When I signed up to be a social work intern for a children’s home in Cape Town, I was hoping to gain a kind of education that my master’s program simply could not give me. I had just finished graduate school, and wanted to add some tangible “real life” time as another kind of schooling. Little did I know that my experience would provide me with a new kind of learning about social work, and so much more. I often refer to my time in South Africa as “social worker’s boot camp”, because it has been intense, challenging, and more fulfilling than I could ever dream of. I strongly urge any social worker, both those studying and those already in the prime of their careers to come here, and watch their lives and their professional experiences change forever.

I can say without hesitation that volunteering via Connect-123 has altered my entire life. I have relocated permanently to Cape Town, gotten work experience that continues to be invaluable on a daily basis, built a community of friends, and have even met my future husband here. None of this would have happened without my time in Connect-123.

Of course, I realize that I am the exception to the rule, but I can safely say that even had I gone back to the USA after the four months I originally committed to, my life and my perspective would still be immeasurably altered. When people ask me about the differences between social work in South Africa and the US, I usually say, ‘It’s like a different planet”. Unfortunately, here in Cape Town, the challenges that people are facing are proportionally so much greater than I ever witnessed at home. Socially, economically, racially, culturally—the problems are vast, they are deeply entrenched in society, and often times, the circumstances are quite dire. On my very first day of work, I escorted a girl to the local hospital for an HIV test, where we waited for hours to be seen. She didn’t speak English, and I certainly didn’t speak Xhosa.  Within one morning, I was already exposed to systemic challenges, cultural differences, and healthcare issues.

My entire time as a volunteer was as intense, and I found myself on a steep learning curve. However, the joy that I saw in the faces of the girls I worked with, the laughs I had with women of all races and cultures about funny things, the hugs I saw reunited families give one another—these experiences and so many more made my time unbelievable.

In addition, the security and comfort that Connect-123 provided me made my experience even better. Knowing that I had a built in community of friends, a team of caring professionals looking after me (from fixing stuff in my flat to helping me with visa issues), and a wonderful home in a fabulous location offered a level of safety that was invaluable. Nearly two years later, some of my closest friends in the world (ranging from London to Sweden) remain those I met from Connect, probably because of the shared experience we had.

I literally cannot imagine what life would look like without having participated in Connect-123, and I am a far better social worker and person because of it.