Volunteer Voices

I will never forget the experience of the Akha village--it was a completely different perspective than MOST travelers ever get to see, and I am so grateful to have seen more of the reality and would love to go back there one day and continue to work with the villagers. Those people will always be in my heart, and always be guiding me. The laughs and songs and silences we shared will shape my life from now on.The villagers of Kok Payom made up the most beautiful, family-oriented, friendly community I have ever witnessed. My greatest wish is that the volunteers who stay there can actually LEARN from that, UNDERSTAND that, and feel inspired to open their hearts as wide as those villagers do, instead of leaving with the same closed, rigid, Western mind and an even more-so inflated ego. Thank you for this lesson and this experience of a lifetime. \"

Emily Marantz ~ Thailand 2009-2010