What makes VISIONS unique?

Many high school students spend their summers working short-term jobs or hanging out with their friends. Some will take the time to volunteer at the local community center or at their high school. They don’t realize that they could be spending their summer working in communities all over the world, making friendships that will last a lifetime and embarking on incredible adventures. VISIONS was founded in 1989 on the premise that teen summer service can affect communities both near and far. By empowering teens to work in underprivileged communities around the world, VISIONS is allowing these teens to make a difference in themselves just as much as the communities they are serving.

VISIONS offers teen community service opportunities in both the United States and abroad. Teens who choose to enroll in the VISIONS service program are making a decision to take a month to live in and become fully immersed with a community that they are helping. Unlike some programs, VISIONS teens live together in a hostel, community center, or school in the heart of our host communities. Other programs will place teens in house homestays or have the group stay in a hotels that are removed from the community. VISIONS believes that in order to become invested in the communities we serve, it is important to become a part of that community while also bonding as a service group.

In addition to working on various projects in the community (construction and non-construction projects), summer service teens are given the opportunity to go on adventure trips in the area with their service group. Some of the locations of our service communities are breathtakingly beautiful and full of historical importance. We want our teens to end their program with an understanding and appreciation of the region. Most of our alumni still consider their host communities to be a home away from home.