Voy a

Bolivia

For my entire life, I have always been a "yes" person. I constantly crave adventure, new experiences, and fun, and I have found that saying "yes" to (nearly) everything life throws at me, has been the easiest way to achieve the chaotic life that I so desire. That is why, when the opportunity to travel to Bolivia to volunteer at Nuestros Pequenos Hermanos was presented to me, my genuine answer was "why not?"

And in all seriousness, "why not?" is one of the biggest reasons I am here. I am 24 years old, I do not really have any big responsibilities, I do not really have people (or pets) who depend on me for care, I do not really even have any major life expenses. One of the biggest driving factors for my decision to say "yes" was that I did not really have a good reason to say "no." The adventure presented itself, and I decided to do it, because I did not know when in my life there would ever be another opportunity to do another adventure like this.

I wish I had some grander reason as to why I decided to volunteer in Bolivia, but I honestly don't. Before deciding to come here, Bolivia was not something I had even ever thought about before. If asked, I probably could not have named one city in the country. I genuinely knew nothing about Bolivia. I just knew that this was a time in my life where it was possible to live abroad, the opportunity sounded interesting, and I didn't really have a good reason not to go.

So on July 5th, 2021, I got on an airplane and my adventure began.

The Home

Nuestros Pequenos Hermanos Bolivia, is a children's home located about 2.5 hours outside of Santa Cruz. The home provides food, housing, and care to over 100 Bolivian children from infancy through college.

The home separates the children into 11 different houses based off of gender and age. Each smaller house consists of 5-10 children and 2 care givers. Every day the children eat, sleep, and play in their homes.

The home also has an emergency medical clinic including a doctor, therapist and a psychiatrist, a primary school, a small farm, a fish hatchery, a large soccer field, a small chapel, and a large indoor common area on property. These resources help the home to teach the children important life skills, and values.

The Kids

There are about 80 kiddos currently living at Nuestros Pequenos Hermanos. The youngest one here is about 2 years old, and the oldest is 25. The majority of the children here are above the age of 7.

During their time here, the house aims to provide the children with a strong foundation to set them up for success after their time here. The physical and mental health of the children here is the top priority. There are over 40 dedicated staff members who work to ensure that the children have their every need met.

In addition to the 80ish children at the house, there are also roughly 20 children in college. Once the children are over 18, they have the option to enter into a year of service. During the year of service, they are assigned to a specific project that they help with for a year. This includes things like helping with the farm, helping with the other kids, and helping with various administrative tasks. After the child's year of service, the home pays for the children to go to college.

Once the children graduate, many of them continue to stay connected to the home through a mentorship program where they provide guidance and advice to the other children.

My Role

During my year of volunteering, I am teaching physical education and health classes, assisting with English classes, and coordinating with the mental health professionals on staff to plan after school activities.

This entire experience is so new to me, and so different from everything else that I have done in my life. Because of this, I have decided that my main role here, however, is simply to listen, to learn, and to love.

I know that sounds pretty cheesy, and I am not intending to sound like a greeting card, but I genuinely feel like my main responsibility here is to just be here. I want to show up for these kids with love and grace, and see what happens.

I have no idea how this adventure will shape me, the lessons I will learn, or who I will become after but I am pretty excited to begin.

Where in Bolivia am I?

The home is situated on the outskirts of the tiny town of San Ignacio del Sara. San Ignacio is primarily known for its agriculture, and not much else. It is in between two slightly bigger suburbs, Portachuelo and Santa Rosa Del Sara, and about 2.5 hours from Santa Cruz. The hogar (home) is located in the Santa Cruz department of Bolivia. This department is known primarily for their agriculture, and the capital city of the department, Santa Cruz, is the biggest city in Bolivia.

Follow Along With My Adventure

To process my thoughts and experiences, I decided to write about my time while in Bolivia. I can't promise that my writing will be perfect (speaking two langauges is hard), and I can't promise to always remember to write, but if you're interested in reading my perfectly imperfect tales you have come to the right place.