volunteer work in guatemala

I'm planning on doing some volunteer work in Guatemala in May. I've done some searching on the web, and I've really only found a couple US based organizations (which I'm more comfortable with). These are Cross Cultural Solutions (www.crossculturalsolutions.org) and Global Crossroads (www.globalcrossroad.com).<BR><BR>Does anyone know anything about these or any other organizations that they've either worked with or heard about? I'm leaning towards Cross Cultural since they provide housing within their own base with other volunteers and offer language and cultural classes while still allowing lots of time for volunteer work.

I don't speak spanish, but would still love to work over there, preferably near San Marcos and/or Quetzaltenango.

Any help is much appreciated.

IMO, You don't need to pay to be a volunteer, or you may pay very little for building material with some organizations.
Looking at the websites for the two organizations you've posted, I've found that Cross-Cultural Solutions charges $2,588 to volunteer for 2 weeks.

Global Crossroad, LLC seems to charge $975 for one week volunteering at Camino Seguro (Safe Passage). If you're interested in volunteering at Safe Passage, visit their website Here and send them an e-mail. You don't need to go through an agency to vounteer with them.

IMO, The companies you've posted seem to be almost like travel agents with huge middle man fees. Keep doing research, it's ludicrous to pay these big fat fees to donate your time, energy, travel expenses, etc. There are plenty of organizations that would be grateful for your service, free of charge. Check out Charity Navigator to see where the money goes.

In August I paid $115 for a week of Spanish instruction with activities and homestay and I volunteered in a program for kids with disabilities in San Pedro La Laguna, Atitlan, Guatemala. It was an amazing experience. If you're interested, let me know.

Have to say I completely agree with Smokemon. I paid for one of those middle men agencies on a trip to Ecuador about 6 years ago, I paid around GBP£700 (USD$1400) for a six week thing, and when I spoke to people who had arrived in Ecuador then set it up they had paid around USD$50!!! For EXACTLY the same thing! Needless to say I was livid, as it's not like my money even went to the a charity/the organisation, it was just a private company making money FROM these charities. I didn't get any support freom them once I was there. All I actually got was a t-shrt. Have a look at:

http://www.volunteersouthamerica.net/<BR><BR>and<BR><BR>http://www.volunteerlatinamerica.com/<BR><BR>You will find the work you do is very similar, but you pay either nothing or a lot less. Have fun!
Laura

Please take the advise of 1 & 3, and learn from the experience of 2. There are so many rip offs in the charity business down here that you must do a lot of investigating. The people of Guatemala have a lot of needs, such as food, housing, health care, etc. If you have a needed talent or knowledge you can easily find a group that wants you, without you having to pay for anything but food and possibly housing. You will definitely have to pay for your transportation down here, but if you do your research, you will not be taken advantage of.

If, however, you insist on paying a lot for volunteering, I can get you in touch with a couple of Nigerians who will make the two groups you are now considering look like boy scouts.

good advice from all here. Get yourself to Guatemala, Xela would be a good base, and there are myriad opportunities.

My son worked with Proyecto Chico Mendez in the villages of Cantel near Xela last summer and was very impressed; he's been doing some fundraising for them since then - really good people. Their main project is reforestation but they do a lot in the community and are working to build a language school there to make their project more sustainable. Worth looking into.

Thanks so much for the advice. I'll definitely keep looking. I thought the price was steep, but seeing as how I don't speak Spanish, I thought this was more or less in line with other volunteer organizations. Thanks again.

Just a quick note, in Antigua there is an outfit called Outdoor Excursions. They are always looking for people to help w/ mountain clean up and environmental issues around the area. The guy that runs the place is awesome. Check it out.

Outdoor Excursions

If you want to make an impact on the cheap, you can stay indefinitely at the mission at San Lucas Toliman, on the shores of beautiful Lake Atitlan. It's a Catholic mission that serves the Mayan town of San Lucas, and it's more or less revolutionized the surrounding area since it started in the late 60's. The founding priest was awarded the Order of the Quetzal by the Guatemalan government last month for his work.

There are a number of specific projects associated with the mission, including medical work, coffee growing, education and vocation training, and construction. Check it out at http://www.sanlucasmission.com

If you want to reserve a spot, you have to do it through the American diocese in Minnesota that oversees the mission. You can get contact info at http://www.dnu.org/service/sanlucas.html . Kathy Huebert does the booking.

They ask for $25 a day for your stay, which is not much, considering everything is included (and they may pick you up from the airport in Guat City, if you're not just by yourself.)

Another good outfit is Common Hope, which operates in the area of Antigua and is also headquartered out of Minnesota. do a google on them to find out more.

IM PLANNING ON VOLUNTEERING THIS SUMMER AND I HAVE HEARD MANY BAD REVIEWS OF GLOBALCROSSROAD. I WANT TO SOMETHING EITHER IN ARGENTINA OR IN AFRICA (MAINLY GHANA).
DOES ANYONE KNOW OF A GOOD VOLUNTEER ORGANIZATION THAT IS NOT EXPENSIVE??

also have a look at independent volunteer, very similar to the south america and latin america sights, but with a couple extra.