In the spring of 2017 some of the Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity at the University of Cincinnati trekked through Nepal to aid the Himalayan Rescue Association (HRA) in their volunteer work in Manang. Taylor Rhoten got together his fraternity brothers [Luke Becker, Frank Barizza, Jack Perez, Pieter Bernhard, Jacob Franzen, Donald Bruemmer, Nicholas Pangallo, & Brady Kraemer] and teamed up with World Wide Trekking, and in May they traveled to Nepal to begin their work. Taylor was very passionate about the cause and he picked a place they had never been before.
According to Donald Bruemmer “They appreciated being able to focus on the project and we gave them the resources they needed and they put it all together.”They all made a great impact on the people of Nepal by helping carry large boulders and transporting supplies to help building, it allowed many more hands on work than the Nepalese people were used to having. Giving the usual workers rest and allowing for more work to be done each day they were on the job.
The Himalayan Rescue Association trek was a great bonding experience for the fraternity brothers who went, many of them said it was the best trip of their lives! Meeting the people of Nepal was important to the guys, Pangallo said that “Geljen made the trip!” “It was tough to see the effects of the earthquake, but one thing I noticed was how playful and Joyful everyone is in Nepal. No one was distracted by their phones. I couldn’t understand the language but they were always laughing and I could tell they were joking around.”
Thank you to the Volunteers who went to Manang to help with the HRA project! To find out more about volunteer opportunities and Voluntourism with WWTrek and HOP visit the Voluntourism tab on the WWTrek website. Book your adventure today, make a positive difference while also experiencing new places and challenges!
