Family Service in Costa Rica

This summer, eight families brought the Notre Dame tradition of service and learning to the rural country side of Costa Rica through a unique “service-vacation” experience. Participants of the Alumni Association’s annual Costa Rica Family Service Trip, accompanied by Katie Zakas ‘04, NDAA director of service, lived with families in the rural Alajuela province as they performed more than 25 hours of volunteer work for Costa Rican service agencies.

“The Costa Rica Family Service Trip is popular because it combines many of the values ND graduates place at the top of their lists: family, education, service, and faith,” says Kathleen M. Sullivan ’82 M.A., '87 Ph.D., NDAA senior director of spirituality and service. “Parents witness their children’s generosity and children get the chance to see their parents as fellow students as they took part in Spanish lessons.”

The service projects were organized in conjunction with the Proyecto Asis, a combination Spanish school, wild animal rescue, and volunteer placement center. Some of the work was familiar, such as lawn mowing. Other projects provided participants with new experiences, such a constructing a pavilion in the rainforest and digging cayman (an alligator-like reptile) habitats in the swamp.

 “This was our first trip with a Notre Dame group, but it won't be our last,” says Tim Noonan ’84, who went with his wife, Karen, and their daughter, Maddie. “The character of the people we met and their immense generosity remind me of what Notre Dame really stands for—people making a difference.”

The 12 days in Costa Rica involved much more than work and education. The families also enjoyed recreational excursions to volcanoes, rafting down a river, and spending a night in the rainforest.

“I most enjoyed meeting the wonderful people that are part of the Notre Dame family,” Noonan says. “They are such a wonderful, diverse group, and I have always found them to be generous, great people.”

Learn more about Costa Rica’s Proyecto Asis by visiting its official website. For more information about the NDAA’s Costa Rica Family Service trip, contact Katie Zakas by phone at 574-631-6723 or by email.