Volunteer Testimonials

“I have always been very passionate for giving back and helping others, and when the opportunity to join Sawa Sawa on their annual trip arose, I saw the potential to truly make a difference in something much bigger than myself. I had recently graduated from the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth campus before taking the trip to Kenya with Karen and Phil. As a Berkshire County native I had known Phil for a large portion of my life and was familiar with his yearly trips and his philanthropic practices, and in many ways was inspired by his family's constant giving back, to the point that I consider them my own family. Working directly with Karen and Phil exposed me to a different style of thinking and problem solving unique to Sawa Sawa's mission. My time in Kenya helped immersed me in the culture, and I was quickly taken in by the community of Angiya like I had spent my entire life there already. For more than a month, I was completely removed from the regularity I had come to know in my day to day life and taught some of the core humanistic values that are forgotten far too often. The community showed me love and loyalty and family at a new level, and with open arms allowed me to come in and make a difference. 

Sawa is an extremely positive and necessary driving force in the community of Angiya, in that in everything they do teaches not only crucial life skills to the people, but also empowers them to make real change in their life. Sitting in on Phil's art class showed me how something so small, like teaching kids to color outside the lines, is something that we take for granted in our own home, and can be used as a paradigm shifting tool somewhere else. Working with the teachers and other members of the community helped plant the seeds for change in these people's lives. Karen's kick-butt-take-names attitude has been infectious in my own life, and the work ethic she instilled in me there has still be relevant in my own life. She's somebody who won't take no for an answer and where she see's a will (in this case a Well, bad pun I know) she absolutely doubles down and finds a way. I cannot speak highly enough for the members of Sawa and their mission and cannot thank them enough for the opportunity to join them in their travels, and even more than that thank the people of Kenya for their hospitality, love, and support in pursuing this mission.”

Craig Hopkins- 2017 volunteer, Board member