Summer Internship - DR 2012

This summer, we hope to have you join us in Dominican Republic as an INTERN! Live Different Hero Holiday is a program started by Absolute Leadership Development Inc. in 2005. Our goal is to provide volunteers, just like you, with the opportunity to experience the power of making a difference for someone else, while being changed and impacted in the process. You will never be the same! Hero Holiday is an opportunity to travel and meet incredible people whom you will quickly call friends. But it's even more than that - it's the chance to experience life from another perspective and return home changed.

All interns will be responsible to work along side the Live Different Hero Holiday Staff to help facilitate the trip experience for our volunteers. Some responsibilities will be assisting with:

  • Registration.
  • Airport shuttles.
  • Team leading.
  • General hosting.
  • Evening activities.
  • Participant assignments.
  • Job site moral.
  • Merchandise sales.
  • Basic security.

In our Live Different Internship we only offer 10 positions. When applying, you will undergo an approval process and the 10 most eligible applicants will secure a position. We are looking for interns who are able to exemplify good leadership, maturity, compassion, energy, initiative and who are engaged in their school/community.

**All interns are asked to include a letter stating all of their past and present volunteer experiences when mailing in their consent package. We also require a 500 word essay (minimum) on why you would be a great intern and what you hope to accomplish while on our Live Different Hero Holiday Internship. All applicants will be considered and notified of our decision by December 15, 2011.  Should we receive more then 10 applications, a waiting list will be formed and applicants notified as soon as a position opens. Please be prepared to complete a phone interview.

Trip Details

Trip Date:
Jul 2, 2012 to Jul 27, 2012
Registration deadline:
Dec 15, 2011
Minimum fundraising amount:
3,900.00 CAD

Registration steps

Step 1: Registration for this trip is closed (trip is full)

Step 2: Send your initial 300.00 CAD to confirm your registration and secure your spot. Click here to donate

Step 3: Download and print
  • consent package
  • paper donation form(for donors unable to give online)
  • Include volunteer experience and 500 word essay on why you would be a great intern and what you hope to accomplish while on our Live Different Hero Holiday Internship

Step 4: Mail consent package to:
Hero Holiday Processing Office
Box 25103 RPO West Kildonan
Winnipeg MB R2V 4C7
  • Specifics
  • Itinerary
  • Projects
  • Security
  • Fundraising/Refunds

    • Minimum Fundraising Requirements

    • $3,900 This is a minimum amount each volunteer has been asked to fund raise/contribute to Live Different Hero Holiday.
      • $300 due with Consent Package.
      • $1,800 due April 15th, 2012.
      • $1,800 due May 15th, 2012.
    What this amount includes:
    • Flights to and from Puerto Plata.
    • Tourist fees for entrance into Dominican Republic.
    • Emergency Travel Medical Insurance.
    • All ground transportation needs in the Dominican Republic (including all airport shuttles and daily transportation).
    • 9 night accommodations at Sosua By The Sea.
    • Meals while in the Dominican Republic.
    • Haitian and Dominican Translator(s).
    • Building projects and materials.
    • Local contractors to work along side the teams and help facilitate the work being done.
    • General hosting, supervision, debriefing sessions, evening activities, security and misc.
    What this amount does not include:
    • Private room at resort - everyone has an option to pay an additional $300 to have a private room.
    • Excursion options, approximately $70 - $90 USD (optional).
    • Team meal on the beach of Cabarete $20 USD (optional).
    • Resort staff tip $20 - $30 USD (suggested amount).
    • Spending money
    • Meals while traveling (including time in your time in Toronto, ON)

     

    Monday, July 2nd:

     

    • Registration from 3pm - 5pm If you need to fly to Toronto, please arrange for your flights to arrive at the Toronto Pearson International Airport before 5pm. Airport shuttles are provided if needed. A Live Different Hero Holiday staff member will be waiting for you outside of the baggage security area. They will be holding a sign and wearing a Live Different Hero Holiday T-shirt.
    • Internship Orientation from 5pm - 8pm.
    • Supper provided at 6:00pm.
    • Registration is at the Travelodge Hotel, 925 Dixon Road, Etobicoke, Ontario. We will be sleeping at this hotel as well. (It is a five minute drive from the Toronto airport)

     

    Tuesday, July 3rd:

     

    • Registration in Toronto, ON for regular volunteers from 3:00pm - 5:00pm.
    • Staying a second night at the Travelodge Hotel, 925 Dixon Road, Etobicoke, ON.
    • Supper will be provided at 5:30pm.
    • General Volunteer Orientation from 6:00pm - 8:00pm.

     

    Wednesday, July 4th:

     

    • Fly to Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic.

     

    Thursday, July 5th:

     

    • Awareness Tour - Meet the family you will be building for and get to see past projects that Hero Holiday has completed. This tour will help you understand the way of life in the Dominican, the cultural relationships and challenges that exist, and why and how poverty is affecting this country.

     

    Friday, July 6th - Tuesday, July 10th:

     

    • Project Rotation
          1.    Building sites - Everyone is a part of a team that sweats and labors together to build homes for families in need! While on the building sites, your team will also have the opportunity to get to know the community you are working in by facilitating activity sessions for the local children and possibly helping the families with daily chores needing to be done. Some examples are: playing dominoes, getting your butt kicked in soccer, basketball or baseball, working on crafts with children, helping wash laundry or dishes, etc. Our goal is to come along side these people as friends to help, while showing them the dignity and respect they deserve.
          2.    "In Their Shoes Work Experience" - (Possibility) Imagine being able to step into someone else's shoes (if they actually owned a pair!). What would it be like to work daily in a garbage dump, desperately seeking ways to support your family? Hero Holiday works alongside of an incredible community of Haitian people in Dominican Republic who have no choice but to do this every day. During this experience, we provide a safe and practical way to help to triple the daily earnings for a family entrenched in poverty. By assisting them to find recyclable materials that they are able to get payment for, we are able to experience life from their perspective, and realize the power of hope.

     

    Wednesday, July 11th:

     

    • Day off to RELAX! Hero Holiday also recognizes that part of our name is HOLIDAY! Each team member will be afforded one day off for relaxation and/or adventure. We want you to experience some of the natural beauty and adventure that Dominican Republic has to offer.

     

    Thursday, July 12th:

     

    • Preparation for what is next - Hero Holiday is going to be one of the most intense and life-changing experiences you will ever have. Because we believe that this is just the beginning of something for you, we want to help you to prepare to return home and integrate this experience and the lessons learned. We will have a final debriefing that will help you to take this experience and help others understand how we can make a difference in our local and global communities.
    • You will have an opportunity to donate gifts towards the families' home. Groups in the past have pooled extra cash they brought and purchased beds, cookware, groceries, stoves, furniture, etc.
    • House Dedications. Have you ever wondered what it would be like to hand over the keys to a brand new home and give the hope of warmth, security, and a brighter future to a family? This gift and moment will be etched in your memory for many years to come.

     

    Friday, July 13th

     

    • Team flies home
    • Clean up resort and rest of day off. (Trust us, you will need it!)

     

    Saturday, July 14th - Tuesday, July 17th:

     

    • Special intern project (TBA)
    • Team building and leadership training
    • Fun Intern excursion!

     

    Wednesday July 18th:

     

    • Morning - prep work before second team arrives.
    • Afternoon - second team arrives

     

    Thursday, July 19th - Thursday, July 26th:

     

    • Repeat schedule of the first trip.

     

    Friday, July 27th:

     

    • Back to Canada
    • If you are flying home the next day and need to stay overnight, hotel rooms are available at the Travelodge Dixon ($20 quad, $40 double, $80 single).

     

    Saturday, July 28th:

     

    • Airport shuttles will be provided to the Toronto Pearson Internation Airport (YYZ) until 12:00pm.
    The project details are not available at this time, check back soon!

    All of our Hero Holiday staff are experienced professionals in each area they facilitate. We have professional drivers, builders, youth workers, administrators, cooks, mechanics and interpreters. We maintain excellent community relations and work diligently alongside of community leaders and government officials in each country that we work in. We take our responsibilities and your expectations very seriously. Safety is always our number one priority. All of our key staff are first aid certified and we always have immediate access available to quality medical attention (if needed) in all countries that we work in.

    Before a Hero Holiday begins, all parents are given contact numbers and emails for Hero Holiday ground staff. We are available at any time for parental concerns or emergencies. Our staff also works hard to keep family and friends back home updated on a daily basis with stories and pictures of what is happening with each particular group.

    Understanding of Charitable Donations

    • It is important to understand that Live Different Hero Holiday is a charitable program of Absolute Leadership Development Inc. This means that "participants/travelers" are functioning as volunteers of Absolute Leadership Development, to with assist our charitable humanitarian work. Hero Holiday Participants are not the beneficiaries of this charitable program; they are volunteers, approved by our Board of Directors, that carry out the humanitarian work.
    • Due to the expense and logistics of coordinating a volunteer humanitarian development project, an important qualification is for each volunteer to meet their trip's minimum individual fundraising goal. To meet this minimum goal, volunteer's can solicit tax receiptable donations on behalf of Live Different, for the specifc project they are volunteering on. According to charity law, a donation is a voluntary transfer of property without valuable consideration to the donor; donors cannot choose the beneficiaries of their donations, and a charity must have full discretion in deciding how to allocate its funds. It is the volunteer's obligation to inform donors that all donations are given to the project/charity, and are not being given as a direct monetary benefit to the volunteer.
    • This means that ALL donations are absolutely, 100% non-refundable. In event of any form of cancellation whatsoever or overpayment, funds will instead be allocated towards other charitable programs.
    • A Donation/Payment Form must accompany all monies submitted to Live Different.
    • Do NOT put the volunteer's name in the memo on a donation cheque.
    • Alternately, if a person does not want to give a donation to the charitable project, but make a non-tax receiptable payment on the volunteer's behalf that will have the benefit of falling under our refund policy, they can indicate this on the Donation/Payment Form.

    Refund Policy

    • This Refund Policy only applies to monies that have been explicitly marked as a "payment" on the Donation/Payment Form.
    • Up to 50% of trip payments (not donations) may be refunded until Apr 15, 2012.
    • After May 15, 2012, no refunds will be given except for extreme circumstances such as death or severe illness/injury resulting in the individual being unable to participate. In such cases, up to 80% of trip payments (not donations) may be refunded. Requests for refund must be made in writing and be accompanied by a death certificate or a doctor's note.
    • Donations are 100% non-refundable.
    • All requests for refund must be forwarded to Absolute Leadership Development Inc. in writing.
    • Payments cannot be forwarded towards a future Live Different Hero Holiday or transferred to another volunteer.
    • In the event of failing to meet application requirements (i.e. not obtaining a valid passport, not meeting minimum fundraising goals, etc), Absolute Leadership Development Inc. (Live Different) reserves the right to cancel participation with no refund of payment.