This week’s featured volunteer is Isabelle Kraus. Isabelle is currently living, and volunteering in Santiago, Chile at a home, “hogar,” called Promesa. Promesa is a home connected to the Omprakash partner VE Global. 

VE Global recruits, trains and organizes a global network of volunteers to create equality of educational and social opportunity for at-risk children in Chile. Promesa, one of the homes involved in VE Global’s efforts, houses 16 girls between the ages of 2 and 16 that have been removed from their familiar environment by a judge and have been placed in the care of the home due to histories of abuse and/or neglect. VE Global is an affordable, high impact program that allows volunteers to effectively use their skill sets to foster a more just and educated society for at risk youth in Chile.

Isabelle was a 2011 graduate from the California Polytechnic State University and a recent recipient of the RSA/Cambridge Certificate in English Language Teaching to Adults. At Promesa Isabella helps the staff provide an atmosphere that gives children opportunities to overcome the disadvantages they’ve experienced. She runs workshops for children, helps with schoolwork, and plays with the children in their free time.

Isabelle commented on her experience saying, “I want to help make the world a better and a more fair place. I am sure that what I am doing is helping me achieve this on a daily basis, and helping me move towards this on a larger scale,” like many Omprakash volunteers Isabelle observes, “… along the way, I hope to learn more about myself and develop a clearer idea of what I want to do in life.”

VE Global connects hundreds of volunteers with homes and other facilities like that of Promesa, where Isabelle has been working, throughout Chile. VE Global receives a volunteer class [linke to partner’s volunteer page] every three months in January, May and September. The minimum stay is four months and applications for the September class of 2012 are currently being accepted.

Keep up with Isabelle’s adventures and work endeavors on her profile, and learn more about opportunities with VE Global on their page to get involved today!