Give

Get Involved

Stories

OUR ALUMNI BASE IS OVER 26,000 PARTICIPANTS AND GROWING! THAT MEANS WE HAVE OVER 26,000 AMAZING STORIES AND EXPERIENCES TO SHARE WITH OUR COMMUNITIES. WE LOVE TO TELL THESE STORIES TO OUR YOUTH AND FUTURE LEADERS ABOUT HOW AMIGOS TRANSFORMS YOUR WORLD VIEW AND BECOMES A LIFE-TIME INVESTMENT TOWARDS YOUR EDUCATION, CAREER AND LIFE-LONG FRIENDSHIPS.

Share your AMIGOS story today, and let us know what you’ve been up to since your AMIGOS experience.

AMIGOS has played a pivotal role in my life, with the impact showing up in my daily personal and professional life. I’m married to an AMIGOS alumna. My closest friends today are from my active AMIGOS days. Professionally, AMIGOS really taught me I could do anything I set my mind to, even when at first it seems I don’t know where to start. I continue to renew my commitment to making this world a better place for all of us by supporting AMIGOS. I am now a monthly donor for the fifth straight year!JOE CROWNOVER

The now almost empty guagua squealed to a halt at one of the last stops along the coastal highway between Barahona and Pedrenales as my partner Jose and I exited out into the hot humid air. My twenty year old host sister Selenny, also known as Nina, and our neighbor Noelia waited patiently for Jose and me to collect our bags. After a short walk around the block, we arrived at a quaint little lime green house, or our home for the next two months. Upon entering the home, we were welcomed with open arms by our new Dominican family, then reality hit me harder than Sammy, our six foot three inch Dominican neighbor that would call me down the street every time the boxing gloves came out. I was going to live there for eight weeks, which seemed then like the longest time in the world. Only later would I find out that it wasn’t long enough. Unlike any other experience in my life, my trip to the Dominican Republic gave me insight and perspective into my own life, and a better more informed understanding of the world…. The minuscule discomfort I experienced is noteworthy, but is by no means the defining factor of my experience….. While I now have a greater appreciation for the luxuries in my life,I also realize that, more than anything else, my relationships contribute to my happiness. In addition to living less luxuriously, I stuck out like a sore thumb. Along with being the only white person in Juancho, my acne flared up to an all-time high and my eye condition, Blepharophimosis, resulted in half the people I met inquiring about my nonexistent Asian heritage. My awkwardness in Juancho gave me a sense of humility, contrasting my previous self. The greatest transformation in myself occurred after about five weeks of living in Junacho, leaving myself with a mere three weeks to fully enjoy my time in the Dominican Republic. My host families generosity towards my partner and I first planted the seed in my mind that the relationships and people around you are more important than anything else. The family took me into their home and graciously shared everything they had with me. Nina gave up her bed for eight weeks for two strangers. My sixteen year old host sister Thiara gladly shared her priceless portion of delicious fried chicken that madre brought from the city that day without hesitation. Within our rotating meal plan, families clearly put extra effort into preparing each of the meals. When I would go to la cancha to play basketball, the Dominicans would go out of their way to make sure the gringo stranger could be included in the games. Jose and I accepted this giving life style and shared the few things we brought with our Dominican family and friends. This string of generosity between the people of Juancho and me truly allowed me to have life changing relationships with all of them. My new sense of humility, and my focus on the relationships with the people around me instead of on myself mark my personal transition into adulthood.

The past two summers, I have volunteered with an organization best described as a junior Peace Corps. I spent eight weeks in Peru and seven weeks in the Dominican Republic. Both cultures are vastly different from ours and my experiences there unlike anything I could have had here.

As a volunteer, I lived with a host family in a small community and organized and implemented a sustainable community project. I never would have encountered these challenges in any other context, and I felt the responsibility keenly. I learned to be responsible, punctual and take the initiative when things needed to get done.

I also was exposed to a profoundly different culture and way of life….To shower, I had to ask my host mother to heat up some water that I could pour over myself with a mug. The bathroom was a hole in the ground with a corrugated tin stall over it. In the Dominican Republic, their water came from spouts around town to which you brought buckets to fill. My diet consisted almost entirely of rice and mashed plantains, and there were power outages daily. ‘What hardship,’ you might think. But after about a week, it became routine, and I realized that this is how millions, maybe even billions, of people live.

The culture too, was completely different.. Dominican culture is very open. People say what they think, and aren’t shy in the slightest. Everyone dances, and everyone is always outside, spending time with their friends, family and community. When I came back to California, the contrast was stark. People are sensitive and stay indoors a lot more.

When people ask if my experiences living in Latin America made me glad to live in the First World, I say “No”. I became aware of the world outside the United States, and saw my life through a different lens. The friendships I made and the experience I had of two incredible Latin American cultures are gifts that will last a lifetime. KILLIAN FAY