Why HELP International

There are a lot of programs that send kids like us out for the summer to cool places in the world to do some sort of service, but here is a list of reasons why we chose HELP in the first time and have been really pleased with our summer. Maybe some of you are curious!

• My favorite thing about HELP International is that it focuses on sustainable solutions to problems. Many humanitarian groups walk into places with poverty and just pour money or resources in, and after these are used up the people are still in the same situation as they were earlier. Instead, we work to develop projects that will not only alleviate a problem, but that will also carry on after we leave at the end of the summer. Help the people help themselves! This model constantly has Justin and I asking ourselves, "Is this project going to last after we leave? What needs to happen to keep it going? What individuals from the community need to be involved?" We don't have all the solutions, but we have skills and knowledge from various educational backgrounds, some resources to offer, lots of passion and manpower, and the desire to serve. We work with members of the community to develop culturally savvy projects that fit the needs of the community, address the problem, and provide a solution. By involving the community it ensures that we aren't way off-base with our Western way of thinking (which, believe me, it is way off sometimes), but we are able to give them fresh, innovative suggestions that may or may not fit with the culture. It's long and tedious but it's awesome! Connecting with local NGOs is another great aspect of HELP, and the use of these partnerships also help projects to last longer than our stay here. In this way we really do "fight poverty and empower people".
• HELP International cares a ton about its volunteers. Yes they want us to help the people here, but they are just as concerned about us as individuals. They want us to be able to develop the critical thinking skills, innovation, and diligence to observe, create a project, and implement it, which is why there are no 'cookie cutter' programs that we are just plugged into.  It's like they actually want us to LEARN something while we're here..weird, I know! ;)  From the very beginning they stressed SMART goals to improve our time here in every aspect, from culture to projects to personal life.  Also they sent two board members out during the summer to give us feedback and answer questions, and they were extremely helpful in keeping us on-track. They are invested in the success of their participants and programs and are anxious to improve anything possible. I really admire this about HELP!
• Having taught English before, that was an obvious opportunity for us to consider to travel abroad. BUT we are both in health related fields and wanted some exposure in that area. It's been exciting to explore project options in this area, and although we weren't just 'plugged in' to these types of programs, we have been able to find opportunities to serve in this area.
• There is no better way to get to know a country's people and culture than to actually live there. It was important to us going into a summer-long trip that we would be able to spend more than a couple months making a difference. HELP International sends people out in three waves (six weeks each), and you stay for at least one and any other consecutive waves you want. All for the same price! We stayed for wave 1 and 2, and even though we got a lot done in 6 weeks we were glad we could stay for 12! Development work is sometimes slow and requires a lot of planning, networking, waiting, brainstorming, collaborating, contacting, and then finally action, and we definitely needed wave 2 to deepen our efforts. Basically we never want to spend just a week anywhere again because you can't do an awesome place justice in that amount of time!
• We didn't want to miss any school, so May to August is perfect for us.
• We put in full days and get evenings and weekends off. So much free time! We also have days off that allow us to see a ton while we're here.
• They love spouses: one of us got 1/2 price on our program fee. Which is great because everything costs double for us!

No NGO is perfect, and HELP would be the first to say it's a refining process every summer to make tweaks to make the experience better, but we're so grateful to be involved! We've loved our experience so far and would definitely recommend it! It's a great way to get a foot into development work, build a resume, and experience an amazing culture for 6-18 weeks. We are more than happy to answer any and all questions so please ask away!

And for any who missed the chance to donate to our trip before we left, it's not too late! We're continuing to do a lot in our last month and there's a lot of good to be done in this area of Thailand. Click here to find out how you can contribute to our experience! 

We appreciate everything our friends and family have done to get us here!! I hope you can imagine yourselves right along here with us, riding elephants, building a sink, teaching English vocab words, getting to know the migrant villagers, filming a video about AIDS prevention and treatment--because it would NOT have been possible without you! Thank you for investing in us so that we can invest in a better future full of life-changing solutions for the people we have come to love in Thailand--Thais, hill tribes, and migrant workers alike.

And we'll save you a Google search-- click here for HELP's website.