Volunteering in Ecuador

Decision Time provided a travel bursary for one of its employee’s children to go on a Camp International trip to Ecuador. This charitable organisation sends groups of volunteers abroad to places that suffer from poverty, and it engages in projects to help the communities affected.

Here Jonathon tells us about the work he did and the impact the trip to Ecuador had:

“I travelled to Ecuador for a month with a group of fourteen people (twelve students and two leaders) from my school. Over the month, we took part in many different projects. We built a toilet, shower, and water collecting facility in a community located on the outskirts of the Amazon. There were no electric tools, so we had to mix the cement with shovels and assemble everything using traditional methods, taught by the local maestros.

As we moved into the heart of the Amazon, we helped a separated community build a town hall. Enabling them to meet up, discuss issues and problems within the village, and host celebrations. There was no electricity, we used bucket showers, and we stayed in sheltered huts sleeping in hammocks. 

Kuri Kucho, in the Andes, was my favourite camp from the trip. It was situated 3,300 metres above sea level. For comparison, Slieve Donard is 850 metres in height.  The altitude took time to get used to, and it was very cold, but the view from the camp of the nearby volcano, Cayambe, was breathtaking. While we were there, we built a road to help connect the isolated houses across the mountain. We also created a garden and joined the local woodworking project making houses for guinea pigs, a local delicacy! A group of us also helped out in the fields by harvesting peas, and I learned how to milk a cow.

Finally, down by the beach, we took part in a beach clean-up and helped to turn an abandoned schoolhouse into a meeting space for parents in the community with their kids.

My time in Ecuador was an amazing experience that I would do again in a heartbeat. The group I went with really made it all for me. I formed some great friendships that I hope to keep for a long time. I also have a huge sense of pride; knowing what I achieved on my trip has influenced so many people for the better on the other side of the world.

It was an experience that highlighted how lucky we all are and the effect our lifestyles can have on the environment and other people. It really opened my eyes. This experience wouldn’t have been possible without the travel bursary towards the trip, and I can’t thank Decision Time enough, along with my other sponsors, for helping me have the best month of my life.”