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It's hard to put into words the sense of wonder, gratitude and grace you feel when you are completely exhausted yet completely exhilarated by what you have accomplished. As one volunteer stated at the end of the day, as he stood there with a tear in his eye, 'I get it now.' Our volunteers say it best so here are some testimonials from them.
My third trip
back, I kept on coming back to the realization that my life, however
seemingly stressful it may be, is not about survival. My life is
convenience. I often wonder why am I guaranteed convenient luxuries, besides
the fact that my birth took place on this side of an imaginary border line.
Because when we cross this infamous "border" the land and basic human nature
is the same; it is the struggle for survival that is so dramatically
different.
Corazón High School Volunteer who participated
in a multi-day stay in Tecate
We are so fortunate to have what we are
given here in California. But girls, the true gift is always in the
giving. I hope we can make Corazon a highlight of your high school
careers. That is what the event was all about, the giving. For that very
reason, the day was a tremendous
success. All three coaches lead the girls to a victory that will be
remembered for a lifetime.
Coach from Santa Margarita High School after she
participated in a soccer clinic.
Playing with all the young boys made me realize that each and everyone of them is just like the friends that I have.
The
best part of the end of the day was when the children came up to the girls
and asked them to sign their soccer ball they were given. Not only did the
children ask us girls to sign their soccer balls, but they even asked the
parents that came down with us to sign their balls. Signing their soccer
balls, I felt like I touched each and everyone one of them in some way and
helped put that smile on their face. Little do those children know, but each
and everyone one of them touched me in some way and helped put a smile on my
face.
Students from Santa Margarita High School
after she participated in a soccer clinic.
That reality is just
what members of the girls soccer program brought home with them. That was
their reciprocated gift to receive back on this special day. The girls
realized that it did not matter what type of clothing (uniform) or shoes
(cleats) one brings to the day (game), what mattered is that one had a ball
and a place to play the game of soccer. The Santa Margarita girls realized
that their everyday good fortune did not continue across the border. The
girls saw firsthand that the living and economic conditions in Tijuana were
not at all the same outside of the sheltered Orange county community. The
day brought exposure to an environment that opened their eyes to a
different, more challenged way of life.
Parents from Santa Margarita High School
after she participated in a soccer clinic.
You will learn and
expand your skills from the best ways possible, not just from an old
textbook or chalkboard, but for real life experience.
Corazón High School Volunteer
I keep coming back
because I am always amazed at what we can accomplish in just one day. It
isn’t just that we built a house; we have helped to build a community. We
have done something that will change lives.
Corazón Volunteer
It was then I
realized how happy I was for what I had helped to accomplish that day. I had
helped build a house for a poor, homeless family of Mexico. How many people
get to do that? I had gotten up at three in the morning, badly burned my
neck, and was currently starving, but I still felt like I had just had a
great day. I also thought about how fortunate I was to be where I was in
life, with a house, food, clean water, and how I took all of these things
for granted. Getting into the mammoth line leading back to California,
despite the fact that it was only 6:00, I fell onto a deep and contented
sleep, thinking about these things how I would view proper sewage pipes from
then on.
Corazón High School Volunteer