Be A Part of the Change - in Peru and Elsewhere

I’ve been an on-going volunteer with Global Volunteers since 1998 and have participated on 16 programs in most all the locations where Global Volunteers serves. Most of my experience has been in teaching but I have volunteered with child care in Peru, Ecuador, and St. Lucia.

In Peru, at the Puericultoro Perez Aranibar in Miraflores, I helped the orphanage’s caregivers when the infants and toddlers were first getting up to start their day. I played with the children, read, sang, and generally kept them occupied until the caregivers completed the morning wake-up tasks. I also had the privilege of working with a pair of siblings who, because of their age and gender differences, didn’t get to spend much time together during the week. This assignment allowed the children to spend time together playing and strengthening their bond as sister and brother. I saw some behavioral challenges in the children diminish over the two-week period as they learned to interact positively.

One of the most important lessons I have learned through Global Volunteers is that my role is to contribute to the long-term continuity of the program. Quick changes aren’t usually evident in a one, two, or three-week engagement but, being a small part of the community as it realizes its goals is the beauty of the program.

I cannot say there aren’t challenges, interruptions, or last-minute changes during the course of a volunteer program – that’s just part of the equation when a group of outsiders come together and interact at the behest of the hosts. Flexibility is a necessary characteristic of a dynamic group. In my experiences, Global Volunteers’ team leaders, community hosts, organization leadership and staff continually strive to make the volunteer experience one that serves as a catalyst for change; to enrich the community and the individual. For me, it is the servant-learner aspect of these programs I find so rewarding.