Volunteer: Elizabeth Gibbs
Program Site: Bagamoyo, Tanzania
Year: 2008
Elizabeth Gibbs took a finance job immediately after college to pay for her 10-week volunteer trip to Tanzania with Cross-Cultural Solutions in 2008. She knew she was interested in philanthropic work and international volunteering, but what she came to feel during her days in Bagamoyo, was truly life changing. Upon her return, she had a new perspective and aura and questioned what she derived happiness from. But most importantly…she could not imagine life without philanthropy.
Liz worked in an HIV clinic for children and adults in Tanzania, and felt she became a part of the family during her nearly three-month stay. So much so, that she wanted to stay. Funding drew her back home where she worked odd jobs, with Africa on her mind. She soon signed on for three months in Costa Rica, where she worked on an organic farm. She compared experiences and thought about what it meant to give back. She realized that her dream was to work with non-profits and ideally, “get paid for international volunteering!”
Fate had its way, and Liz soon moved to Paris as a nanny, which led to her meeting a couple who formed a private foundation, supporting non-profits around the world. Quickly Liz’s dream was becoming a reality. Today, Liz is a coordinator for the foundation; laying the ground work to support six international non-profits and travel to the destinations in order to evaluate their needs and help create self-sustaining fundraising efforts.
