Global Volunteers

Miracles do happen each day and Global Volunteers has an appreciable percentage of them! The children were wonderful to work with. I feel I made a real difference, and have attained a more complex view of South America. I learned that Peruvian people work very hard and that human needs are a constant.

Whether it was a smile that stopped tears, a game that brought laughter, a list of rare books that brings security or an increased reading ability that brings opportunity, there are many here who are better off because of our visit. For that we can all be sure it was time well spent.

I spent 2 weeks in Xi'an doing a great variety of volunteer work on this program. I visited law firms, discussed Chinese and American law with judges, sat in on a civil trial, and gave a lecture to hundreds of law students at Xi'an Northwestern University. With two other American lawyers, I was featured on a talk show on Xi'an TV. I also taught legal and journalistic English to students in the legal programs one week, and conversational English to students at another school the second week. As a lawyer I went from feeling inadequate in some settings to underutlized in others, but I always had a good time, and I think I accomplished something useful for the students in Xi'an. Certainly I learned a lot about China, Chinese law, and my own ability to think on my feet. I knew no Chinese words when I arrived, and few when I left but I can count to ten using Chinese market hand symbols. The students were friendly, interested, and quick to say 'What's your e-mail address.' The teachers and professors were welcoming, and hosted my wife and I at meals and visited Xi'an sites with us, and at the end of our program, held a series of celebrations for us, the largest of which featured the students dancing in folklore forms ranging from Bollywood to Ballroom, with some exotic Chinese forms and even a Michael Jackson inspired dancer. I have literally hundreds of photographs of Xi'an and the people my wife and I worked with there. Some of my favorites show us surrounded by smiling students at the end of a class. I had such a good time on this trip that I hope very much to be able to volunteer for this program again. XI'an is a wonderful city, inexpensive, and despite the huge tourist attraction of the Terra Cotta Warriors and the surprising number of Western volunteers working there for various programs, you walk the streets almost never seeing another Westerner. Living there, even for 2 weeks, you are out of the tourist world and into real China - yet always able to retire to the hotel for familar and comfortable accomodations at the end of the day. Our team leaders, from the US and China, were excellent and facilitated our work so that beyond having to be up for a 7 a.m. breakfast meeting, we hardly noticed the apparatus that allowed us to do the volunteer work and enjoy the free time. In the free time I walked the city walls, visited the Terra Cotta Warriors unhurriedly, watched the 'dragon dance' in the park several evenings, saw Opera in the park, went shopping with my wife for jade and shoes, wandered through Culture Street and commissioned some scrolls for our house and friends, visited the famous farmer painting town of Huxian and came home with 6 paintings, saw the Shaanxie art museum, helped another lawyer from the US buy a camera, and ate, and ate, and ate -without gaining a pound. I would not say the trip was without drawbacks. There was heavy air polution, and it was not always possible to find Western toilets, an issue if you have arthritis. The teaching assignments varied wildly so sometimes I was talking about my cat, and sometimes I was taking about the jury system. It was unsettling until I got used to it. What lawyer would not want to be able to say 'I lectured in Xi'an, China, a bit, and worked with students at the University there.' as part of their CV? What a trip. Give it a try, and if you go with no expectations you will find only good times, and do something useful in the world outside your practice.

I had an incredibly positive and life-changing experience while volunteering on the Blackfeet Reservation in Montana. I found it so refreshing to be around like-minded people who are positive and passionate about helping others. My experience truly reignited my faith in humanity. As a result, I have become a committed life-long volunteer.

I spent a wonderful two weeks in small rural village called Malungeni (East Cape Province) South Africa. Most of our time was helping in the school; I helped Miss Thobeka teach Kindergarten and first grade. We also had daily "after school programs" at our guest house (tutoring, practicing reading in English, crafts projects, etc.) for all age kids. It was a magic time... walking to school in the morning, saying good morning to the people, the cows, the chickens and the geese. There was a wonderful welcome and goodbye party with traditonal songs and dance. I LOVED THIS PROGRAM!

I have been to Romania twice so far to hold, love, care for the children. The following is what I gave as my journal entry one day while volunteering. It is taken from an organization called Peace of Mind and I quote: "We all hear the voice that calls us to action. It is weak in some and strong in others. I would be surprised if I heard anyone say they had never experienced it. Maybe it is a defined calling to some vague tugging at our heart that makes us restless. But is is there, in one way or another, at one time or another for all of us. The question is what do you do? We are pretty good in our world at silencing that voice. We come up with all kinds of reasons not to listen. I don't have time. There is nothing I have to offer. Maybe I would if I had a little more money. When restlessness comes knocking at your door, you have a choice. Maybe you turn and look at the door. Sometimes you stand at the door and ask who's there on the other side. Sometimes you even have a conversation with the voice on the other side. But then you have to make a choice. I've felt life changes sneaking up on me in the past, and I have been reluctant to answer. The easy choice is to move away from the door and go back to your comfortable chair, pick up your book and keep reading. But what happens if you reach out for the doorknob? What happens if you open the door and walk through? There's just one way to find out." I reached for that doorknob, opened the door, walked through and have never had any regrets.