WORLD'S LEADING INTERNSHIP PROGRAM

Developing Dreams in Guatemala

While so many people take advantage of the holidays to escape the realities of being an “adult”—doing the dishes, exercising, and worrying about school or work—a team of Dreamer volunteers took the University of Dreams mission to the developing world.

Not four months after a UofDreams volunteer trip to Ghana, Africa, a group of 26 volunteers made their way to ring in the New Year in the impoverished, disadvantaged community of Vuelta Grande, Guatemala. The team left the States with a focus on education and small-business development for women, a chance to engage in a cultural exchange, and a goal of initiating a long-term relationship with the Guatemalan people to spur the success of scholarship and micro-lending programs in the future.

Both volunteers and the community members were transformed by the volunteer trip. In their efforts to help the Guatemalan people, the volunteers learned about the Latin American culture and gained an insider’s perspective into the lives of everyday Guatemalans rather than the typical tourist experience of viewing the country and its people from afar.

Brian Buntz, who organized the trip, said the community members were receptive to the volunteer team.

“They opened their minds up to who we were: Gringos who didn’t just come to take pictures and spend money, but rather to make friends and make a difference,” Brian said.

The volunteers helped to establish a new library for the primary school, built a reinforced retaining wall protecting the hillside school from the looming threat of erosion, and decorated with new paint and murals.

Volunteer participant Cody Leclaire (LA ’05) said helping to construct the wall to save the school was a fulfilling experience as he worked alongside 11-year-old children doing jobs that most grown men complain about.

The group also implemented five full scholarships for outstanding students to attend one of the finest high schools in the area and organized a micro-lending program for twenty women to start or enlarge small businesses such as convenience stores, chicken farms, and agricultural enterprises.

“We worked extremely hard to get all of our work done and felt proud of all that we accomplished,” said Brian.

Aside from all of the hard work that the group accomplished in the 10 days it was there, the volunteers were also able to enjoy themselves. They took excursions including visiting Lake Atitlan, which sits at the base of four volcanoes, and visiting a coffee farm to see how hard the locals work to manufacture our five-dollar cups of coffee. Dancing and dining with hundreds of local children and adults, the group made friendships that won’t soon be forgotten by the village people or the volunteers, especially since UofDreams has plans to return each year to maintain the scholarship and lending programs in addition to ensuring the success of the small businesses and the community’s advancements in education.

Cody said the education aspect of the trip affected him so much that he returned home with a new passion.

“It impacted me so much that I was inspired to come home and develop a leg of the UofD Foundation that helps employ teachers and get them started in third-world countries, starting in the village of Vuelta Grande,” Cody said.

Megan Tribendis said she was also inspired on the trip.

“It truly changed my life,” Megan (LA ’07) said. “This trip put the fire in me to do many more volunteer trips.”

Megan said a trip to a local orphanage to pass out toys and candy to the Guatemalan children was the highlight of her trip. As she hugged one little girl goodbye, she experienced a cross-cultural connection—one that she says was the most moving part of the trip.

“This little girl hugged me goodbye, and I have never received a hug that was so meaningful,” Megan explained. “She squeezed me so hard, it was like she didn’t want to let go. I could tell she was saying thank you and she was just so grateful that we came to see them.”

After a trip of grueling labor and the emotional investment of instilling the hope of an improved future in an underdeveloped community, the group felt rejuvenated to return to day jobs and dirty dishes.

If you’re interested in participating in future UofDreams volunteer trips, contact Brian Buntz at Brian@uofdreams.com.