Hi everyone,

My name is Shayna. I'm an (almost) 28 year old from Houston, Texas.

This past summer I volunteered with children in Buenos Aires, Argentina for six weeks. It was one of the most rewarding and challenging experiences of my life.

Many of the kids I saw each day lived in extreme poverty. Some wore the same outfit every day for all six weeks. Some had rotting teeth, untreated disabilities, and home lives that are too upsetting to share. I also met some of their families - many took illegal drugs daily, others admitted to robbing people and said they would love to do anything else, but they don’t have any opportunities because of the economy over there.

To give context, when I arrived in Buenos Aires, $100 USD was worth 480 Argentine Pesos. When I left only six weeks later, that same $100 was worth over 600 Argentine Pesos. Prices of food on restaurants menus change almost weekly due to inflation. Almost no one gets an annual salary (only monthly salaries are available) because the money changes value so often that they have no idea what it will be worth a year from now.

Before this trip, I did not believe in luck. I was always taught that anyone who works hard can bring themselves to good circumstances. And I spent 27 years believing that. But in Argentina, I saw that sometimes, that simply is not the case. I met people who work harder than I could ever imagine, even as a self-proclaimed workaholic, but due to unbelievable inflation and being dealt a rough hand overall in life, they could barely feed themselves and their families.

Even though I am eternally grateful for my wonderful friends, supportive family members, and career that I love in the USA, for the time being, my heart is drawn elsewhere.

I miss the children who greeted me every day with huge hugs and invitations to play games that I could barely understand. I miss the teenagers who asked me to stay and talk with them for hours after school so they could learn more English. They wanted to go into politics (jobs that require an understanding of the English language) to change the world for the better. I hope they do. And I think they will.

Those children, who had nothing materialistic like I was given as a kid, were loving and kind and generous. They were resourceful. The first day when I showed up to volunteer, two young boys were playing catch with a "ball" they made out of crumpled up paper while a group of girls played a game with a dirty piece of rope.

The kids were funny. They were mischievous. They were extremely patient - especially when they tried to explain their made up games to me with my unbelievably bad Spanish. They were amazing. Truly. And I miss them everyday.

There was a little boy, Oscar, who really stole my heart. He was so smart, so quick, and so clever. He was a natural born leader. I worry about him. I wish I had learned more Spanish before I got there (that will definitely be a change I make this time around, hello Duolingo and iTalki!). And I wish I could have stayed longer to try to explain to him over and over and over what he’s capable of and what he deserves.

He deserves to understand how smart he is. He deserves constant reminders of his capabilities. He deserves to grow up in circumstances where crime is not the only way he can eat that day. He deserves love, safety, kindness, compassion, patience, and truly equal opportunities.

I'm one person. I don’t expect to change the entire world. I don’t want to think of myself as some sort of savior. I just want to help. Simple as that. I want to contribute to longstanding programs that are already doing good work. I want to give love and safety and nurturance to children that might not get as much as they need and deserve at home. I want to teach English to people who have an insatiable desire to learn it because knowing it opens up a world of better jobs and opportunities for them. I want to live in integrity with the person that I have decided I want to be. I want to give. I want to alleviate suffering. I want to love.

Starting in June 2024, I am going to spend an entire year volunteering internationally. I have been accepted into 5 different programs so far and am waiting to hear back from a few more.

Below is a rough overview of the projects I will be working on.

I will spend June - September 2024 volunteering in Europe with four different programs. The first NGO provides creative classes for widowed elderly people. I will be making marketing content for them. The second program offers employment opportunities to refugees and survivors of human trafficking. The third is a program in Sustainable Farming that provides food for the community. The fourth helps with the social integration of marginalized communities.

I will spend October 2024 - March 2025 in Asia and Australia. The programs I will do there include: special needs care for people affected by Agent Orange, childcare, teaching English, and Marine Conservation.

I will spend the remainder of my trip, approximately April 2025 - June 2025 volunteering in childcare in Africa.

Now, it would be dishonest to skip mentioning that this is a partially selfish endeavor. I absolutely do want to help all over the world. I hope that is obvious by the type of programs I have chosen and the fact that I will not be accepting a single penny for any of this. But I also want to grow. I want to connect. I want to feel the type of love and acceptance that comes from people who value intangibles over materials. I want to live with people who are different than me. I want to learn. I want to become wiser, more compassionate, more patient.

These are all traits that I value, and I want to practice them by exposing myself to things that aren’t necessarily comfortable or easy. I heard a quote recently that I really resonate with. “The work works on you as much as you work on it”. I feel so called to do this work and take this trip. I need it. I need change. I need to be challenged. I want to transform.

Now, we've come to the part where I have to talk about money. As you can imagine, there will be a lot of costs associated with this trip.

It’s worth mentioning again that I will not be collecting any money for the work I have described above. All of this is volunteer based and I will be contributing a small financial donation to each of the volunteer organizations. I will also be paying for all of my own accommodations, meals, travel insurance, and plane tickets as well as a few bills in the USA that I will have to keep up with while I’m abroad.

I plan to live very minimally. I will be staying with roommates in hostels. I don't plan to earn any substantial income for this entire year abroad since I will be leaving all of my jobs back home, at least for the year, to do this.

This trip in total will probably cost about $30,000. Above, I have asked for $10,000. This should cover all of my one-way plane tickets as well as a significant portion of my costs associated with accommodations if I plan very carefully. If you feel called to donate more, or if you would like to sponsor this trip or talk about a possible collaboration, please reach out to me. I have extensive experience in social media marketing and content creation, and I would love to document this entire experience to show the world truth with the right plan in place.

I will be saving money over the next few months to self fund as much of this trip as possible.

Regardless, I am at my limit with work. For the sake of my health, I simply cannot work anymore than I am working right now. This past week alone, I worked 82 hours and I am saving every penny I can to make this trip happen, but we only have so many hours in a day. And unfortunately, sometimes, I have to sleep.

If you would like to contribute, every dollar helps. Truly. You’re helping me make a difference and I would be eternally grateful. If you would like to share this GoFundMe and/or leave some kind and encouraging words, I would truly appreciate that, too. This GoFundMe will help make this trip a reality by filling in the financial gaps. And just as importantly, it will remind me that I have love and support all over the world.

If you have read this far, thank you. Truly. Thank you so much. I am eternally grateful to even be able to consider this trip.

All love,

Shayna Powers