Donations

I'm leaving for Ghana on Wednesday, but before I go I wanted to do a donation drive in my neighborhood so I could bring supplies with me to the orphanage. They are in desperate need of hygiene supplies, school supplies, and craft supplies to entertain the kids. I left a note in every mailbox, about 120 total, asking for whatever donations people could spare.



A week later, I went around again and collected. I received so many donations, many with personal notes wishing me well on my trip. I'm so thankful for the generosity of my neighbors! I collected over 50 bars of soap alone, along with a lot of toothpaste tubes, toothbrushes, boxes of chalk and crayons, and so many more items that will be of great use in the orphanage.



I plan on bringing as many of the donations with me in my suitcase, and anything that I can't fit I will mail directly to the orphanage upon my return home.



Thank you so much to everyone who contributed! I received much more than I could've imagined. I'm so grateful, and I'm sure everyone at the orphanage will be too.

My Story

Hopefully if you got to this blog you know at least something about me. If not here's a short intro: I'm Miriam Frost, a 20-year-old animal-loving vegetarian and full-time student at the University of Rochester, who likes to read, cook, watch movies, dabble in photography, and run, among many other things.

Most of all, I have a passion for helping those in need - I'm the secretary for UR's Amnesty International, the fundraising chair for UR's Engineers Without Borders, and I've participated in Relay for Life for 5 years and been a team captain for the past 2, in addition to various volunteer work I've done over the years. Ever since I was little, I've dreamt of working for the Peace Corps, and making a career out of ameliorating the poor conditions of Africa.

This summer, I decided to delve right into that dream by embarking on a four-week volunteer trip to Ghana through International Volunteer HQ. I will be volunteering atWorsca Orphanage in Dodowa, Ghana, where children up to age 18 are provided with food, shelter, and most of all love that they otherwise would not receive. I am so excited to be able to participate in such an amazing and beneficial program! While I'm there, I will be living in a house with other volunteers that is a short walk from the orphanage. Obviously I will not have steady internet access while I'm there, but I'm hoping to be able to update this blog relatively frequently to keep everyone back home informed about my trip! When I can, I'll write about my experiences and my thoughts, and hopefully sometimes include pictures.

I have no idea what to expect out of this trip. I do know that of the little traveling I have done (France, Israel), nothing I have encountered has been anything like my experience will be this July. I asked my sister, who is currently stationed in Burkina Faso with the Peace Corps, for advice. She said, "write down the things that shock you in the beginning because they won't faze you by the end." I'm definitely going in to this trip with an open mind, and I'm anxious to go so I can start helping others as soon as I can.