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Volunteering

Volunteer while traveling on the Caribbean coast of Colombia.

A chance to give something back while enjoying your trip.

Mariposas Amarillas is a small Colombian grassroots organization committed to supporting disadvantaged children and families around Santa Marta, Colombia. We provide education and childcare to families in Santa Marta’s poorest neighborhoods.

We are looking for both temporary and long-term volunteers. You can decide yourself how long you want to stay, and you make your own work schedule. The benefit of this structure is that you will have plenty of time to take Spanish or dive courses, explore nearby areas such as Tayrona National Park, or just lie on the beach if you like!

What can I do?
What you can do with foundation will largely depend on your interests, skills, time commitment, and ability to speak Spanish. We welcome people with any skill, or none! Volunteers can help with administration, fundraising, and publicity and/or teach classes and offer counseling to children.

Volunteers are needed to teach a wide range of subjects including English, art, music, dance, sports, Spanish, and maths. Classes take place in rooms offered by the community and in our dedicated school building, and supplies are basic. Volunteers can teach as little or as much as they like, and both long-term and temporary volunteers are welcome.

After-school projects
The foundation also supports new ideas and projects initiated by volunteers, though we currently cannot provide funding for such projects. We're hoping to continue to expand the extracurricular education program to more sites, and would like to begin teaching adults (especially young mothers) as well. If you're into sports, music, dance or drama, for example, you could start up clubs for kids to participate in after school hours.

Our tours:

Practicalities Mariposas Amarillas is a locally-run, grassroots foundation, not an international volunteer organization. As our staff and resources are small, we ask for a great deal of independence from our volunteers. Although we can help out with advice, ultimately our volunteers are responsible for their own accommodation, transportation, living costs, supplies, and visas. We can provide lists of local hostels or organise a homestay with a Colombian family if required.

The main members of the foundation do not speak English, so at least basic Spanish is necessary for all volunteers. We can help you out with Spanish lessons from local teachers at discounted prices. We have no minimum age requirements, but volunteers must display independence and maturity. Since the foundation is not run from an office, most of the work is done independently or on-site working in Santa Marta’s poorest neighborhoods. The ideal volunteer will be flexible and self-driven.

We want volunteers to enjoy their stay in Santa Marta. Thus, the work schedule is flexible and can be customized to fit each volunteer’s needs. You can work part time or full time, for a week, a month or a year!

Costs
There is a one-time, nonrefundable $50 administration fee for all volunteers. This fee goes directly to supporting the foundation and helps pay for the costs of internet, telephone calls, photocopies, staff transportation, materials for the education program, and much needed items for the students. This small fee goes a long way, and is sufficient to buy workbooks or shoes for 15 students or medicine for a sick child.

Contact us
You can reach us via our website, www.fmacolombia.weebly.com or email us at fundmariposasamarillas@gmail.com

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