Voluntary work ― step closer to dream

Lee Hye-young, 23, left, poses with children in Haiti, where she did volunteer work in June 2012. She was dispatched to the earthquake-devastated island country to help children. Lee is a student majoring in English education at Keimyung University in Daegu. / Courtesy of Lee Hye-young

By Bahk Eun-ji

Overseas volunteer work is often regarded as a chance for people to share skills and abilities, or work to promote international understanding in developing nations.

However, the reason why Lee Hye-young, a 23-year-old student majoring in English education at Keimyung University in Daegu, signed up was somewhat different. She went to the U.S. to do volunteer work for a year from February 2012 on a program named Good News Corps (GNCorps) which is run by the International Youth Fellowship (IYF) based in New York.

GNCorps offers opportunities for college-aged people to travel overseas and share their skills and talents. It sends people to around 80 countries around the world enabling volunteers to develop a global perspective by engaging with diverse aspects of foreign culture, including language, architecture, sport and cuisine.

Lee joined the program last year and unlike many people who go to developing countries such as India, Indonesia or African states, she chose instead to go to the United States.

A young Korean volunteer worker poses for photos with children during a volunteer program in Haiti in June 2012. The program called Good News Corps (GNCorps) was run by the New York-based International Youth Fellowship (IYF). / Courtesy of IYF

“People think it’s unusual when I say I went to the U.S. for volunteer work, because the country is generally thought of as a rich country where many people are not short of financial means,” Lee said.

“Seoul is a place where many people live in affluence, but at the same time, most of the nation’s homeless live near Seoul Station. Just like Seoul, where a wide gap between rich and poor exists, there are so many people barely managing to earn a living, or are even mentally devastated,” she said.

Lee pointed out she didn’t go there to do others a favor, but to find herself and whatever she could do. Although people are wealthy, many of them feel lonely because of the prevailing selfish attitude in society, Lee said.

“When I initially decided to go to the U.S., I just wanted the volunteer work to be a turning point in my college life, because I wasn’t so sure about my future and my studies.” Lee said she grew mentally during the experience.

“I found out that I have to step toward them first if I want to be their friends. Certainly it takes time to open somebody’s mind but I realized that I have to do it first,”

What she learned from friends is to be optimistic in any circumstances. Whenever she was going through a hard time or dealing with a big project that she thought was beyond her capability, they told her it would be a great stepping stone for her life although she sometimes failed at the time.

“Now I’ve become a strong person who isn’t afraid of failure and trying as hard as I can,” Lee said.

While she was living in the U.S., she was given the opportunity to take part in additional voluntary work in Haiti which was hit by a catastrophic earthquake in 2010. Around 200 Korean and American college students visited two schools there to help children learn about various subjects ranging from English to public sanitation.

Lee’s job was to guide children to their classes and facilitate communication during lessons.

“When I first met the children in Haiti, I was a little bit confused because they always wanted to take things from me, as they were too used to getting relief supplies,” Lee said some children asked for her necklace and watch.

“I was a little bit bewildered but soon enough, I realized they experienced hardship after they lost their parents due to the earthquake,”

In particular, she recalled a boy in one class Collin, 15, who lost his parents.

He couldn’t concentrate in class or even sit and listen to what the teacher was saying for more than a minute.

“Three days later the class began, I came to him and told him seriously that he should join the class and learn English so that he could gain further opportunity to study in the future,” She took him to the class, had him sit at the front and taught him the basics of reading and writing.

Whenever Collins said he couldn’t understand something, Lee taught him and had him practice over and over again. On the last day of the program, Collin left a note for her, saying “You are my dream.” He also wrote in the note that he couldn’t find the meaning of life after he lost his parents but now he had a dream ― to be a teacher just like Lee.

Through the meeting with Collin, Lee felt she became someone who can inspire others.

“I felt like I found the reason to be a teacher. I want to be a teacher who can help my students change and find meaning in their life,”

Lee said she has still a long way to go before becoming an inspiring teacher, but she knows the one-year experience brought her a step closer to her dream.