Students added international members to the Auburn family this spring break with service trips through Alternative Student Breaks. Two locations the group visited were Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic.
Approximately a week before the trip, Rohith Vadlamudi, senior in biomedical sciences; Patty Maxham, junior in special education; and Nic Ellison, senior in biomedical science, described what the groups would be doing during their trips.
According to Vadlamudi, the Costa Rica group went to San Jose and La Fortuna, Costa Rica, where they worked at an orphanage the group has also worked with in previous years. The orphanage houses approximately 25 children up to the age of 11.
"We're starting off our trip at an orphanage in La Fortuna, and we'll be spending the first three days there doing renovation projects, playing with the kids, [and] fixing up the place," Maxham said. "Then we'll be traveling to the capital, San Jose, and we'll be aiding a Nicaraguan refugee center. We'll be doing construction, painting, fixing up whatever they need done, as well as working in an after school program for the kids there."
The group had 11 students going, and they stayed in hotels. Vadlamudi said in the future, they would like to stay with a family that could house them in one location.
Maxham said they would also have a guide to help translate. Maxham said she was most excited about going to the orphanage.
"That's what really hit home for me last year on the trip - getting to see all the kids and interacting with them and just seeing their pure joy regardless of their circumstances," Maxham said.
A second group of 15 students went to to San Cristoval, Dominican Republic. Vadlamudi said they would be staying with a host family they know closely from previous years.
"[The students] will be going to some of the poorest parts in the entire world really," Vadlamudi said. "They'll fly into Santa Domingo. [Then] they'll immediately drive out to this tiny little town - run down, so poor - it's called San Cristoval."
Vadlamudi said this group would be working with orphanages, housing and on a small project.
"The best part definitely (is) it gets people out of their comfort zone," Ellison said. "You meet people and experience cultures that you're not accustomed to."
Vadlamudi said when the students have free time on their trips, they play games and do activities that help them get to know each other better.
"We intend ASB to be a wholly immersive type of alternative break," Vadlamudi said. "Service is such a big part of it, but it's also about teamwork. It's about building relationships with other people."
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