The visions blog

Dig deeper into stories of friendships, community and projects.

Spotlights: Alum, Leaders & Partners

Our community has grown with each passing year, beginning in rural Pennsylvania and quickly extending across the globe. In this series, we glimpse into the lives of some of the people who make up the diverse VISIONS community and hear how VISIONS fits into their bigger picture.

Do you have a VISIONS story that you would like to share? Our international community would love to hear from you! Click here to share your story!

Spotlight: Emma Solferino

Spotlight: Emma Solferino

Today we hear directly from British Virgin Islands participant Emma about her daily life and her takeaways from the Caribbean… “I strive to smile frequently and try to make people laugh through (not so great, admittedly) jokes, so day to day I’m pretty happy…”

Spotlight: Kristin O’Donoghue

Spotlight: Kristin O’Donoghue

Kristin shares her hopes for the future and explains how international community service fits in… “I would like to break down barriers of judgment that we have created for ourselves, that prohibit us from understanding one another and from making change…”

Spotlight: Marvin Mastin

Spotlight: Marvin Mastin

When Marvin enters the room, the world gets a little brighter… “In my life I would like to create dialogue between people/groups. Everything starts with an interaction between two parties. VISIONS taught me that I only skimmed the surface of what there is to learn, share and discover…”

Spotlight: Kodee Cloninger

Spotlight: Kodee Cloninger

Kodee will be returning to Ecuador for her sixth summer with VISIONS and is excited to share her passion with another group…
“Through its focus on community and communication VISIONS has given me the opportunity to accept myself for my greatest strengths and weaknesses…”

Spotlight: Amanda Pincock

Spotlight: Amanda Pincock

Global citizen and longtime VISIONS Director Amanda shares a little about her world… “Having the opportunity to be placed in a community and live there for a summer, and being accepted by and working with people who have sometimes spent their lives there, was a blessing I will never take for granted…”

Spotlight: Eliza Trainer

Spotlight: Eliza Trainer

Eliza will be heading to the Dominican Republic this summer for her second VISIONS program. Hear her reflections from Peru… “I want to continue to challenge myself and put myself in situations that will help me grow because it feels amazing to help others while having fun and learning at the same time…”