Volunteer Vacation helps Peru orphanage

Sunday, February 6, 2005 8:55 AM HST

Bob Link didn't spend his vacation sunning on glamorous beaches. Rather, he
worked for six weeks in a Peru orphanage.

The 63-year-old Kealakekua resident was part of an eight-person team,
consisting of men and women in their 20s to 60s, who traveled to Cuzco,
Peru.

Link learned of the Cuzco opportunity after his friend, Terry Westerman,
talked about his experiences in Thailand last year. Westerman found the
Thailand program through Globe Aware, a nonprofit organization that plans
volunteer vacations in several locations.

Volunteer tourism is becoming quite popular, Link said.

"It's always surprising to see how much you change when you do things like
this. You always feel good about yourself when you volunteer," he said. "Of
course, it's better to volunteer locally, but if you're planning a
vacation, you should consider spending some time volunteering."

Link had visited Cuzco before and said he enjoyed it. However, this
particular trip was slightly different. The normal volunteer vacation is
about a week, but this specialized six-week program was filmed for a
documentary/reality television show on volunteerism. Interested volunteers
were asked to send in audition tapes. Link said he decided not to do it,
but the day before the deadline, he changed his mind.

"I sent in an e-mail explaining why I wanted to volunteer and a few
pictures of myself," he said. "Soon after, I got a call from the producer
saying I was in and two weeks later, I flew to Cuzco."

Link said he was nervous and worried about communicating with the children,
most of them deaf. "I had no idea how I was going to react, how I would
handle it. But once I got in, I was relieved. As soon as you walk in, the
kids just jump on you."

A small percentage of the children were physically or mentally disabled,
and the orphanage was short-staffed, so the children were "starved for
attention," he said.

The volunteers worked with the children on hygiene and self-esteem. They
also helped improve the physical aspects of the orphanage, like fixing
windows, putting up volleyball nets and building swing sets.

Link oversaw the wheelchair project. He worked with some of the children in
assembling inexpensive wheelchairs and then presented the wheelchairs to
local people.

"It was a poignant experience," he said. "Some drove four hours to get a
wheelchair and some carried in children with spina bifida. It was very
heartwarming."

Link said one young girl was always smiling, dimples showing, and the first
week Link was there, she drew a picture of him on the ground.

"It was pretty good too. And it's a lesson you learn," he said. "We think
we have such a great society and material things we're happy with. But then
you see people who don't have anything and they're smiling and happy."

The volunteers also spent several days in an Indian village building about
12 adobe ovens. "It was a great cultural experience -- going somewhere
tourists don't normally go. But it was hard work."

Link said he had to learn sign language and brush up on his Spanish. The
volunteers stayed at hostels, so Link had to adjust sharing his living
quarters with strangers. He said it also took a while to adjust to the
filming.

"I didn't like it (the filming) at first and I would try to hide," he said.
"But the reason I did this was to inspire other people to volunteer."

Link's friend, Westerman, arrived about three weeks into the program with
donated items from Kona. Link's wife, Jo, also surprised him when she came
over about four weeks into the program and stayed for the remainder.

"About two weeks into the program I didn't think I'd make it, but when the
program was coming to a close, I didn't want it to end. I miss the kids and
the other volunteers," he said. "The producer said he wanted to have a
5-year reunion to see what was happening at the orphanage. I don't know if
he was joking, but I would definitely do it again."