The Hotes Foundation defines the phrase “give back” and the experience of volunteering with a completely new meaning. Blood, Sweat and Tears… literally. You will hurt yourself and you will push yourself to exhaustion. You will sweat like never before. And what you see — the poorest of the poor — brings many to tears.
Nothing matches the emotional experience of “going.” Words don’t do it justice, and images on TV can’t relate the smells, the sounds, the look of despair as someone who has absolutely nothing and is a meal away from dying looks you dead in the eye. You will get emotional, especially after learning so much is “given” and so little is actually received by those who need it. There is a bigger picture problem here, but in the moment, you are thinking, “How fast can I get this person some food and water?”
The ongoing Haiti mission is just one of over 70 the Hotes Foundation has undertaken over the last 12 years through a new humanitarian model created by Richard Hotes to change passive “giving” to active “going.” Physically going to help changes lives – both the people you are helping as well as your own – in ways unimaginable.
To follow this and other stories of how the Hotes Foundation creates positive change in the lives of the world’s poorest of the poor, please subscribe to the Hotes Foundation blog or follow us on social media.
