VISIONS Service Adventures: Alaska Program Overview & Recommendation

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Choice Camps Recommendation of VISIONS Service Adventures: Alaska

Since 1989, VISIONS has introduced thousands of teenagers to cultures very different from their own through construction-based and other service projects, adventurous exploration, and on-site cultural immersion. VISIONS works with local organizations and community residents and undertakes a major construction project and other such outreach efforts. Students learn technical skills from staff carpenters or local maestros as they go – no previous experience is required.

While there are opportunities for students to visit historic sites and enjoy fun cultural pastimes, VISIONS participants more often visit places only known to the locals and do things that tourists never get to experience. Travelers can expect to share meals and mingle with locals who live in communities rarely seen by outsiders.

VISIONS gives students the opportunity to mature thoughtfully and reflectively within a community of peers and adult mentors. VISIONS programs are known to have a profound life-long impact on their participants. With cross-cultural learning and friendship is a core focus. Working with and for host communities is a doorway to learning about others' lives in different cultures – an experience that can’t be found anywhere else.

Trip Description

The VISIONS Alaska program brings students to native Athabaskan villages along the western and northern edge of the Wrangell Mountains. Service in Alaska is a unique mix of carpentry elements – participants can expect to build bridges, playgrounds, community facilities, and more. In addition, students organize a summer day camp for children in their villages.

VISIONS Alaska travelers go on day hikes to mountain peaks and backing trips to scenic destinations throughout the region. Students will walk on glaciers, tour a ghost town, and cook local delicacies with villagers. With thousands of miles of untouched wilderness stretching to the horizon, VISIONS Alaska is a great opportunity to do community service in a breathtaking and rewarding environment.

Staff Overview

VISIONS boasts a well-rounded staff typically in their mid-to-late twenties. The minimum age of a VISIONS trip leader is 23, and program directors average 28 years of age. With very few exceptions, program directors are veterans of at least one full VISIONS summer session.

VISIONS leaders are typically returned Peace Corps volunteers, Ph.D. candidates, graduate students, educators, and professionals. The staff retention rate typically surpasses an impressive 55%.

Setting & Accommodations

VISIONS students typically live in small groups of 16-25 campers and 4-6 trip leaders in the heart of host communities. While accommodations vary, none are luxurious – travelers often reside in a community building such as a school, church hall, or community center.

VISIONS travelers can expect to sleep on an inflatable or foam mattress with a sleeping bag or cotton sheets. There are private changing areas and indoor plumbing at all VISIONS sites, but with varying degrees of sophistication.

Because conditions vary by trip, Choice Camps recommends you contact a Personal Camp Expert at 781-519-0209 who can connect you directly with a VISIONS trip coordinator to get the most up-to-date program schedule and living accommodations.

Safety Standards

VISIONS program directors arrive on-site 8-10 days before participants and confirm all local medical facilities and doctors in case of emergency; local medical and emergency facilities are identified well ahead of the summer in annual pre-season planning trips to all VISIONS program locations.

All VISIONS staff members hold current first aid or Wilderness First Aid and CPR certifications – the majority have advanced safety concentrations including Wilderness First Aid and Wilderness First Responder or Wilderness EMT certifications.