I would like to pass on my heartfelt thanks to you for giving Hannah the opportunity to participate in the Coalition’s Journey for a Lifetime program.
I remember when she came home from school last December full of enthusiasm over a talk you had given to the students at her school. She told me “Mom, I have to go to Poland and do this, I just have to”. I was only humouring Hannah when I attended the information meeting you put on for the parents – I certainly had no intention of allowing my daughter to travel to Poland at the age of 14 for any reason, regardless of how the worthy the cause.
That meeting changed my mind completely. I was so moved when I fully understood what you were trying to accomplish with the Journeys for a Lifetime program. I made up my mind in the meeting that there was no possible way I would stop my daughter from going. This truly was a once in a lifetime opportunity for Hannah.
To have the privilege to visit with these sick children and make their dreams come true has had a profound effect on her. She recently looked at me and told me she understood how very lucky she was to be healthy and to have a comfortable life and lots of opportunities. This is not a realization she would have come to at this point in her life had she not had the experience in Poland. Hannah has also taken the initiative to commit to other volunteer work – something she has never done before.
I can’t thank you enough for this amazing trip that Hannah was lucky enough to experience. Not many teenagers get a chance to have their perspective on the world changed so dramatically.
The organization of the trip itself was impeccable. The daily trip diaries and photos had me in tears – I looked forward to receiving them every day while Hannah was away. Hannah adores Kamilla and speaks so highly of her and the other chaperones in Poland. You took fantastic care of my daughter while she was away and treated her like she was your own. Thank you for that.
This is a wonderful thing you are doing and I thank you from the bottom of my heart for devoting your lives to this cause – you are amazing people and it is an honour to know you.
