General Impression
Overall Rating: / 10
This was unlike other volunteer trips that I have done. In the past, I have been given a worksite, and a set consistent schedule. On this trip, in the span of 2 weeks, we worked with four different organizations at six different sites and different schedules. On one hand, it was really neat to get an overview of the diverse set of problems NOLA faces. It was stimulating to see different things and do different things. However, on the other hand, it seemed like the local team was kind of scrambling to find us things to do. The last minute site changes and stuff was a little annoying. Also, by going to so many different places, I'm not sure that we were able to accomplish the most meaningful stuff compared to if we were working on a consistent project throughout. Still, by going to different places we got to meet a lot of different and amazing people. Overall, I'm glad we had different locations. But it could have been more organized. [Love Volunteers: Thanks for being so flexible, Nicholas, and apologies for moving your group around. Keeping you together and gainfully employed did require a number of projects over your 2 weeks. Thanks for working so effectively on everything you were given!]It was very unfortunate that we weren't provided with transportation to our sites. It also would have been nice to have a ride to the airport. The first week, our volunteer site was far from our accommodation, and it wasn't near the bus route either, so our Uber/Lyft fees were ~$35 at least, and we had to wait between half an hour and an hour for it to come. [Love Volunteers: we'll look into this and make improvements.]
Also, I'll be honest. The program fee seems expensive. After hearing how the man who ran our accommodation gets paid (less than 30% of our fee), and considering that one of the organizations even asked us for a donation (they get minimal, if anything at all), I am not sure where this money goes. Pardon the harshness, but the coordinators seemed a little bit useless. They connected us with a few organizations, picked us up from the airport, spent $10 on pralines, and gave a short orientation of the city. Is that what most of the program fee really goes to? [Love Volunteers: Thanks for raising this. The program fee does include financial support to projects in the area, however, it's not always the programs volunteers work on. Lots of projects can't host volunteers but still need support and this is often where the donations are focused. The local team have taken your comments onboard and are implementing better connection between the coordinators, projects and volunteers.]
I believe the barrier to entry for volunteering should be as minimal as possible. That's why I want to understand the roles of these volunteering "middle-men" better. This was on my and my friends' mind during the trip. [Love Volunteers: We agree! There's a lot of work that goes on behind the scenes to set up volunteer placements and individual charities don't have the manpower to facilitate this. Instead they rely on coordinating organisations and of course that does add to the cost for the volunteer. We work with locals so the funds go back into the community. Following up on this review we have communicated and refunded your group to better reflect the value you received. You were great volunteers!]
All this said, I really did enjoy the two weeks (except the day I got really sick). It was both very informational and fun, and a great way to kick off the summer.
[Love Volunteers: thanks so much, Nicholas!]
Country
I live in the US, so my impressions were generally unaffected. NOLA is a weird and unique city though. Fun place to be.
Project & Staff
With Love volunteers, Nicole has been a good and reliable contact.
With the local team, Sophia was also a reliable contact.
With the local team, Sophia was also a reliable contact.
Tips
If you live in the U.S. and are within driving distance, consider driving. transportation during this trip can be a pain, and having a car would be nice to go to the farther worksites or if you want to travel outside the city for something (like a swamp tour)