La Vida Idealist » Lisa Hetzel

Evaluating Our Impact

Lisa Hetzel — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 14:18:49 +0000

As 2009 comes to a close, many of us volunteering in Latin America will find ourselves in a reflective mood, evaluating what we’ve accomplished and setting new goals for 2010. I was put in an especially pensive state the other day by the visit of two exuberant women, Fran Early and Connie Newton, who interviewed me as part of the research phase of a book they are writing about volunteerism, focusing on the experience of volunteering in Guatemala.

The fascinating twist added by Fran and Connie is that they are most interested in evaluating volunteer impact from the perspective of those who are “volunteered upon,” the intended beneficiaries of our efforts. I got to thinking that this perspective is really one we should adopt on a day-to-day basis in our work. How often do we stop and ask the students, patients, loan recipients or parents with whom we work: How do you feel about the way I’m helping you? Am I including your perspective when we make decisions together, when I offer advice, or when I offer you material assistance? And on a most basic level, do we share the same idea of what is helpful to you or to your community?

In setting my goals for 2010, I think I’ll try to go back to some communication basics. Active listening techniques could top my list, including checking for understanding and evaluating how my messages are perceived. I’ve got a lot to think about.

Educational Exchange with New Hope Teachers

Lisa Hetzel — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 11:34:52 +0000

Most of the content of this blog focuses on the adventures of English-speaking volunteers who are planning to or are currently exploring Latin America. While it’s not an easy thing to embark upon, it’s often much more accessible than the reverse, when Latin Americans look for experiences to explore the English-speaking world first-hand. Opportunities and funding tend to be scarcer and the legal process can be difficult to maneuver. Matt wrote last month about Paying it Forward, offering suggestions of how to help people find opportunities outside Latin America.

With the general paucity of opportunities, we at Common Hope are incredibly grateful to all of the volunteers in the United States who recently made it possible for a group of five of our teachers from New Hope School in Chinautla, Guatemala to participate in an education exchange with Hubbard Woods Elementary School in Winnetka, Illinois. Last week many boarded a plane for the first time, bundled up in loaned hats and scarves upon arrival, and learned about educational methods and teaching strategies at Hubbard Woods and other schools around the Chicago area. The teachers have been thrilled with their discoveries, from experiencing snow for the first time to watching U.S. schoolchildren’s enthusiasm with their demonstrations of traditional Guatemalan kite-making.

Common Hope has received foreign volunteers since its inception nearly 25 years ago, and they have provided invaluable creative and physical energies to our work. Now, with the Guatemalan staff members able to have a similar experience, our cultural exchange comes full circle, contributing to a more dynamic environment for developing new ideas.

You can read more about the New Hope teachers’ adventures on their blog.

How to Get Your Home-Culture Fix

Lisa Hetzel — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 21:31:56 +0000

When volunteers first arrive at their new posts in Latin America, one of their first priorities is to completely immerse themselves in the new culture. They’ll want to choose a living situation where they can speak as much Spanish as possible, sample the offerings of the local cuisine and generally soak up all of the local cultural idiosyncrasies.

For most of us planning to stay three, four, five or more years in Latin America, at some point it becomes important to find a balance between the culture in which we’re living and our culture of origin. We need to speak English from time to time, catch up on news from home and connect with others who are living a bi-cultural life.

If you’re living in Guatemala and haven’t naturally come upon opportunities to speak English and meet fellow expatriates, there are many organizations you can check out. A selection is listed below.

Media sources in English for events and organization listings:
Qué Pasa Magazine
Revue Magazine
XelaPages
XelaWho

Cultural centers and organizations:
ArteAntigua
El Sitio Proyecto Cultural
Guatemalan-American Institute
Rainbow Café in Antigua

Churches and synagogues with English-language services:
Listings can be found here
Quaker Friends Meeting

Politically-affiliated organizations:
Democrats Abroad
Republicans Abroad

Bilingual schools:
Colegio Americano
Colegio Colonial Bilingüe
Colegio Decroly Americano
Colegio Evelyn Rogers
Colegio Inglés Americano
Colegio Interamericano
Colegio Internacional Montessori
Colegio Maya
Colegio Valle Verde
Equity American School
Inter-American School

Common interests:
AlAnon Antigua, AlAnon Atitlan
American Chamber of Commerce in Guatemala
American Club
Antigua Guatemala Network for nonprofit organizations
Antigua Outdoor Club
Antigua Photography Club
Guatemala Community Chorus
Scrabble Club
Yoga Classes
Veteran support through American Legion

What Are You Thankful For?

Lisa Hetzel — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 13:13:49 +0000

In honor of the Thanksgiving holiday in the U.S. this week, I thought I’d carry on my family’s tradition of going around the table and asking each person, “What are you thankful for this Thanksgiving?”

Below, I report the answers from some of Common Hope’s long-term volunteers, who reflected on their experiences in Guatemala.

Viola Pumpure
Hospitality Director
From Riga, Latvia
“I’m grateful for an opportunity where I can see what’s on the other side of the wall, learning what life is like in Guatemala.”

Abigail Headrick
Hospitality Team Coordinator
From Half Moon Bay, California, USA
“This week I’m thankful for the staff’s support of my work; they motivate me if I have a bad day and make me want to commit to more time as a volunteer.”

Jessica Witt
Speech Therapist
From New York Mills, Minnesota, USA
“Recently I’ve had a lot of people coming in to evaluate hearing loss. I’m thankful we have staff that refers students and parents to us, that we have the equipment to test for hearing loss, and that we have access to hearing aids and services to help people better communicate with their families.”

Alan Iverson
Pre-school and Legal Program Support
From Moorhead, Minnesota, USA
“I get to be working for an organization that is doing important work. I am in a new place, doing something new that will be a good experience for whatever’s next in life.”

Lisa-Marie Bruce
Housing Construction, English Teacher, Tour Guide, Education Consultant…
From Derwood, Maryland, USA
“I appreciate the opportunity I’ve had to change my perspective and recognize what I’d always taken for granted, like health care, housing and education. I’ve realized that the basic things I grew up with are luxuries.”

Lynn Miller
Library Support and Vision Program Coordinator
From Toronto, Canada
“I get to be with kids all day – I’m not responsible for them but get to enjoy them!”

Krista Lengacher
Hospitality Team Coordinator
From Denver, Colorado, USA
“I’m grateful that the vision teams and tourists who I work with have such a good attitude to be giving up their vacation time and spending it by helping out wherever it’s needed.”

Javod Sheikhizadeh
Primary Care Clinic
From Olympia, Washington, USA
“I’m thankful for how welcoming people have been here, despite being behind the curve with language and medical abilities; they always help me up when I trip. This eternal spring thing is pretty nice too!”

Louise McLarnan
Pre-school and PODER Employment Program Support
From Moorhead, Minnesota, USA
“After two months in the pre-school, my immune system can now handle all the cold bugs that are going around! I’m also very thankful that I’ll be here for another year.”

Nonprofit Network Launches Website

Lisa Hetzel — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:35:24 +0000

A network of nonprofit organizations in Guatemala, known as La Antigua Guatemala Network, launched a website this week that promises to improve communication and collaboration between nongovernmental organizations in the country.

Impressively, the new website has been introduced in both English and Spanish, and includes many unique features that can’t be found on other locally-based websites, such as:

• A database of nonprofits in Guatemala, searchable by name, region of operation and type of work (focused on education, environmental issues, health care, etc.). Each nonprofit lists volunteer opportunities available at their organization.

• A section on nonprofit best practices, including information on how to operate a nonprofit within the Guatemalan legal and taxation framework

• A forum for sharing resources, both tangible (excess donations or supplies) and intangible (employee know-how)

• A calendar of network and individual nonprofit organization events

Congratulations to the Antigua Guatemala Network for this important advancement in their work! I hope all of us in the nonprofit community can help out by adding our organizations to the database, contributing content and keeping up this exchange of knowledge.

Graduation Season

Lisa Hetzel — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 19:11:17 +0000

It’s technically verano in Guatemala, the opposite of rainy season, but the air has started growing cooler and crisper. (Luckily for us in the land of eternal spring, cooler and crisper only means lows of 65°F instead of the usual 75°F we enjoy for most of the year.) Each year with the cooler weather we enter into a season of celebrations, which will culminate with the December holidays. But for us at Common Hope, the major celebration of the season takes place in November: high school graduations!

Last weekend I had the pleasure of attending the graduation ceremony for 142 of our affiliated students, each of whom has soared over many hurdles to reach this achievement. Over 500 people were in attendance to accompany the graduates on this exciting occasion.

The dedicated parents wiped away a tear or two, those who have made so many sacrifices for their children to get this far. There’s a strong temptation to pull their kids out of school so they can start contributing a steady income to the struggling family economy. They deserve much recognition for prioritizing education over so many other concerns.

Former affiliated students entertain the graduation gathering.

Our caring staff and volunteers smiled and applauded, they who’ve followed each of the student’s progress closely. The social workers have made home visits to inquire about school attendance, grades, and classroom difficulties. The doctors have guided students and family members back to health so that studies can progress in optimal fashion. And the construction staff has made family homes safer and drier with new cement floors, sturdy roofs, and more efficient stoves.

A nice smattering of sponsors had traveled great distances to be present, those who’ve given the students so much more than their monthly donation to the organization. Jonathan, the master of ceremonies and a former affiliated student, spoke about how much his sponsor meant to him during his schooling, inspiring and motivating him through letters to continue with his education. One couple in attendance had been sponsoring the same student since first grade, finally realizing their shared dream of celebrating his high school graduation together.

This school year has been filled with many obstacles for the students, the parents, the sponsors and Common Hope. But on this day we could all come together and revel in the moment. We’ve all worked very hard to reach this celebration, which will carry us through the next year of challenges, as we push and support the younger students to realize their own goals and reach their own milestones.

Milking Your Tax Dollars from Afar

Lisa Hetzel — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:28:17 +0000

Most of us volunteers living in Latin America have paid taxes to our governments at one point or another, often while working to save up for our great volunteering adventure. Once we’re settled in our new home, swirling in a range of new cultural experiences, it’s easy to adopt an identity as “citizen of the world” rather than feeling like the citizen of a particular English-speaking nation. However, we still have a few obligations in our country of origin, and for most of us, our government can help us out a little bit while we explore outside its borders.

All foreign embassies will provide basic services like renewing your passport and filing a birth or marriage abroad. Some embassies go beyond the basic paperwork tasks and offer a few more services to citizens, such as notarizing documents, legal advice, or tax preparation advice.

In Guatemala, the embassy of the United States seems to be one of the most active of the many diplomatic missions, seeking out periodic communication with its expatriate citizens. I recently attended a “town hall meeting” with embassy staff where the consular officers tried their darndest to answer a wide variety of questions from our demanding gringo audience. The group wanted to know about the safety of volcano hikes (best to go with a reputable guide), international drivers’ licenses (apparently not worth the cost), and even how much a U.S. passport might be going for these days on the black market (upwards of $10,000 per use, so best to guard it in a very secure spot)!

The United Kingdom, Canada, and the United States all offer voluntary registration services where citizens can let their respective governments know where they will be located abroad. Most registries are protected by confidentiality laws and are only used to contact you in case of major emergencies, national crises, and for sending periodic health and safety updates. While some people might have mixed feelings about reporting their exact whereabouts, the news updates can be helpful for getting a foreign take on local issues as well as more detailed safety information.

Going Green(er) in Guatemala

Lisa Hetzel — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 19:27:47 +0000

In my first few months in Guatemala, I winced every time I threw away a plastic yogurt cup or cardboard cereal box. It was extremely frustrating not to be able to recycle all of the things that fit into my cute blue bin in the United States. My trash can filled to the brim with all sorts of odd-shaped packaging that couldn’t go anywhere but a black plastic bag. That bag would soon be en route to the enormous landfill in the middle of Guatemala City, where it would take hundreds of years to degrade, if it is that plastic ever completely disintegrates.

Recycling isn’t nonexistent in Guatemala, but it’s not particularly user-friendly. You have to seek out a recycling center and travel a significant distance to drop off your recyclables. Most people leave recycling to the guajeros, people who live and work inside the fire and landslide-prone city dump, sorting out the salvageable recyclables they can exchange for a few quetzals.

I’m embarrassed to say that I’d become more complacent about throwing away my plastic, aluminum and cardboard in black garbage bags. Nobody else seemed to care, and what can I do if there isn’t time to schlep it across town?

While a community recycling program doesn’t seem to be in Guatemala City’s immediate future, an enterprising new company is attacking the problem of plastic garbage bags head-on. Several months ago, EcoGreen shopping and garbage bags starting popping up at check-out counters all over town. Each bag proudly states on its exterior that it is a corn-based product that will degrade in less than one year. It was surprising to see how quickly shopkeepers adopted the new bags and started touting their store’s environmental awareness.

I’m curious to learn more about the science behind these new bags, whether they’ll really degrade safely and easily in landfills and won’t lead to more deforestation for corn production. But I’m thrilled to see how hungry Guatemala City is to adopt practical green solutions to everyday environmental challenges.

The Hidden Benefits of Volunteering

Lisa Hetzel — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 17:20:29 +0000

Most organizations offering volunteer opportunities will not be able to pay a stipend to help cover living expenses. Potential volunteers might feel like they’ll be totally on their own, fending for themselves in their new lives in Latin America. However, most nonprofits do offer valuable benefits to volunteers, in order to help them get settled in and prepared for their volunteer experience. Below, four volunteer coordinators share some of the benefits of working at their nonprofit organization in Guatemala.

Amanda Turner, Operations Manager at CasaSito

María Jesús Morales, Short-term Volunteer Coordinator at Common Hope

Stefan Ege, Operations Manager at Constru Casa

Yaëlle Stempfelet, Volunteer Coordinator at Safe Passage

This post concludes the series of interviews with volunteer coordinators. Thanks so much to María Jesús, Yaëlle, Amanda and Stefan for sharing their time and insights with me!

Secrets to Landing a Volunteer Position

Lisa Hetzel — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 21:07:47 +0000

How can you stand out from the crowd?

When I recently asked four volunteer coordinators about the qualities they look for in potential volunteers, I was a little surprised by their answers. I’d expected that they would focus on college degrees, areas of technical training, and strong language abilities. While those characteristics are helpful, especially for long-term positions, almost everybody focused on personality aspects. It’s encouraging to know that the volunteer experience is open to anybody with a passion for social change, who is willing to put their heart and soul into the job.

Amanda Turner, Operations Manager at CasaSito

María Jesús Morales, Short-term Volunteer Coordinator at Common Hope

Stefan Ege, Operations Manager at Constru Casa

Yaëlle Stempfelet, Volunteer Coordinator at Safe Passage