How to create YOUR OWN Esperanza group!

My name is Eric Reutter, and I would like to take a second to tell you how easy it is to form an Esperanza volunteer group. First, I should back up for a moment. I am currently the long-term volunteer in Tijuana, and I have been

When I say that

organizing an Esperanza group is easy I, of course, understand that putting together a volunteer group from the United States to spend a week in Mexico has its inherent challenges. The easy part is that there are so many tools available to those with the desire to bring a

group down.coming down as a participant/l

That is where my job starts. I am here to give the most thorough and complete information to any volunteer with even the slightest inkling of bringing their friends/colleagues/associates down to Tijuana.eader on Esperanza trips for the past 8 years. I am currently the Alumni Trips Coordinator for the Esperanza Alumni Association (EAA). If there is one passion I have in this life, besides being part of bucket lines here in Tijuana, it is for organizing Esperanza volunteer groups.

There are many people who have made such groups, and who have invaluable experiences fundraising, trip-planning, and promoting. All of these leaders have shared with me that

they would be glad to pass on any information to those who would like to form new groups. On top of all that, we have the Esperanza network of volunteers, in which we can help promote and assist the trip process.

Without going further into all the details about planning a trip, I will just say this: If you are like me and have been changed by the Esperanza experience; if you feel like I felt, that you need to share that experience with others: don’t hesitate to act on that impulse.

When I first formed a group I wondered if it would be worth it; if I would recruit enough people or be able to plan everything correctly. When I finally organized a trip and saw how i

t impacted the participants as much as it impacted me, I realized something important. No matter what the uncertainty, having someone’s life dramatically affected by an Esperanza experience is well worth the risk.

-Eric

Contact eric.reutter@esperanzaint.org

Dear Esperanza Alumni,

I hope this newsletter finds you well. My name is Steven Hinderhofer and I am an Esperanza alumnus. I am currently acting as the president of the Esperanza Alumni Association (EAA). Our mission is to to build a network of Esperanza volunteers in order to continue serving the families of Mexico, generate change in our home communities, and foster an environment of global solidarity. Big missions start with small steps. They start with you. If you are reading this newsletter (thanks for doing so) that means that you are most probably an alumnus of a trip to TJ. Whether you were

a group leader, had made several trips, or finally succumb to a
friend begging you to join them, you are an alumnus, and we (Esperanza, Int.) need you. We need you to take a moment and think of your best times in Mexico. We need you to take a moment and remember a time during your stay when everything was perfect. We need you to remember that moment when you sai

d that you were "always going to be here", you were always going to make the trip. We need you to think of those moments and begin to consider how you can help from this side of the border. I was speaking with Eduardo the other night via a Skype conversation. He is working hard, friends, everyday -365 days a year, 110% and doing everything he can with what he is being given. He needs us to be working as hard here on this side of the border. So if you are interested in that kind of work, please join this committee. We aren't looking for folks to balance their life out for this cause, rather to be all in. To plan events, to

gather groups, to donate our hard earned money, to be in TJ on a yearly if not more regular basis. You are "plan A". There is no one else working and thinking like you with your experience. There is no one else organizing groups. There is no one else organizing events in the name of Esperanza. There is no one else speaking to everyone they come in contact with about how they have fallen in love with Mexico and why they need to join you. You are Esperanza Alumni, and we need you. Mexico needs you. The images of the peolpe in your head need you, right now.

Gratefully,

Steve Hinderhofer

alumni@espeanzaint.org

Kelsey Harrington in Tijuana!

This past August I was blessed with the opportunity to work with Esperanza for 2 weeks. It was my seventh time working with Esperanza and my second time staying for two straight weeks. I

Tijuana. It is rejuvenating, inspiring, peaceful, and rewarding. Every time I go I learn something new about myself, about

Mexico, about Esperanza, and remember the peace that comes from a life dedicated to service, hope, and love.love Esperanza and can’t imagine going a year without spending a week or two in

Working with Esperanza for 2 weeks is a unique opportunity. I gained

a greater understanding of the communities that Esperanza serves and

how the organization itself runs. I

also got to see more organizations in Tijuana that serve people and needs that Esperanza cannot serve. I love being able to form stronger bonds and relationships with the community members. They get really excited to see you again on the Monday of the second week, “Otra semana?!?!” (Another week?!) I also gained a greater understanding of the building process of a house over the course of 2 weeks

What made this trip unique from my others was the opportunity to join two independent groups. Two friends and myself joined up with other pe

ople that we didn’t know from Washington, California, and Missouri. I was a little nervous beforehand because I had never gone with people I didn’t know, but all nerves were shattered instantly!! It was such a joy to build relationships with those I was serving with as well as with those I was serving. I got to hear new perspectives on what we were experiencing and see things differently.

It is so cool to think that we are now in our own parts of the United States, carrying the message of Esperanza with us to different neighborhoods a

nd states. We are starting little Esperanza fires all over the country. If you have never gone with an independent group, do it!! It is a new way of experiencing Esperanza and creates lasting friendships with people from around the country, who are carrying the message of Esperanza with them!

2 week trip in Tijuana!

Our lives seem to become so busy that it is easy to forget what we have experienced and live our hectic lives ignoring the issues present in our neighboring country. Esperanza is a program and a community that we cannot forget. I recently spent two weeks in Tijuana, Mexico and it completely solidified the fact that I will continue to make an effort to return to the posada and support the program for many years to come. Esperanza has become so much more than a week spent working on a person’s house. The week spent working is the foundation for bridging two communities. Not only are you given the opportunity to grow within the community of those you traveled to Mexico with, you also begin building relationships with people of a completely different culture.

My two week visit consisted of a different group each week, many of whom I had never met before. Each group had a mix of different ages and different walks of life, yet we melded together well. I gained many long-lasting friendships in each group. I also became closer to those people we interacted with who make up the Esperanza program. I enjoyed listening to their stories, playing with their kids and helping to build their home which they have been waiting so long to accomplish this pivotal moment in their life. It made me feel like these people I had just met were my long lost friends.the foundation for bridging two communities. Not only are you given the opportunity to grow within the community of those you traveled to Mexico with, you also begin building relationships with people of a completely different culture.

One of the most influential parts of this trip was two social occasions that I was involved in while I was there. We went to a Xolos game (the local soccer team) and also went out one night to celebrate a birthday party. During these two events I saw the volunteers and local participants of Esperanza in an environment outside of work. I became highly aware of the fact that even with our cultural differences, we shared the same human nature in the desire to have a good time and enjoy friends. At this moment I thought of all the things I hear at home, in the United States, about the poverty in Tijuana and I realized that while there is visible financial poverty here, there is also a wealth of laughter, dancing, family and friends.

Our cultures are different, but both have something unique to offer one another. Often volunteers begin the week with a feeling of sympathy for the community members, because they are struggling to build a home with less amenities than the homes they are used to in the United States. Yet, in my experience, by the end of the week volunteers don’t leave feeling sympathetic, they leave feeling enriched and with a much greater appreciation for the important things in life; friends and family. They leave feeling as though they have been given something rather than solely giving something.

In conclusion, I have found, the more I visit a place and experience all that it has to offer, the more comfortable I become. Every time I return to Esperanza that familiarity increase, I reconnect with friends and take with me much more than I could possibly give in my time in Tijuana and with the Esperanza program.