Continuing our series on profiling Quest enrollees, we’re excited to share Rachael’s story (if you missed Kaitlyn’s interview, you can see it here). Rachael is a young professional, currently working in a rape and domestic violence center in a rural area of West Virginia. This is her first time going abroad to volunteer, and she’ll be spending three weeks in Nepal on her Short-Term Quest.
United Planet: How did you hear about United Planet?
Rachael: “I was looking for volunteer opportunities on Google and when I found United Planet, I felt like this was a program where I could be comfortable. It seemed like a good fit.”
UP: Which Quest are you doing, and why did you choose that one in particular?
R: “I’ll be volunteering with the counseling center [that is a home for women and children who have been victims of abuse]. I wanted to do something in my field, so that it could be an educational experience. I’d like to look at things from a different perspective and grow from an experience that I can take with me.
“In my job, I work predominantly with children in a local elementary school. So I hope to share my experience in Nepal with them, because many of them have never been out of the country – some haven’t been out of the state. I am thinking about Skyping with them from Nepal if I can, but I’ll at least talk to them in class when I return.”
United Planet volunteer with children she worked with in Nepal
UP: What are you looking forward to the most?
R: “Well first, regarding Nepal, I’m so excited to see a different culture. I really appreciate the way they do things there, such as religion and the role it plays in their lives… And of course I’m so excited to see Mount Everest. I also am looking forward to the food.
“But also personally, I’m looking forward to gaining awareness about how the center is dealing with issues like human trafficking and sexual assault. I want to learn something from them, about how they are working on these issues, and I want to share what I know with them as well if I can. Since I teach child sexual assault prevention, I hope this trip can help me develop how I teach and provide services.”
UP: One last question: if you could have one superhero power, what would it be?
R: “I would want to fly, because the feeling of weightlessness would be amazing. I want to be able to look at things from so far above. It would be a different perspective.”
ABOUT UNITED PLANET
United Planet is a non-profit organization with a mission to create a global community, one relationship at a time. Established in 2001, United Planet offers volunteer abroad, virtual internships, internships abroad, gap year volunteering, and global virtual exchange in more than 40 countries.
