With volunteering, it was fun and educating and hard but worth the trouble. I made friends for life that I still speak to today, two years later. I wish I did the three weeks but I got so much out even just two weeks.

Since I was young, I've always loved to travel and do volunteer work. When I found GLA online I was ecstatic to complete both of the things I love to do at once, the only problem was picking a country (because of the variety of countries they offer, which I LOVED) and the price. The great thing was GLA offered grants and scholarships that enabled me to travel to Ghana, so don't let the price stop you from enrolling all you have to do is talk to a GLA representative. I picked Ghana the 21 day Children of Africa trip because of the motive of education and cultural immersion. Once I enrolled GLA had helpful tips on packing and what to expect which really prepared me for my journey, even a webinar to further prepare the students and parents. Throughout the whole process GLA was available to answer questions and keep both me and my mother informed. Once we arrived in Ghana the staff was outside the airport waiting for our arrival to welcome us to the country, all the students checked in with the staff and were given a way to communicate with there parents that they made it safely. From that point till the very last day the staff was hands down AMAZING. The trip was everything I ever hoped for: culturally immersing, exploring the sites, interacting with the locals, playing and teaching kids, etc. The trip exceeded my expectations, it was truly life changing being able to share a passion of travel and service with people from all over the world your age. I will never forget this experience.

I had the best 10 days of my life on this trip! It was not nearly long enough and I'm going back with GLA for 21 days this year. Costa Rica is a beautiful country that GLA does an amazing job of showing to it's students. We learned so much about the culture and how to respect the way of life while there. One of my favorite lessons learned was responsible voluntourism. My service project was to help a local elementary school with a garden and murals. We cleaned out a patch in their back yard area then built garden beds. We also talked to the students about what they wanted on their walls then painted sustainability themed murals. My personal favorite activity was playing soccer with the most beautiful backdrop with local kids. Back at home base after long service days we learned lessons about leadership and service. Meals were eaten outside under the stars or on the balcony overlooking the beach. The nightly "taste of Costa Rica" dish allowed us to sample the local cuisine. Though I was there for just 10 days I made amazing friends and memories to last a lifetime.