Volunteer Voices

When we started volunteering, we had so much to do! The first Monday we spent hours clearing grass and weeds from the Lumbisí vegetable garden. The vegetables grown in the garden are used in the comedor de ancianos ( the cafeteria that serves lunch to any residents in Lumbisí aged 60+). By the end of the project, we were beginning to build a greenhouse where the weeds had previously been. We also worked a few mornings planting trees in an ecological park near the community centre. The vegetable garden and park are tended to by the women in the village whose husbands work far from the community during the week and come home on the weekends. Aside from our work in the vegetable garden, we also volunteered in the comedor. Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday we helped prepare lunch for the ancianos. Some of the afternoons we had enough time that we were able to help them do exercises and/or draw before serving the meal. The ancianos were really nice and loved sitting and talking to each other and the volunteers who spoke Spanish. After lunch we went to the Oratorio to help facilitate afterschool activities for children who attend the neighborhood schools. We helped run an art and theatre workshop that most of the kids really enjoyed.”

Jody Bonhard ~ Ecuador 2009