Once in a lifetime

The best decision of my life was my semester off volunteering, and Projects Abroad made it so amazing. The staff in my country took me and all the other volunteers in and we felt like one big family. We have weekly meetings and dinners all together, then usually would go out after, and once a month we would do a Community Day and go out to a village or shelter or anywhere that needed help and just helped out... In my three months, I painted kennels at SPCA, went to a women and children's village on a holiday called Diwali, and built a fence in a village's farm to keep the pigs out. The best part was the people you got to meet while helping. They also place you in a school or whichever program you applied for (mine was a special needs school) and are there every step along the way, from meeting the other staff, to complains or concerns, or in some people's cases, a placement change. You're also placed in a host family, which I believe was the highlight of my whole placement. The families you get to meet and live with take you in and you really become a family member while you're there, and even still after you're gone! Another relationship you hold onto after you leave are the friends you make in other volunteers and natives of your country. Everyone has Facebook nowadays, so it's not hard to stay connected. One of my closest friends now, who I met in Fiji, is from Denmark, and we still talk every week, if not more! Volunteering really helped me grow and find myself while making life long friends in my staff, natives, and other volunteers! Really a once in a lifetime opportunity, and it's a easy one to get to with all the help you receive from Projects Abroad!