Recently I got to talk to a friend of mine from home who also attends Penn State and her experience abroad in Nicaragua. Courtney took a trip to Central America through Global Works, a program that allows high school students to travel and give back to poor communities. In Nicaragua, Courtney got to meet locals, stay in a renovated hostel with other members of the Global Works trip and build a home from a family in need.
Courtney’s experiences in Nicaragua were “amazing” she said. “Sometimes, it got really difficult. I got sick from the food, I had bug bites, I was homesick – but I met some of the greatest people, I got to help some of the greatest people on this Earth and that’s what I got to take from it.” Courtney described that the family had 5 children and their home had been rotting and falling apart. She said the parents were so thankful and brought to tears when they walked into their new house, which according to Courtney, was standard by all means, with absolutely no frills or luxuries that we have here.
Courtney described the language barrier, saying communication with locals was often done through broken Spanglish, but she said there were a lot of simple commonalities between Americans and the Nicaraguans. Children love to play soccer and tag, and dance and music is important to the family structure there as well.
I know there are people in the United States suffering from poverty just as these people in other countries, but I think it was so self-less and kind of Courtney to give up time of her own to go to Nicaragua to help a family she had never met before. “The ability to change someones life really hit me when I saw how appreciative they were.” It’s amazing that an essential thing such as a home can link people from different parts of the world together.