Learn More About Our Custom Volunteer Programs for Groups
In addition to our mainstay summer programs, VISIONS also runs customized volunteer group trips. Let’s learn more!
Youth summer service adventures may be our forte, but customized volunteer group trips are a growing part of VISIONS, as well. These custom volunteer trips are available any time of year and to any VISIONS program location. They’re also not just for young people. We organize service adventures for all ages and groups, from university faculty to trade unions, youth clubs, language schools, sports teams, Scout troops, and more.
We have also run college trips, and plan to organize some special VISIONS alumni group trips starting in 2025 for alumni ages 19 and older, for past participants and leaders, and friends and family of alumni.
But why us? In our 30+ years of service work, we’ve developed longstanding, intimate relationships with communities around the world, from the Blackfeet Nation to indigenous Quechua communities in the Peruvian Andes. We think of these communities as family, and have known some of them for decades. There’s no performative work or social media virtue signaling here.
So if you’re looking to find not just adventure and cultural enrichment but a truly impactful service experience, you can trust VISIONS to help you design and implement a custom trip for you and yours.
What Does a Group Volunteer Program with VISIONS Look Like?
Our dedicated info page offers more information about group volunteer programs, but we’ll break it down a bit here. Above all else, our program is designed to be customizable, aligning with the specific goals of each group while maintaining the successful framework of the VISIONS experience.
This adaptability ensures that participants not only contribute meaningfully to the communities they serve but also undergo a transformative journey that aligns with their unique objectives.
A VISIONS custom volunteer adventure is available any time of year, in any currently operating VISIONS service location. At the time of writing (2023), these destinations include Peru, the Dominican Republic, the British Virgin Islands, and the Montana Blackfeet Reservation. Trip lengths range from seven days to eight weeks, and require at least 10 participants. Beyond this, we can accommodate groups of up to 30.
Here is a sample overview of a Custom Program to the Dominican Republic, our most popular destination for these group trips.
Our custom volunteer trips are led by the same experienced mentors who lead our VISIONS teen summer programs. A typical week involves five days of volunteer work, providing participants with hands-on opportunities to contribute to community projects. The remaining two days are fully reserved for excursions, with curated adventures providing a balance of cultural immersion and exploration.
After mornings of volunteering, afternoons are enriched with cultural activities and outings, fostering a holistic understanding of the local community. All-inclusive services, from lodging and meals to transportation and excursions, are seamlessly integrated into the program. Participants also benefit from VISIONS travel insurance, ensuring a secure and well-supported experience.
Why Choose a Custom Group Volunteer Trip?
There are a variety of reasons why groups embark on custom service adventures. For example, many of our volunteers come from clubs, such as a foreign language or community service-oriented club. For those interested in improving their Spanish skills, a trip designed around our Spanish Immersion adventure in the DR is an excellent choice.
Group volunteer trips are also an excellent way to add meaning to travel, accomplish a specific goal and project—such as building a home or school classroom—and get to know the others in your group in new ways, forging closer, stronger relationships by working through shared challenges and accomplishing shared goals.
Group volunteer experiences also open the door for a shared tradition and experience that can span years. Many groups, such as the synagogue B’nai Jeshurun, return to our program sites year after year for meaningful service. This Manhattan synagogue has been volunteering with VISIONS since 2010, and each year they continue to strengthen their relationships with each other, VISIONS community partners, and their program site, often bringing donations, doing fundraisers, and keeping in touch with their local friends in the interim.
Custom Volunteer Trip Testimonials
“I’ve been awash in the stories from our students who joined VISIONS in Montana this month. It has been amazing to hear all the stories and experiences they had out there. It sounds like it was a challenging and empowering experience for a lot of our youth. Thanks to your team for helping us to provide this amazing experience!”
“There were no complaints, only positive energy and a deep desire to learn and to help. Our teens volunteered to clean, cook, buy, help, teach, work hard, and be tough, inspired and challenged with smiles on their faces. There were no clicks, just one beautiful group of kids ready to be challenged by a real life experience. As a rabbi, it was my privilege to be there with them. I came back like them, exhausted, but truly happy that I was there. To see them opening up to a new world—believe me, we were not in another country, we were on another planet—was incredible.”
