Ashley Darge

When I was 18 I volunteered with Lattitude Global Volunteering doing the ICS programme. I was sent to the rural town of Mzuzu, Malawi. I stayed with a host family and had a Malawian counterpart who quickly became my 'sister'. I had an instant place for Malawi in my heart because the citizens and the country were both very beautiful. My trip did a lot for me as a person as it opened my eyes to different culture and a different way of living. People are so happy even though they have close to nothing. During my time in Mzuzu I taught secondary schools with a partner organization, APAUSE (Added Power and Understaning in Sex Education), about sexual health and abstinence from sex. We taught these young people more than I ever could have imagined and they taught me just the same. On my weekends I went to church with my host family, visit local hospitals and local orphanages where my team and I would chat, play and teach the local orphans (most of which had never seen a white person before.) I can't wait to return in the future, to explore more of the warm heart and to see my sister again.