At my college students are required to partake in at least one internship their junior or senior year, though what you do is up to you as long as it captures your personal interests and skills! Internships are a great way to learn more about what you love after all….
Which is why I can’t help but to feel extremely lucky, after all I get to intern with a program that involves international affairs and does a great deal of good for the world! By taking advantage of the extra space in a traveler’s suitcase to send much needed school supplies to children in need, the non-profit organization 'Pack For A Purpose' is helping to spread the word about responsible tourism to the people of Raleigh-and the rest of the nation!
Created in December of 2009 by Rebecca and Scott Rothney, 'Pack For A Purpose' has provided travelers with information so it’s easy for them to use a small amount of space in their luggage to provide needed items to community based projects in over 100 destinations around the world! When a traveler logs on to PackforaPurpose.org they are brought to a page where they can choose their destination and see available drop off points located nearby. Various lists of needed items are also included so everyone knows just what to bring!
Rebecca Rothney, founder of 'Pack For A Purpose', thought of the idea for the organization after her first trip with her husband to Africa:
"During our first trip to Africa, my husband Scott and I learned that while we were limited to 40 pounds of luggage on safari, the airline has an allowance of 140 pounds for luggage. In making plans for a second trip, we looked into visiting a school near the lodge we would visit in Botswana. We contacted our safari company, Wilderness Safaris, to see if we could determine any specific needs of the school. Armed with that information, we were able to deliver 140 pounds of school supplies between the two of us to the school. It was enormously rewarding to be able to help the people in the community that had given us such a life-enriching experience."
While the idea of packing with others in mind was great, it wasn’t one many people thought of until it was too late.
"I asked out travel agent why other travelers did not use their luggage allowances in this way. ‘Because nobody thinks about it’ he said. That was the aha moment when I realized that I needed to provide an easy and effective way to encourage other travelers to do what we had done"
And thus ‘Pack For A Purpose’ was born! It’s amazing to think that with a small space and little effort people can make such a big impact!
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