Blog

On my first day in Mexico, all the fear and doubt I'd come with dissipated from my mind. The people in this place are amazing! Despite the hardship they have to face every second of their lives, they still keep a smile; a smile bigger and brighter than I ever had!

Claire heard about our school project in Haiti, and wanted to make a difference. So, she jumped into action and organized a fundraiser in her city, raising over $8000 to provide building supplies to help finish this school that will provide education for hundreds of children! Read her story, and find out how you can organize a fundraiser in your own community.

Lying awake here in my hotel bed in Sosua, I eagerly await the challenges tomorrow holds as we visit the garbage dump for the “In their Shoes” work experience day. Rushing through me are feelings of anxiety, nervousness and excitement. The stories I hear from the staff, interns and returning volunteers send chills through my spine. From what I understand, I will not be able to comprehend the immensity of the life changing experience until I have had the opportunity to do so tomorrow.

On Saturday we went to the garbage dump where we got to work side-by-side with the people there. I did not know what I was expecting but it sure wasn't what I saw felt or experienced. In North America, we have our safe homes, and if not that, at least we have homes that we can go home to. We have so many valuable yet unrecognizable treasures that we take for granted every day. I already know coming down on this trip is the greatest thing that has ever happened to me; it has opened my mind to poverty and i have finally seen the real life meaning of this word that we only know from books or TV.

Dedication day is always full of mixed emotions...pride over finishing a new home in only 5 days...pure joy over seeing the appreciation of the new family as we hand over the keys...and then sadness over the realization that we need to say goodbye to these families who are now in our hearts.

How would you feel if you did not exist? If you had no country to call home? If you had nothing but a mold infested shack to return to day after day. Praying for a better future, but recognized as nothing but an illegal immigrant, you could be removed from the land you have come to know as home at any moment. The very same land which was meant for four hundred, but is harboring nearly two thousand. Tell me, how would you feel if you were put in their shoes?