Reach Out Volunteers: South Africa

By Laura Maloff, Contributor
Photos: Laura Maloff and Reach Out Volunteers

I've been staring at a blank page for what feels like forever, trying to find the right words to describe this experience. I keep going back through my pictures, replaying the moments in my head, and trying to find a way to express it all. To be honest, no matter how many ways I write this down, I'll never be truly satisfied with the words I produce.

On April 27th, 2011 I received my acceptance letter to join the South African program with Reach Out Volunteers. I was full of pure excitement.  As I bounced out into the common area to tell all of my friends, it hit me that I may need to inform my parents of my grand adventure. There initial reaction was not a positive one; I do believe my Dad looked at me and said flat out no, while my Mom had a look of concern on her face and said heck no. However, at this point, being nineteen years old, I realized I no longer needed my parents consent. And that was it; I decided I was going to get a summer job and dedicate every paycheck towards this program. That is exactly what I did. On June 1st, 2011 I made my confirmation deposit, and everything I had been talking and dreaming about was set in motion. There was no turning back.


I had been talking about the program for nearly a year, and in my mind it was all talk. My family had slowly come around to the idea that I was going on my first independent adventure, but of course they still had their fears. My Mom came around when she decided to help me pay for my immunizations. My older brother drove me to the airport.  During the days leading up to my departure, I would have thought that all of the signs were directing me to stay home. With the near loss of someone close, and the death of a friend, I was tempted to stay and watch over my loved ones. But, as everyone told me, staying will not change what has happened, all it will cause is regret on my part. Even though I was full of fear, when my brother dropped me off at the airport on May 25th, 2012, I knew I could not turn back now. The tickets were paid for, and I was footsteps away from stepping on the plane.


I'm making the build up to this experience sound somewhat dramatic, and honestly, it could be perceived that way. It was the first dramatic choice in my life I had made. And once I finally made it, the dramatic build up finally sunk in. I was in Africa. 40 hours of flying was absolutely worth it. I don't know exactly what I was expecting to see when I arrived, but I'm having a hard time finding the words to even describe it. The typical “amazing” and “beautiful” do not even begin to do it justice.

St. Lucia gave me a very small town feel, with markets down main street, your typical grocery stores, and the typical hippopotamus, monkey, and leopard walking down the street. This is where I fell in love with the people I encountered. People of all backgrounds were the most joyful I had ever met. I never once felt uncomfortable, and the kids were what made this experience for me. Teaching at a local school for a day was only the beginning. Myself and another boy were placed in a classroom of about sixty grade seven students. After introducing ourselves we talked to them about Canada and Africa; they asked us questions and we asked them nearly as many. But the kicker question for myself was a young twelve year old boy who was waving his hand in the air for quite some time. He turned to me and goes “Excuse me! But do you have a boyfriend..?!?” I could feel my face turn red, and once I said I did not, he got a huge grin across his face and spurted “Well do you want one?” Amongst the joking and the questions, the kids asked me to sing for them and in return they sang for us. I have never experienced anything like it. The looks on their faces, and the feelings, are unexplainable.

What came next is honestly what made this experience for me; we returned to the site where we were building the creche, only to find the kids we were building the creche for. The most overwhelming, yet gratifying part. These children ranged from months old to 12 or 13, and they were the happiest children I have ever met. I will admit, they stole my heart – or as many have said, I gave my heart willingly. I'm not playing favorites, I adored each and every one of these children. Although, one in particular is still on my mind, even though it has been months since I've returned. As soon as we spotted each other we stuck to each other like glue. We spent almost every moment at the creche next to each other. He and the other kids would sit with me and point at my tattoos, and they were obsessed with my blonde hair. This little boy in particular made the biggest impact on me; he would say certain English words to me, but never a full sentence, until the day we had to say goodbye. We both knew that we had to say goodbye, we had completed our portion of the creche. The walls and roof were up, the flooring was in place, and it had been painted. This little boy wrapped his arms around my waist as we were walking to the truck and looked up at me and said “Please don't leave me.” I picked him up, kissed his forehead and gave him a hug.

Going to build the creche was the main reason I chose to go on the volunteer program, and finding out what the creche provides made me feel that much better about my choice. For every day that these kids comes to the creche, they are guaranteed food and water. Knowing this and meeting these kids just made me feel...fulfilled, in some way or another. More than half of these kids have AIDS, and were given a life expectancy of the age of thirty. Whether they knew it or not, they were the happiest kids; our first day meeting them one of us pulled out an apple. Expecting that the child would keep the apple to themselves, we all pulled out what fruit we had brought. But it wasn't necessary, they passed the fruit around in a circle. Taking one bite each, until it was gone. There was no selfish tendencies on their part. That was just one of the many instances in our time spent with these kids, and saying goodbye was nearly impossible for me. When we got into the truck and were driving away, we looked behind us and the kids were chasing after us.

Our next adventure was less work intensive, but still an adventure nonetheless. Thanda Game Reserve brought out the “wild side” of Africa for me. Because we were literally in the wild of Africa! Every animal you can imagine was literally at my reach, at some point or another. The whole purpose of coming to the wildlife reserve was to track animals. We were split into two groups, in which we would either go on the morning drives, leaving at 4:30 AM to start tracking, while the other groups would go on morning walks leaving at about 6:30 AM, walking through the areas around camp. Then we would switch in the afternoons between the drives and the walks. The drives were the times in which we were electronically tracking the animals. Many of the animals (the wild dogs, rhinoceros, elephants, and lions) were given tracking devices in order to ensure that they are alive. Our job was to use the radio device to track them down. The other group had much better luck tracking the majority of the animals, compared to ours. We always found the wild dogs,, and were constantly surprised by a giraffe. I was almost disappointed, but daily we saw some sort of animal, just not the ones we were searching for. Even though we did not see the lions, hearing them was by far one of the most amazing sounds. We were in the main lodge getting ready for our morning drive, when we heard this deep moaning sound. Everyone, except the staff, stopped in their tracks, then we walked out onto the balcony. The lions were roaring at each other, about a half kilometer away, if that. It was quite the wake-up call.

My group's last day was the day we had the most luck, seeing nearly every animal we had hoped. The elephants appeared so docile as they munched on some trees. The cheetahs – Phil and Rusty – were literally in arms reach from the truck, by far the most relaxed animals out of them all. Every giraffe, had a version of hiding, which was sliding over a few steps between two trees. Everyone in my group was happy by the end of the day. The walking was much more vulnerable, mainly because we were walking around the game reserve with our guide, who thankfully had a rifle just in case there were any dangers. Nevertheless I never once felt unsafe. The walks showed us the scenery, and truly immersed us into South Africa. We ventured to areas around camp that even our guide hadn't been to yet. Seeing giraffes, water buffalo, zebras, and many animals tracks, such as the lions. Leaving this place was a challenge, so to speak; I felt like a child that was having too much fun to go home.

To say this volunteer program changed my life would be a complete cliché. But to say that it's not true, would be a lie. My life changed the moment I nearly lost someone close, when I lost a friend, and the moment I stepped onto that first plane. Landing in South Africa and spending nearly a month there was a definite eye opener. I had this image in my mind of how I thought this trip was going to be; every expectation I held before leaving was blown out of the water. The people I met – volunteers and locals – were some of the best I've ever encountered. I feel like Africa took a part of me and exchanged it for another. I carry this adventure with me everywhere I go. Volunteering was one of the best life choices I've ever made, and I don't regret it for a minute.