Build a School in Central America!

Words can not express how meaningful my School the World experience was when I went on my first trip last March. Never had I experienced such love and joy than when I was interacting with the community we were visiting. While I went on the trip to give to others, so much more was given to me. My School the World trip is one of my most cherished memories and I strongly encourage anyone who is thinking about going to sign up. I promise you will be so happy your made the time to do it. It is worth every minute and truly changed my life forever.

From being immersed in a new culture to overcoming language barriers, my trip to Honduras was an amazing experience. The trip opened my eyes to both the struggles in the community of Quebrada but also to their joy and kindness. While the work was hard, our effort was worth it when we saw the children enjoying their new playgrounds. Being able to interact with the community made the project more personal, and overall, a better experience. This trip showed me how big both the educational and economic gap are and inspired me to continue to work to change it. I will never forget this trip or it’s impact!

My trip to Guatemala was such an eye-opening experience to be able to see how communities lived with so little yet their gratitude towards life was extraordinary. It is incredible to be able to give the gift of learning to another community because of its compounding effects over the long term. I was able to speak a little bit with the kids and adults using the Spanish that I had learned in school. Even though I couldn't speak Quiche, the local language, I was still able to have fun with the kids and communicate through other means. I highly recommend this trip to be able to see how others live their lives in other parts of the world and how vastly different the culture and standard of living is from our own lives in America.

February 2020 was my second year traveling with School the World. The previous year I traveled to Guatemala and the last trip I traveled to Panama. I can easily say that both trips have made a significant impact on my life today. The week spent in February of my sophomore year building an elementary school consisted of long hours lifting heavy bricks and mixing cement by hand in the hot, shadeless building site with about twenty-five classmates. Additionally, we all participated in recess with the children at lunch. After taking part on this service trip, I discovered my passion for helping others in need and immediately jumped at the chance to go on a second trip my junior year and even recruited other classmates to join. The children in both Guatemala and Panama inspired me to always focus on the positive aspects of life instead of dwelling on the negative. They were nothing but appreciative, happy, and caring to all those who came to help build the school. The communities in Guatemala and Panama have a special place in my heart and the bonds that I have created on these School the World trips with the children and communities are unforgettable and irreplaceable. The rainforest of Panama on my second trip was drastically different from the underdeveloped dirt roads of Guatemala, but the impact we made on the community was equally rewarding.

My experience with School the World was nothing short of incredible. Never before could I have expected a service trip to be so enlightening and moving. This trip not only showed me how much poverty still plagues our world, but also how much I take for granted. Simple everyday things- clean drinking water, going to school, sleeping in my own bed, and never going hungry- were all activities I used to not even think about until I embarked on this trip. I am now a much more appreciative person, who has a much greater awareness for global poverty. School the World allowed me to see firsthand how people in poverty live. They also allowed me to help them, both on a small and large scale. By building the Capuchinas community a new school and playground, we were opening brand new doors for the children of this village. Providing them with the opportunity to learn, play, and potentially move out of their current economic situations gave me a great feeling of satisfaction and joy. I hope to return to Guatemala with School the World next February with the intention of providing children the opportunity to learn in a positive and educational environment. To any who are interested in helping others receive an education and having the journey of a lifetime, I highly recommend consulting School the World.

I began traveling with School The World almost four years ago, when I was a sophomore in high school. I was interested in the service trip to Guatemala because a lot of my friends were going, and it sounded like a fun way to spend April vacation. Little did I know that that trip would be the first of many unforgettable experiences with School The World. Before I even returned home from Guatemala, I knew I would be traveling again with STW, and I have been ever since. STW is different from other large non-profit organizations, in that the staff cares so much about each student traveling, as well as each student in the communities they visit. STW's mission touched me on such a personal level, and now I am hoping to make a career out of the lessons and values this organization has taught me. I have not had one bad experience with STW, both in Central America and here in Boston. I always look forward to traveling and working with STW, because no matter how hard the work is, both physically and mentally, everyone is always so passionate and dedicated, making the experience so much fun and so rewarding. Some of my best friends are people I've met through School The World, and I can say without a doubt that my life would not be the same if I had not gone on that one trip sophomore year. I have never seen such a hard-working group of people as the three members which make up the STW staff in Boston -- I admire their commitment and dedication so much. I will always be thankful for everything I've gained from this organization, and I am so proud of all of the amazing accomplishments they've made and the incredible growth they've achieved.

School the World has created an incredibly wonderful student-service program that has shaped the woman I am today! I just recently finished my sixth trip with STW and have seen the program expand dramatically in recent years. Not only are the experiences themselves uplifting, inspiring, and revolutionary for many students like myself, but the role School the World as an organization continues to play in our lives post-travel is exceptional. As an organization, STW truly cares about their student world changers, what is going on in their lives, and how they as an organization can make their students the happiest and most successful in their endeavors. Because of my experiences with STW throughout high school, I have chosen to study Public Health and Spanish in college in hopes of working for a non-profit like STW in my future. My trips have encouraged me to give to and empower others whenever I have the ability to, and have instilled in me a strong sense of empathy and compassion for human life, potential, and improvement. The STW staff have encouraged me to embrace opportunity with excitement and to remain a curious, active, and determined leader and advocate within my community. STW is an extremely hard working, and close-knit organization that I highly encourage everyone to get to know and be a part of!

One of the most powerful aspects of STW's work is the deep connection the organization has with each community it works with, allowing students who travel with STW to form unforgettable relationships with students and community members in Guatemala. While working in the community everyday, some of the most noteworthy activities are shadowing families in the community, teaching the students in their classrooms, and playing with the students at recess! Another wonderful part of STW's trips is that us students are able to see the progression of the school or playground as we work hands-on to finish it by the end of our week in Guatemala. Working to build the school ourselves and knowing that we as a group were able to fundraise the money for the school makes the overall experience even more exciting!

The trips that I have been on with school the world were the most amazing trips I’ve ever been on and i still want to keep traveling with them! I’ve been on two high school trip and one college trip, going to Guatemala and Honduras. I just love meeting all of the children from the different countries and seeing how happy and grateful they are for what little they have. My favorite trip was my latest one, going to Honduras. The kids spoke English and I loved being able to speak to them and make relationships with them. I love giving back to people like that and seeing how happy they get for what we do for them. These trips have made me realize how grateful I should be for what I have. My favorite memory from my three trips was at the end of my Honduras trip, our group wasn’t able to completely finish building the school but at the dedication ceremony, the children were so happy and excited for the school, even though I.T wasn’t finished.