rzberrymom Posted May 26 Share Posted May 26 My daughter’s university is shockingly short on volunteer opportunities, and she misses being able to help others. So, can anyone recommend a good short-term volunteer service trip for over the summer? Maybe a few weeks? Open to any location, and she’d love something like working with kids. I can pick something from GoAbroad, but I thought I’d check first to see if anyone has any experience with one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommyoffive Posted May 27 Share Posted May 27 Does it have to be a trip? I am sure you could call up a lot of places that work with kids and offer up her time to tutor, library, or work in a kid camp situation over summer. Heck she could even babysit or nanny for free I am sure families would love that idea. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HomeAgain Posted May 27 Share Posted May 27 Yes, she should be able to advocate for herself and find plenty of volunteer opportunities locally that would love her help. She should assess her own skills and think about where she can apply herself the best. .........I'm not sure why you would be picking something for her? She's an adult at university, right? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bambam Posted May 27 Share Posted May 27 I'd have her evaluate her degree plan, goals, skills, and try to figure out local volunteer opportunities that would fit into that. Going for an educational degree? Consider helping with the local library summer program, local 4-H summer camps, tutoring kids within the local school system during the summer, helping out at the local museum which may have summer camp programs. Going for a finance/accounting/business degree? Consider helping out at the local senior center to see if any of the older folks need help with taxes, reconciling bank statements, whatever. Are there any local non-profit agencies that could use some help in her area of business interest? Our local SPCA type places (both official and private rescues) always need help taking the dogs for walks, loving on the cats, etc. Unless her university is not in a town, there are volunteer opportunities in that town. She may have to look for them, but they are there. One of my kids helped out at the local SPCA place - one day/week, couple of hours - scheduled and repeatable. One girl started a local garden group/club on campus (learned so much doing this - both in starting a group and about working with the complicated systems within the university to find a sponsor, figure out the rules, figure out how to request funding, etc, etc). There are a couple of local food banks that very much welcome assistance. Seriously, IMHO, unless she has issues, let her figure this out. There are plenty of opportunities once you start looking. At her age, unless she has internships lined up for her profession after graduation, I'd look to try to build my resume with volunteering during the summer - both in skills and contacts. 5 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rzberrymom Posted May 27 Author Share Posted May 27 She doesn’t have an account on here, so I asked for her. She’s done quite a bit of research on her own, but international organizations can feel a little sketchy. So, we were hoping someone knew of a legit organization. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terabith Posted May 27 Share Posted May 27 No offense, but international trips disguised as service, outside of a few things that require very specialized skills, are pretty darn sketchy. 7 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frances Posted May 27 Share Posted May 27 (edited) 5 minutes ago, rzberrymom said: She doesn’t have an account on here, so I asked for her. She’s done quite a bit of research on her own, but international organizations can feel a little sketchy. So, we were hoping someone knew of a legit organization. Why does she want to volunteer abroad rather than at home? It would likely be far more valuable for both her and the recipients if she did something local long term, as opposed to a short stint abroad, unless she has some specific skills like being a healthcare professional, construction, etc. It’s hard to imagine that the community where she attends college doesn’t have lots of volunteer opportunities with children. Why does it need to be through her university? Edited May 27 by Frances 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rzberrymom Posted May 27 Author Share Posted May 27 2 minutes ago, Frances said: Why does she want to volunteer abroad rather than at home? She would like to go abroad. I was hoping someone may know of a legit organization. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-rap Posted May 27 Share Posted May 27 If you have any friends living overseas, perhaps your daughter can check with them about local opportunities where they are. They'd probably be more trustworthy and able to better know short-term stints where extra hands are needed in their own community. It might be a little late to line up something with a larger, more official organization... not to mention doing the research to make sure it's one that is trustworthy! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosie_0801 Posted May 27 Share Posted May 27 She could go WWOOFing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-rap Posted May 27 Share Posted May 27 4 minutes ago, Rosie_0801 said: She could go WWOOFing. Yes! I was trying to remember the name of that organization. I have two friends who did that and had a good experience. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teaching3bears Posted May 27 Share Posted May 27 I think going abroad to volunteer can have immense benefit to your daughter. Try international NGOs you have heard of and feel are reputable. Maybe The Nature Conservancy, the World Widlife fund, Ocean Conservancy, Sierra Club, if they need student volunteers. For working with kids, there are many orphanages that probably need help but I don’t know how to get in touch with them and arrange things. maybe you could contact the embassies of countries she is considering. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madteaparty Posted May 27 Share Posted May 27 No experience but there is something-something brigades that my friend’s daughter did in undergrad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted May 27 Share Posted May 27 19 hours ago, Terabith said: No offense, but international trips disguised as service, outside of a few things that require very specialized skills, are pretty darn sketchy. I actually disagree. While the help they provide for the limited time they are there may not seem like much, it is typically the volunteers whose lives are forever changed and I have seen kids and adults who have done a trip like this and decided to permanently go into a life of service or go into a service profession. 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted May 27 Share Posted May 27 what about something like this? working for a camp. My friend is actually the director and friends whose kids have volunteered have raved about it. https://passportcamps.org Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bootsie Posted May 28 Share Posted May 28 If she is not already plugged in with a specific group (church, school, sports, arts, or other special interest affiliation) or targeting a specific location due to language or other skills (botany, marine biology, etc.) then I think it is going to be difficult to find a meaningful international volunteer opportunity for this summer. In addition to identifying an organization and opportunity, she would have to arrange travel, and perhaps visas and immunizations. If this is something she would really like to do, I would suggest that she spend some time this summer exploring possibilities and getting things lined up for next summer. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
***** Posted May 28 Share Posted May 28 For a Christian experience with camps/retreats with handicapped children and their families, or to help disperse wheel chairs abroad, see: https://joniandfriends.org/volunteer/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TechWife Posted May 28 Share Posted May 28 It’s really late to be looking for an overseas volunteer gig for this summer. Local would be easier to find, but even that might be hard at this stage of the game. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drama Llama Posted May 28 Share Posted May 28 On 5/27/2024 at 5:38 PM, DawnM said: I actually disagree. While the help they provide for the limited time they are there may not seem like much, it is typically the volunteers whose lives are forever changed and I have seen kids and adults who have done a trip like this and decided to permanently go into a life of service or go into a service profession. From my perspective it depends. I don't think there is much of anything a teenager or young adult without very specific skills can do in an international setting that would provide more value than donating the cost of the plane ticket would provide. So, you have to look at it through that lens. For example, if you're thinking "having an experience spending time abroad would help my kid grow, and clarify their life goals, and I am willing to pay for that experience for them", then something like Habitat's global programs can make sense. You just have to go into it understanding that the number on beneficiary is the young person, not the community. However there are certain types of international service that have the potential to be deeply problematic. Anything that involves "service" with kids who are orphaned or separated from their families is a good example. We know that programs with groups of teenagers or adults visit orphanages can incentive child trafficking, and disincentivize allocating resources in ways that strengthen families. We also know that they can, at best, reinforce patterns that lead to attachment issues, and at worse give pedophiles access to vulnerable kids. So, even if someone thinks that orphanage tourism might help their young person learn important messages, it's not worth the risk to the children in care. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted May 29 Share Posted May 29 10 hours ago, Drama Llama said: From my perspective it depends. I don't think there is much of anything a teenager or young adult without very specific skills can do in an international setting that would provide more value than donating the cost of the plane ticket would provide. So, you have to look at it through that lens. For example, if you're thinking "having an experience spending time abroad would help my kid grow, and clarify their life goals, and I am willing to pay for that experience for them", then something like Habitat's global programs can make sense. You just have to go into it understanding that the number on beneficiary is the young person, not the community. I can certainly be both, not an either/or 10 hours ago, Drama Llama said: However there are certain types of international service that have the potential to be deeply problematic. Anything that involves "service" with kids who are orphaned or separated from their families is a good example. We know that programs with groups of teenagers or adults visit orphanages can incentive child trafficking, and disincentivize allocating resources in ways that strengthen families. We also know that they can, at best, reinforce patterns that lead to attachment issues, and at worse give pedophiles access to vulnerable kids. So, even if someone thinks that orphanage tourism might help their young person learn important messages, it's not worth the risk to the children in care. I understand your concern, but I have seen some very positive short term volunteer groups. And volunteering with Habitat for 4 weeks and building an actual home WOULD make an impact. But I am honestly not here to argue, if you don't believe in it, think it is harmful, then definitely don't go. I have seen some wonderful outcomes on both sides for short term/summer projects, groups, activities. I grew up in a family who devoted their lives to missionary service and so I grew up in it. There can be bad people in all situations, I know that, but not going at all because there are some bad people is not the answer either, IMO. But again, I am not going to argue with you, I was simply answering the OP's question as she asked specifically about this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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