The months of May and June mark the beginning of summer and with that, the start of many anticipated activities. Days spent lounging by the pool, vacations near and far, crisp watermelon under a hot sun, watching fireworks explode across a starry sky; the list goes on and on. No matter how you decide to spend your time off, everyone would agree that summer is the perfect time to explore and create life-long memories. For our volunteers and for the orphans, our Summer Camp program is a greatly anticipated highlight during these months.
ACHF created this program to help broaden the experiences and skills of the orphans as well as encourage youth to be a part of something greater than themselves. As stated on our website, “These children want to learn from you, and they want to connect with you. It doesn’t take an experienced educator to make a difference.”
This volunteer program is a 2-4 month commitment at one of our partner orphanages, depending on when you are available. Volunteers work five days a week, eight hours a day to teach English and other skills of their choosing to the children. These amazing youth help many of the children who are behind in school get caught up before the new school year starts!
We’re excited to introduce you to our volunteers that are currently in Mexico! Others will be joining them in the upcoming weeks.
Grace is going to be teaching first aid. This will ensure that the children know basic life-saving skills that are important in times of emergencies. As a CNA and EMR, Grace hopes to one day be a trauma nurse but “would be happy doing anything as long as it’s in the medical field.” She reports that so far they have been playing with the children and that it has been a lot of fun, as they have tons of energy and can “swing for all hours of the day.”
Alli is taking a more musical approach and will be teaching ukulele. The guitar is a popular instrument in Mexican culture, but many children have not had the opportunity to learn much about playing the ukulele. Alli says, “I am so excited! The kids here are amazing and so fun to be around. They make me smile all day. I have loved playing games with them and pushing them on the swings. Really any time I have with them is a great time!”
Andrya has grown up attending volunteer trips her entire life and is familiar with the orphanages and areas in Mexico. As an exchange student in Colombia, she learned dances that are common in Latin American culture, such as salsa, merengue, and bachata. She will be teaching dance classes this summer as well as working as a translator for the other volunteers. We know that several of the children are excited to learn dance in particular and are looking forward to the lessons. Andrya says, “It’s been fun being here so far, especially as we find out what toilets overflow and what sinks and showers leak in the house. We’ve mopped a lot in the past couple days to say the least. The heat is slowly killing us, but the food and niños make up for it. I’m excited to start teaching soon!”
Jacob is mixing together a variety of activities and wants to teach English, math, cooking, and possibly sports as well. This will greatly help the tutors already down at the orphanage and make sure that the children receive the education they deserve. Jacob says it has been great so far in the few days he’s been there, as the kids are amazing. They always have a game to play and are keeping the volunteers busy.
We are so grateful for the time our volunteers are taking to teach the children such valuable skills. We know that the memories created will be life-changing for both groups.
If you can’t wait a whole year, you might be interested in being an extended volunteer.
No matter your previous experience or current availability, there is sure to be a volunteer experience that is perfect for you![/vc_column_text][vc_btn title=”Find out more about Summer Camp” style=”flat” color=”primary” align=”center” link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fachildshopefoundation.org%2Ftrips%2Fsummer2020%2F|||”][/vc_column][/vc_row]
