IGY Marinas host a volunteer day twice a year for many of their locations. We happened to be in Sint Maarten during the February event. We joined many other volunteers (mostly cruisers and professional yacht crews) and spent the day working at I Can Foundation Orphanage. This is a foster home for children 0-13 years old who were removed from their homes because of abuse, neglect, or other social issues. It was a well-organized event with many projects going on. We were shuttled to and from the home and spent the day painting the exterior of the house, clearing the yard and garden of debris, setting up a playground area, cleaning toys, and painting a fence. We did not anticipate the level of excitement from the kids living there. Once we volunteers were given our assignments, we heard the kids saying, “I want to paint, I want to help.” They were really enthusiastic about helping improve the place they call home. It was a great day for all of us! You can see some video from IGY Marina below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XvqiErC-eMc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKi_6nMo4Mo

To learn more about I Can Foundation, click on the link below:
http://i-canfoundation.org/index.htm