How to spend your holidays in the USA with benefit not only for yourself, but also for others, the ZagraNitsa portal knows. We have selected for you the 7 most interesting and useful volunteer programs. So if you want to take care of wild animals, contribute to nature conservation, help the homeless or develop the fashion industry, fill out the forms - and go save the world!

Turtle care in Florida

Submission deadline: all year round

What they offer: take care of the safety of the movement of sea turtles

To whom: to all those who are not indifferent to the state of wildlife

Participation in the program is free, but it is possible to make donations from $5. The duration of your trip is up to you.

Photo: shutterstock 2

Appalachian helpers

Submission deadline: all year round

What they offer: lodging, food, hiking in the Appalachian mountain ranges

To whom: sociable people with higher education and knowledge of English

Cost and duration: participation is free, the average shift lasts 12 weeks

Photo: shutterstock

Wild Horse Rescue in Florida

Submission deadline: all year round

What they offer: ranch accommodation, three meals a day and horseback riding

To whom: for non-smoking wildlife enthusiasts aged 18+ and non-allergic to animals

Cost and duration: 2 ($1495) to 8 weeks ($4195)

Photo: shutterstock If you love horses, this project is for you. Your tasks will include cleaning and caring for unbroken mustangs, cleaning stalls, helping organize events, teaching tourists how to properly communicate with animals. As a bonus - horseback riding around the ranch and its surrounding areas, between the forest and the ocean shore. 4

Spring Program for Students in Los Angeles

What they offer: accommodation, career development workshops, lectures, city tours and even surf lessons

To whom: students

Cost and duration:$8499 for 8 weeks

Photo: shutterstock

A whole block of programs, from seminars and lectures to walks along the beach and tours of Hollywood. Here you will gain valuable practical skills, ranging from the correct preparation of a resume and ending with surfing.

For the most gifted, there is an opportunity to get a loan for studying at a local college, and there are also employment options. Directions to choose from: advertising, event planning, tourism, fashion, finance, graphic design.

Fashion Internships in New York

Submission deadline: all year round

What they offer: cooperation with leading world brands, participation in the organization of fashion shows, photo shoots

To whom: those who are crazy about the fashion industry, from 18 years old

Cost and duration: depends on the duration of the internship - from 4 weeks ($950) to six months ($1830)

Photo: shutterstock

Depending on which event from the given schedule you want to attend, calculate the deadline for submitting the questionnaire. The hottest dates are seasonal fashion weeks. You will be offered a loyal price list, depending on which apartment you prefer to live in and what transport you use. Here you will see how famous fashion designers and photographers work, learn how to manage time and organize fashion shows. And the experience gained will help in the development of your career in the fashion industry.

You can register and get more information.

"Volunteers for Peace" - any side job across America

Submission deadline: all year round

What they offer: work in various fields - from the construction of houses to social support. The lists are constantly updated.

To whom: active people over 18 years old.

Cost and duration: about $500 for 2-3 weeks

Photo: shutterstock The participants of the program are mainly residents of America and Canada, but if you are in another country, there will be no barriers. Check out the information on website , they will tell you what to do in this case. Applications must be submitted at least one month before the end of registration, otherwise you will have to pay an extra $100 to speed up the processing of the application. 7

United Planet - helping those in need in Boston

Submission deadline: all year round

What they offer: homestay, breakfasts and dinners, excursions, transport costs and logo t-shirt

To whom: At least 18 years old, experience in the social sphere will be a plus

Cost and duration: from a week ($1865) to a month ($3195)

Photo: shutterstock

Working in the US social sector to help poor families, troubled teenagers, and the homeless. If you want to study English more intensively, you can take lessons for an additional fee. Since this program is designed for cultural exchange, only participants from other countries are accepted.

Flight to the USA and home - at your expense.

You can fill out the questionnaire and get more information.

All prices are in USD (Program cost in USD is valid when purchasing programs directly from EF Education First Ltd. (Switzerland))

Additional information about transfers and prices

Medical and travel insurance coverage

To provide exclusive insurance coverage for its students, EF Education First has partnered with Erika Insurance Ltd. for over 20 years. EF staff around the world are trained in Erika's policies and can help on site. Since travel insurance is mandatory for all overseas travelers, Erika will be billed automatically when requesting a quote and booking a course. You must provide a copy of your insurance policy with similar coverage if you wish to opt out of Erika. Otherwise, this insurance coverage will be included in the calculation of the cost of the program.

Insurance covers:

• In case of illness lasting more than 2 days, Erika covers the daily cost of training
• If you miss more than half of a course due to illness or accident, Erika can pay for an identical EF course so you can complete your course
• Unlimited medical coverage (some exceptions apply)
• A unique partnership with the largest association of doctors and medical institutions in the US Aetna allows you not to pay for expensive medical care yourself
• Theft, flight delay, third party damage and legal support are also included in Erika's insurance coverage.
• All sports and leisure activities organized by EF are fully covered by Erika insurance

More detailed information about insurance conditions is available on the official website www.erikainsurance.com.

Flights

Why waste time choosing the right flight ticket? EF's domestic air agency can help you choose between domestic and international flights.

Transfer

Use the services of EF Transfer. Wherever you are, an EF service representative will meet you at your arrival airport and drive you to your accommodation or pick you up and drive you to the airport for your return flight.

Exchange rate difference

Please note that prices may be revised depending on the difference in exchange rates.

Summer season supplement

Between June and August, most EF schools charge a summer supplement. Schools located in the Southern Hemisphere charge a supplement for the summer period from December to February.

Instagram is not only about beautiful photos, but it is also about interesting people. I would like to introduce you to my insta friend Anya, who, together with her husband, went on trips headlong and talk about them on the RoadIsCalling blog (blog in English) and on Instagram @RoadIsCalling(posts in Russian and English). In the USA and Canada, they have chosen one of the most interesting ways to travel - volunteering. Therefore, today it will be about moving to the USA, about work in exchange for accommodation and many beautiful photos.

We all love visiting new cities, meeting new people, trying new cuisines and learning new customs. How cool it is to wander the streets of an old city in Europe today, and tomorrow to fly to meet the never-sleeping New York or the azure shores of the Caribbean. It's great, right? Probably for some, yes. For some, this is a dream, for others, a lifestyle, and for some, on the contrary, moral and physical exhaustion and pumping out money.

I have always considered myself in the third group. I never understood and still don't understand "traveling to the point" or "galloping through Europe" - jumping from one place or country to another, trying to fit an insane amount of activities into one day. Also, I don't understand the style of travel that consists of running from one monument to another in order to capture a photo and tell your friends via Facebook or Instagram "and I was there." My style is slow travel characterized by a leisurely exploration of the city and its surroundings, deepening in the language, communication with locals, tasting buns from numerous cafes and a simple moderate rhythm of life. I will always choose quality over quantity, life experience over excursions and hotels.

That is why, when I moved to America 8 years ago, I clearly knew that I wanted to live in several states and opposite parts of the country in order to experience traditions, culture and cuisine; learn the local accent and, of course, enjoy the local sights at a leisurely pace. Yes, yes, all the states are completely different and many-sided. It is impossible to rush through America in a couple of weeks or even months and say that you have seen and learned everything in it. America needs to be studied, namely through slow travel and the opportunity to live in this country. So I lived in 5 states and intensively studied 35. Absolutely the same scenario worked for each of my other trips: either in America or to other countries. For example, when I flew to the Bahamas for a month, I did not stay in a trendy hotel with beautiful roses, chic cuisine and colorful pools. No, I was burning to live with the locals and experience all the realities of life on the island. And life in the Bahamas is not as azure as the ocean washing the shores. So I found a family with whom I spent that hot summer month, working, relaxing, going to the market for groceries and socializing with the locals in the evenings. My once 2-month study trip to Poland went with the same motive - it was slow, focused on one region and getting to know the country through study and communication with the locals. I don't like to rush anything and traveling is no exception.

Websites for finding volunteer projects

A lot of time has passed since my first trip "abroad" and my move to the States. A lot has changed in countries and what they offer, but my style has remained the same - the same slow approach and leisurely trips. Two months ago, my husband and I made the decision to leave America for a long trip to live in other countries and on other continents and look at life from a different angle. Before we go to the opposite end of the world, we decided to travel around America and Canada and cover what we were not able to visit in 8 years of living here. In order to fulfill our dream of slow tourism and still not empty the piggy bank long before we leave the country, we made the decision to become volunteers and work 20-24 hours a week in exchange for free accommodation and meals. I had to go through dozens of different sites that offer similar services, but we stopped our attention only on 4:

• Helpx.net
• workaway.info
• workingtraveler.com
• wwoofinternational.org

Each site offers registration for a small amount of money, but in return you get access to detailed information and contacts of the host.

Helpx.net has become the most popular and favorite site for us personally. It has a lot of opportunities from gardening and farming to construction, childcare and helping with cooking. Other sites focus more on farming and gardening only. Poking around in the garden is interesting, but we were still looking for diversity and some kind of uniqueness. All our volunteer projects were found through helpx, although we are also registered on other sites.

Volunteering in the USA: Utah

We started our big journey in April 2017 and the first project was the Indian Temple in Utah, where we spent 2 weeks caring for animals, building a barn, helping to prepare Indian vegetarian dishes and planting a vegetable garden.

One of the duties was to look after these cute creatures.

This is the temple itself, where we ate delicious Indian vegetarian food, worked, shared fellowship and just loved to spend time.

And these are the houses in which we actually lived, they are located right behind the temple and the whole territory is surrounded by beautiful views of the mountains.

A minimum of 2 weeks of volunteering was set in the temple (there was no maximum), we spent almost 3 weeks and really did not want to leave. With Yuta, I personally fell in love at first sight and I hope that I can return to this beautiful state and to the lamas in the temple.

After Utah, we had a break for a couple of weeks, had to return to California to complete things, and then waited for new volunteer opportunities.

Volunteering in the USA: Oregon

The next opportunity we had was in Oregon. I've always wanted to spend some time in Oregon, living in the city and traveling around. How happy we were when we received an invitation from a family who needed help rebuilding their Victorian home! No skills were required, the owner promised that he would teach us everything. And taught. We worked 3-4 hours a day, 5 days a week and the work was pure pleasure.

For the first time in my life I work with wood. I learned how to make hanging cabinets in the kitchen. June 2017, Portland, Oregon.

And the husband is in the process of preparing the bathroom for laying tiles. We worked on one Victorian house and lived in another:

This is what our dining room and kitchen looked like. The sensations are phenomenal, as if we managed to travel back to the 19th century. The hosts are wonderful and generous people who gave us a lot of free time and bought a lot of goodies.

We spent a little over 2 weeks in Oregon, for a few hours of work a week we received a comfortable and unique accommodation and food. Since there was plenty of free time, we managed to ride around neighboring towns, visit national reserves, hit the road to the ocean, explore everything in the area and complete our personal affairs in parallel.

Volunteering in the USA: Washington State

Oregon, you were awesome! But it's time to roll on our typewriter further. And then we wanted to see Vancouver and the province of British Columbia in Canada. Unfortunately (or as we later realized fortunately), there were no opportunities in Vancouver. More precisely, they were, but all were disassembled by other travelers a long time ago. Therefore, without hesitation for a long time, we decided to volunteer in the northern part of Washington state, the one that is right on the border with Canada. Again, through Helpx.net, we were lucky enough to find a project in the small town of Bellingham, immersed in greenery and surrounded by lakes:

The house in which we lived was on the shore of this lake.

We lived in the house of an elderly couple who needed help with the housework. One day to cook food, another day to pick up weeds in the garden, the third to put nets on the windows, and the fourth just to keep them company and play games with them. We “worked” 3 hours a day, and somehow our help cannot be called work. It was a real pleasure to spend 2 weeks with wonderful people, in a beautiful cozy town, helping them with household chores, talking and riding around Washington State.

The backyard of the house in Bellingham, where we sometimes worked, rested and sometimes ate tea.

All the possibilities were so different, but so rich and exciting. All of them gave us an unforgettable experience, excellent acquaintances and a lot of emotions. We had 2 more volunteer projects in Canada, but we decided to refuse and travel around the country through couchsurfing.

Thanks to a friend who once advised this opportunity, now I recommend it to others myself.

There will be new items very soon.

Volunteers For Peace is looking for volunteers to help Americans with disabilities travel around the country. This year, a whole series of medium-term volunteer projects under the general name “Explore New York” (“Explore New York”) is being implemented. The project is supported by Sprout, a company that helps people with disabilities live a full life.

Nature of work

Volunteers will lead small groups of adults with disabilities during their holidays. The main task of the project participants will be to provide comfortable conditions during the delivery of the group to their destination, which includes security control, emotional and physical support, as well as entertainment for passengers, travel budget planning, and driving a vehicle. Volunteers should be ready to help their charges in daily activities: brushing teeth, changing clothes, taking a shower, and so on. The organizers note that this is a rather difficult job, but at the same time fun and with a good emotional return. In between trips, you will need to work in the office.

Accommodation conditions

During the trips, volunteers will stay in hotels, and during breaks - in a hostel. Volunteers will provide their own food.

Membership Requirements

All project participants must be over 21 years old. Preference is given to those who have an international driver's license. Experience working with people with disabilities is desirable, but not required, as training will be provided in advance. Insurance is provided only for the duration of travel. A very good level of spoken English is required from all project participants. It is strictly forbidden to drink alcohol in any quantity while traveling. All those wishing to take part in the project must write a motivation letter, and then go through an interview by phone or Skype.

Dates

A series of projects will begin at the end of May and end in mid-October. The duration of each of them is 4-6 weeks. You can come any time during this period.

Leisure opportunities

In their free time, volunteers will be able to get to know New York.

Volunteering in the United States is gaining more and more popularity. We can say that charitable activities are becoming more and more fashionable, and that's great! Schoolchildren, students, pensioners and people of all ages are ready to help others on an altruistic basis. So what is behind this wonderful and kind word, like volunteering in the USA and why people are eager to volunteer in the USA, we will figure it out in this article.

It's sad, but the word volunteering is not often used in Russia, because basically every man is for himself. My home is my castle. And what is happening on the site in the entrance or in the yard, no one cares. Over the years, the situation is changing, people are starting to help orphanages, hospitals, those who find themselves in a hopeless situation, good deeds are gaining momentum, and that's great!
The first time I thought about helping others was when I started traveling. After all, before the trip, there was not even time to think about others. What is there, there was no time to think about yourself: you had to somehow survive, earn money and try to survive in this madness. You will not believe it, but one of the most enjoyable activities after a hectic life was sweeping the paths in a. While doing this good deed, the thought slipped through my head: “How did I come to such a thing?! Smart, successful, with two educations and working as a janitor somewhere in Asia!”. And a smile appeared on your face from the fact that you are doing a useful and good deed and do not require anything in return. You are calm and do not gallop anywhere. Then it was where we lived with the local population in a remote village not far from the city of Van Vien. The feelings that overwhelm you from helping other people are hard to describe. Your heart is filled with happiness when you see the enthusiastic faces of the children who pedaled the bike along the dusty road and got more to meet with you for 40 minutes and practice English.
Having moved to, I tried to find a volunteer organization that would agree to accept me on a gratuitous basis and my altruistic work. But not everything is as simple as it seems. Volunteering in the US is equated with community service, for admission to which you must pass an interview and an appropriate background check. The organization wants to make sure they accept a conscientious and honest person. Sometimes the competition for a volunteer position can reach 40 people for one place. The question arises: where does such popularity of volunteering come from and where does the general desire of people to help others come from?

The variety of volunteer activities and areas where you can get a job strikes even the richest imagination. These can be non-profit organizations to help the poor and insolvent people, help children, the homeless, help in the hospital, library, the elderly, the disabled, etc. the list could be endless. Even fitness and sports clubs use volunteers to organize events such as fundraising, as well as to work with children.

In the United States, there are entire platforms where vacancies for volunteers are posted: from one-time assistance to work on an ongoing basis. One of these services: http://www.voa.org/
It's great that US citizens realize that not everyone lives well, not everyone has a roof over their head and a warm breakfast. A lot of people need help these days. The successful and wealthy in the United States open foundations and non-profit organizations that help and sponsor scientific research, care for the sick, people with disabilities, the homeless, as well as programs to help children from underdeveloped countries of the world.
Most recently, schools and colleges in the United States introduced a new rule requiring a certain number of hours of volunteer work. A kind of labor education, which was in the Soviet Union, when schoolchildren worked on collective farms. So it is here, only for the benefit of the whole society. At the time when I was in school, the collective farms were already closed. We had a regular work practice cleaning the school and the surrounding area.

Pupils and students themselves choose the field of activity in which they want to be involved, depending on their interests. It can be a hospital, a nursing home, helping the disabled, working for the Red Cross, cleaning the park, helping to distribute food to the homeless, working in and other community service. Depending on the educational institution, you will be required to provide a piece of paper stating that you have worked the required number of hours for the benefit of your homeland. A document with worked hours of volunteering is issued by organizations in which students worked. Without this document, the teacher will not accept exams, and it is possible that they may be left for the second year.
Working in, as volunteers often come to our aid. It is not at all necessary that these are only young people aged 10 to 18 who need a treasured piece of paper. Pensioners come to us and volunteer to help arrange books and deal with the flow of literature. The library, in turn, offers free sweets, snacks, water and various rewards for volunteering. After all, there is nothing more pleasant than receiving the usual words of gratitude for help. We often bring cookies to our volunteers, homemade cakes and various goodies to somehow thank them for their good deed.
I think this is a great practice for educating a new generation. From adolescence, Americans are taught beneficence, hard work and love for the Motherland.
When I didn’t have the opportunity to get a regular job, I didn’t have a work permit, and there was no need, I was looking for an opportunity to get a job in a volunteer organization in order to somehow be useful to society and not feel like a seal on the couch. After a long search, I finally found an institution that agreed to accept my services. They asked to help one elderly woman with the housework, because it is very difficult for her to move around, she is in a wheelchair. It was a little strange at first to come to the house of a complete stranger and help with household chores for free. After some time, I noticed that I get incredible pleasure and moral satisfaction from this, besides, the woman is very pleasant, and during the year of our communication we became very close, became almost family people. We often call up and chat for no reason, give gifts for the holidays, support in difficult times. She has many relatives, even several great-grandchildren, but they all live far away and do not have the opportunity to visit often to help. However, the situation is the same as mine: my dear grandparents live far away and I have no physical ability to help them.

In addition, I helped an elderly couple in the neighborhood for a little over a year, but after a conflict that arose between me and them, I stopped doing this. The fact is that people did not respect the work that I provided them with at all. They treated me like a house worker, asked me to stroke their nasty smelly dog ​​with thin legs and joked in every possible way about the politics of Russia and the United States. And then, they have arms and legs, they can walk, which means they can take a rag in their hands. After half a year of helping, I realized that helping such people is a waste of time and effort.

I really want volunteer organizations to appear and develop in Russia, so that people begin to help each other on an altruistic basis. Unfortunately, the system of volunteering in Russia is not developed, but recently various funds have appeared to help people who are in trouble. Society began to donate some funds for good deeds. It’s a pity, of course, that there are often scammers who try to make money on this and the funds raised for the treatment of a sick child go into someone’s pocket.

In the US, the donation system is completely different. You can always see in a detailed report what the donated funds went to. Supermarkets and grocery stores often ask if you would like to donate a percentage of your purchase to a charity. Many large companies use charity in their marketing. They deduct from 1% to 5% of the company's profits to a charitable foundation. And people, buying this product, know that part of the money spent will go to a good deed. At Christmas time, people with bells stand near supermarkets, who collect donations to help and feed the homeless. Large non-profit organizations hold entire campaigns to raise funds. For example, the organization for the fight against breast cancer in women devoted a whole month to this. The logo of this worldwide organization is a pink ribbon. During the month, all the fountains of the city are painted pink. Many organizations take part in fundraising by selling T-shirts, souvenirs with the company logo plus the logo of the fundraising event. All funds received from the sale of goods are transferred to a charitable foundation. In addition, sports marathons and athletic fundraising events are held. To participate in the event, you must make an initial contribution, part of which will go to a charitable foundation. There are non-profit organizations attached to the churches. They collect clothes, toys and food for children, food for stray dogs. During the pre-Christmas period, non-profit organizations accept gifts to send to children in poor countries.

I lead vlog on youtube and often run into people who say obscene and nasty things about the US. I think that this is all because of my ignorance and lack of education. I just don't respond to such people and immediately block them. I think that the USA is a wonderful country about which little is known. Truly virtuous and complacent people will never boast and shout to the whole world that they help and do good deeds, but they do it not for the sake of boasting. They lack personal satisfaction and a spark in once desperate eyes. Be kind, attentive to each other, help, do not be indifferent. Let's organize volunteer organizations in Russia, funds to help children, the sick and the poor. I hope that similar funds will appear in Russia in a few years. Only all together, together we can make this world a better place, but everyone must first of all start with themselves...

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