RECENT BLOGS
Week 4: ANIDES and the Matagalpa Region

This has become my Thursday morning routine: Wake up, Realize it is already Thursday, Get anxi...

by Lindsay Seegmiller on February 16, 2012
Notes from San Pedro Columbia, Belize

Currently Quarry Integrated Communications is in San Pedro Columbia, Belize working on the second phase of an alte...

by Mandey Moote on February 16, 2012
Week 3: Jorge Luis Raudales and Cedros Abajo

After a rained-out beach weekend in eastern Guatemala, I moved on to Honduras for a week with Jorge Luis Raudales....

by Lindsay Seegmiller on February 09, 2012

After a rained-out beach weekend in eastern Guatemala, I moved on to Honduras for a week with Jorge Luis Raudales....

by Lindsay Seegmiller on February 09, 2012
Week 2: Pura Vida, Fotosynthesis, and RJI

  To kick off my second week, I made a big push to get to San Marcos de la Laguna on the shores of Lake A...

by Lindsay Seegmiller on February 02, 2012
Week 1: San Pedro Columbia + CRC

Last week, as I rode a chicken bus (read: school bus converted into public transport that makes every conceivable ...

by Lindsay Seegmiller on January 23, 2012
Reasons Aboriginal Education is Important

    Part 1: Language   Aboriginal education is not only a focus a...

by Sebastian Szczachor on January 17, 2012
My new years resolution: blogging.

In September, I worked with the Outreach department to reflect on what we’ve done so far and to set goals fo...

by Lindsay Seegmiller on January 15, 2012
The Importance of Community Buy-in

  In community development initiatives, there’s nothing worse than an organization barging into...

by Sebastian Szczachor on January 10, 2012
The upside of overseas volunteering

The Toronto Star published an editorial on January 4th entitled “The downside of overseas volunteering&rdquo...

by Lindsay Seegmiller on January 09, 2012
Introducing: Pura Vida

At Head Office, we’re really excited to see such a strong round of Final Exam-AID sessions being held at all...

by Lindsay Seegmiller on December 19, 2011
How to 'Study Smart'

  The exam season is unfortunately upon us. It’s much worse than wedding season, slightly less depr...

by Greg Overholt on December 01, 2011
Travelling to B.C.

Tomorrow I will be travelling to the beautiful province of British Columbia to visit four of SOS’s chapters ...

by Greg Overholt on November 15, 2011
Introducing: Reto Juvenil

Last, but certainly not least, I’m proud to introduce everyone to Reto Juvenil Internacional (RJI). RJI has ...

by Lindsay Seegmiller on November 14, 2011
Introducing: Awaiting Angels

When I first started working at SOS last summer, one of the first things a friend said to me about my job was &ldq...

by Lindsay Seegmiller on November 11, 2011
Introducing: Columbia River Cooperative

Today, I start writing about our current partnering organizations that were critical to such a successful 2010/201...

by Lindsay Seegmiller on November 11, 2011
Introducing: Seeds of Learning

We came across Seeds of Learning (SOL) during our intensive google sessions looking into NGOs working in education...

by Lindsay Seegmiller on November 11, 2011
Introducing: Mano a Mano Bolivia

Beginning this search for partner organizations was not an easy search. I would give co-ops vague parameters about...

by Lindsay Seegmiller on November 10, 2011
Introducing: Fundacion Aprender

The inspiring story of Aprender began in 2004 when Gabriela Prado and James Womack moved from New York City to a f...

by Lindsay Seegmiller on November 09, 2011
Introducing: ANIDES

A partnership with ANIDES has been on my bucket list since meeting Gloria through RJI in Nicaragua during my secon...

by Lindsay Seegmiller on November 07, 2011
Introducing: Jorge Luis Raudales

After weeks of proposal reviewing and conversations with organizations from across Central America, I am so excite...

by Lindsay Seegmiller on November 07, 2011
Project Proposal Season

Our last 2011 outreach trip has just returned (after a gruelling amount of delays – thank you Air Canada). W...

by Lindsay Seegmiller on September 30, 2011
Classroom in a week and a half? NO PROBLEM!

  In December 2010, I was introduced to the idea of participating in a missionary trip to Costa Rica for ...

by Stephanie Charron on September 05, 2011
Take me back to Costa Rica..NOW!

Coordinating my first outreach trip took a lot of patience and understanding..I wasn’t quite sure what I was...

by Kafia Barkat on September 05, 2011
The Impact of Solar Panels

Last May, we piloted a project to bring electricity to some of our partnering communities who had none. In the win...

by Lindsay Seegmiller on September 02, 2011
Extra-Curricular Tips for Post-Grad Success

  Sports, part-time jobs, volunteering, computer games, partying and even The Bachelorette. These are all...

by Greg Overholt on August 31, 2011
Packing Essentials

With only six days left until our flight, I notice myself often daydreaming about the trip...    ...

by Macy Frances Bacos on August 11, 2011
How-to: Set REAListic goals for the school year; It’s all about balance.

  A quick Google search for ‘goal setting’ will provide you with a plethora of results from m...

by Greg Overholt on August 11, 2011
where the money goes

  Where does the money go? Transparency is key. Charities take a lot of heat for having shady or vagu...

by Lindsay Seegmiller on August 01, 2011
The Bigger Picture

  I’ve been doing a lot of reading lately about a favourite topic of mine: the impact (good and bad...

by Lindsay Seegmiller on July 22, 2011
Travel Tips: Flights

  Flights are expensive, and get more expensive each day. It’s a constant stress point for Greg and...

by Lindsay Seegmiller on July 22, 2011
Travel Tips: Socially Conscious Tourism

  One of my favourite things about SOS trips is that they get participants OFF of the tourist circuit. Co...

by Lindsay Seegmiller on July 22, 2011
Travel Tips: Thorn Tree Forum

  I’m going to let you all in on a secret … I’m not as smart as you may think I am. Wi...

by Lindsay Seegmiller on July 22, 2011
COMMENT: Wall Street Journal - Is Higher Education Worth the Money?

Yesterday, a blog post titled ‘Is Higher Education Worth the Money?’ was published by The Wall Street ...

by Greg Overholt on July 07, 2011
Two Weeks Without Electricity

In a community of no running water and no electricity, what do you do at night?    We had picked...

by Amy Fan on July 02, 2011
A Drop in the Bucket

  A very wise man once explained poverty to me like this:    The need in Central Americ...

by Meagan McKeen on June 28, 2011
smiles :)

My favourite thing about Nicaragua... The kids smile at everything! Except at the camera.. They are truly ...

by Juyoung Amy Kim on June 24, 2011
Machu Picchu and lazy days that followed

May 31st, 2011 We went to Machu Picchu on Sunday and climbed a freakin' mountain-- ACTUALLY a mountain!! I...

by Amanda Culver on June 18, 2011
Birthday in Peru

April 30, 2011 So, Thursday, we varnished so many chairs and finished varnishing the ceilings, as well as putt...

by Amanda Culver on June 18, 2011
Downtown chaos, cute, and evil -- Peru 2011

Sorry for not writing sooner... we got back from work late because we stayed in the community and played games wit...

by Amanda Culver on June 18, 2011
"Just" two weeks?

Nicaragua has to be one of the most beautiful countries in the world. Being my second journey to this country, I h...

by Cole Handsaeme on June 17, 2011

by Cole Handsaeme on June 17, 2011
First 2 days in Peru

Sunday, April 24th, 2011 We finally arrived in Cusco-- the city is gorgeeous as a whole and its downtown is be...

by Amanda Culver on June 06, 2011
A Truly Humbling Experience

    Months and months of planning and anticipation brought myself and 11 other anxious volunteer...

by Samantha Perrotta on June 02, 2011
Building community in unexpected places

Last month, I was one of a group of 12 disparate people from work (<http://www.quarry.com> ) who spent a wee...

by Sarah Harwood on March 10, 2011
post trip thoughts

  My last post (an embarrassing amount of months ago) was, of course, sceptical and critical about outrea...

by Lindsay Seegmiller on March 04, 2011
My Experiences in Costa Rica and Honduras

  Hello, my name is Kevin and I was a volunteer on the Laurier chapter’s trips to Honduras and Cost...

by Kevin Andrew on October 25, 2010
'Shameless Idealists'

"Shameless Idealists"- not just the title to Craig Kielburger's (*founder of Free the Children) ...

by Paul Vice on October 22, 2010
hypocrisy or inspiration? or both?

  Have you ever had one of those moments where you read something and are like, yes. That is EXACTLY what...

by Lindsay Seegmiller on October 22, 2010
Poasito; destroyed by quake, saved by 'community'

In August 2009, I had the privilege of spending two weeks in a very unique community; Poasito, Costa Rica. A forty...

by Greg Overholt on October 16, 2010
What is the Value of Short-Term Outreach Trips? A Response to Critics

Assessing the value of a short-term outreach trip can be challenging at times. To some, it has immense value; othe...

by Mark McLean on October 05, 2010
San Marcos, Nicaragua!

It has been almost one month since I have been back from the SOS outreach trip to Nicaragua; and in this past mont...

by Lauren Carinci on September 28, 2010
Peru Highs and Lows

Highs: 1.       INTERACTING WITH THE LOCAL COMMUNITY ·  &nb...

by Jeffrey Baer on September 20, 2010
Waterloo SOS in Peru!

Waterloo SOS sent a team of 22 volunteers down to Peru for our second annual educational development project. ...

by Jeffrey Baer on September 20, 2010
A Prologue to My Blog

As you know, my name is Mark and I have been one of SOS’ National Outreach Directors for just over a year no...

by Mark McLean on September 20, 2010
Adventure in Nicaragua!

Man... Every time I think about Nicaragua and the trip I get so motivated and energized... It really was the best ...

by Cole Handsaeme on September 20, 2010
Roosters and Ghekos in the Hut!!

August 16, 2010 It’s a 5:30 a.m. start to the day, because the rooster says so! There is really no optio...

by Permpreet Soomal on September 19, 2010
Lets Go....Vamenos!

August 14, 2010 After a long day of travelling, we’ve finally arrived in San Jose, Costa Rica! Exiting t...

by Permpreet Soomal on September 17, 2010
an introduction...

  I have sat down to write this blog about a thousand (ten) times this week. I have a lot of first paragr...

by Lindsay Seegmiller on September 15, 2010
Reflections on an amazing volunteer experience

I went to Nicaragua with an open mind and with no expectations so that nothing would catch me off guard. Little di...

by Brittany Shaw on September 14, 2010
Step outside of your comfort zone

One of the many things I learned from this trip, is that it's almost always worth it to step&nb...

by Anonymous Volunteer on September 09, 2010
Volunteers: Harder to lead than paid employees, but so much more impactful!

Having managed over 250 student volunteers over the last five years, I can definitely say that volunteers are hard...

by Greg Overholt on September 09, 2010
SOS BLOGGERS
Brittany Shaw

I will be entering my third year of Biochemistry at Laurier in the fall. I am on the varsity swim team and love stay...

Permpreet Soomal

My two goals in life are to travel as much of this world as I can and to make a lasting impression in the places I vi...

Juyoung Amy Kim

I'm a third year Biology student! I have been involved with UBC SOS as VP Outreach since the UBC chapter opened, and ...

Anonymous Volunteer

This is a collection of thoughts, stories, ideas, and experiences of SOS volunteers who wanted to share but prefer to...

Samantha Perrotta

I have been involved with SOS for the past year, and am very happy that this organization has entered my life. My exp...

Kevin Andrew

National Outreach Program Director

Stephanie Charron

Hello all! My name is Stephanie Charron. I am a second year nursing student at the university of Ottawa collaborative...

Sebastian Szczachor

Senior Researcher at SOS Head Office in Toronto. I like loud music, movies, the Blue Jays, and anthropological theory.

Mark McLean

Mark is a graduate of Wilfrid Laurier University's Honours Business Administration program where he also discovered a...

Paul Vice

Paul Vice, Emerging Technology Evangelist, Focused on helping emerging technology companies engage customers, develop...

Mandey Moote

Quarry Integrated Communication's Outreach Trip.

Cole Handsaeme

I am in my 3rd year in political science and have just recently been to Nicaragua on the last SOS trip. It was absolu...

Jeffrey Baer

I am a 3B Act Sci student who has completed work terms with Manulife Financial and Towers Watson. I have tutored ove...

Sarah Harwood

This person hasn't put up a biography yet, but they are a highly enthusiastic part of the SOS family!

Macy Frances Bacos

This person hasn't put up a biography yet, but they are a highly enthusiastic part of the SOS family!

Melana Roberts

This person hasn't put up a biography yet, but they are a highly enthusiastic part of the SOS family!

Lindsay Seegmiller

SOS becomes more and more of my life each day that I work as the Director of International Outreach here. As I learn...

Meagan McKeen

I am a third year UBC student, currently studying Environmental Science and Human Health. I've done quite a bit of w...

Amanda Culver

Arts&Science student (French major/Math minor) I like to read, draw, paint, write, and I want to teach grade 3 once...

Lauren Carinci

Hi, I'm Lauren! I am in my 5th year Global Studies at WLU. I went on the volunteer trip to Nicaragua in August, 2010!...

Greg Overholt

For the last 7 years, SOS has a been a big part of my life. From starting a small campus club at Wilfrid Laurier Univ...

Kafia Barkat

My name is Kafia Barkat, I am a third year student in biomedical sciences at the university of Ottawa. As finance and...

Amy Fan

Amy is a 4th Commerce student at Queen's University. She has been a part of SOS since 2008, and is excited to be a pa...

WANT TO SUBMIT?
If you are interested, contact Katie at communications@studentsofferingsupport.ca
Registered National Charity Number:
81495 0416 RR 0001
Contact Us
© 2009 Students Offering Suport. All rights reserved.