EDventure Volunteer Trip to Thailand 2015

Our names areNicole FernandezandLauren Shusterman. We used to live an ocean apart; our hometowns are Waipahu, Hawai’i and Los Gatos, California. We met online over the summer, and discovered we shared many similar interests: we both have a passion for animals and traveling, and aspire to become veterinarians. Today, we are first-year students and roommates, studying Animal Science at the University of California, Davis. We have both recently been accepted to participate overseas as volunteers with the leadership program EDventure.

EDventure is a volunteer organization which offers participants leadership and personal development certification, whilst engaging in meaningful volunteer projects in the developing world.We will be travelling with EDventure as volunteers assisting in aconservation project in Thailand.


During our program, we will spend three weeks engaging inleadership developmentworkshops with other volunteers, while applying these skills directly to efforts inwildlife sanctuariesin Thailand.


We will be directly involved in creating positive change andproviding direct supportwithin Thailand. While working in conservation efforts, we will help care for wildlife, such as rehabilitated elephants, and learn firsthand about environmental issues that affect us on a global scale.

While assisting in Thailand, we will have personal contact with community members and leaders. We will also engage in local cultural activities. This will help us to expand our international network, to understand the local communities, and to build bridges with another culture that will further develop ourglobal leadership and communication skills.


Being a part of EDventure will no doubt push us beyond our comfort zones and allow us to fully experience learning in a new and unique format. Although we both have a background working with animals, neither of us has ever before been to Thailand or worked hands on with elephants.


Additionally, this experience will provide us the skills we need to enhance our resumes andprepare us to be an asset in the professional worldas we pursue careers in the very competitive field of veterinary medicine.


We are both very excited to have been accepted to the EDventure program, and are preparing for our trip by organizing fundraising activities such as this.


We would greatly appreciate you purchasing one of these tank tops in order to support ourEDventure Program.The overall cost for the three week program is $3,800 each, for a total of $7,600 (excluding flights). This includes our accommodation, meals, project resources, transportation within Thailand, and financial support for the community in which we will be volunteering. Even a minimal purchase will help us be able to take advantage of this incredible opportunity.

If you have any questions about EDventure, or what we’ll be doing overseas, we’d be very happy to meet with you or give you a call to explain how this program will benefit impoverished communities, as well as guide us toward gaining further leadership skills and prepare us for our future. Thank you very much for your time and consideration.

This is a unique and incredible opportunity that will prove advantageous in many aspects of our future. Any support you can provide would be greatly appreciated!