Summer 2021 Update
Young Life is committed to the health and well-being of all participants in our programs, we are closely monitoring and responding to the global COVID-19 (coronavirus) outbreak. Due to coronavirus, we are currently not receiving intern or volunteer applications for summer 2021. For more on our response to the coronavirus please visit our COVID-19 Response page.
Expeditions
Expedition teams partner with our Vida Joven areas as well as camp staff to serve in local areas and at Pico Escondido. We encourage Expedition teams to come into the week with open hearts, and a willingness to give and receive resources and wisdom with the international community of believers. God is at work in the Dominican Republic and it is encouraging for the Dominicans to see Americans who want to partner with them in ministry.
Who can come on an Expedition team?
Expedition Teams can be Young Life Campaigner groups, church youth groups, men’s Bible studies, women’s Bible studies, college reunions, Young Life leaders, families, school groups, or any other group that wants to serve and grow.
What does a typical week look like?
The team will be met at the airport by their Dominican hosts — Young Life volunteer leaders and staff who will spend the entire week with the team. Teams then travel to a town to stay with the families of Vida Joven leaders and serve in a local area for three nights and four days. Teams will get to serve the community and get to attend a Young Life club. After the homestays, teams head to Pico Escondido to participate in work projects at camp. After a week of hard work, teams get a day to experience a beautiful part of the island and debrief their week.
There are Expedition team opportunities all year long! For more information, contact Michelle Hernandez, the North American Liaison in the Dominican Republic!
Intern
Spring Intern Program
Looking to fill your spring semester with something new and different? Our Spring Internship allows folks to see Jarabacoa and the ministry of Vida Joven in a new and unique way. Our heart for this internship is that interns would get to experience an accurate taste of what full-time ministry is like outside of the United States. The internship takes place in three phases. First, interns will spend a month living with a host family and attending language classes each day while working at Pico Escondido part time. Then they will head out into local Vida Joven areas to spend time with a Vida Joven staff person and get to follow their ministry for two weeks. Finally, interns will head to Pico Escondido to work with North American Expedition Teams for seven weeks serving as work bosses and facilitators of different groups of high school and college age students. A love for Latin America, hard work, new experiences and meeting new people is a must.
Not required (but helpful): Spanish ability.
Summer Intern Program
Summer interns have the same roles as the summer staff during the Expedition Team season, and then transition into different roles as Summer outreach camp begins. Interns should be conversational in Spanish and have some experience in the area they are applying for during outreach camp.
*For an intern position, you must have some experience in the area and be fairly comfortable with speaking Spanish. Our interns are asked to take on significantly more responsibility than our summer staffers.*
Summer Intern Positions (All Summer):
Ropes Intern (3)
Serve as a work boss with Expedition Teams for the first four weeks of the summer then transition to serving at the climbing tower and giant swing during Summer outreach camp.
Video Intern (1)
Assist Guest Services with promotional materials and create videos for each American Expedition Team during the first month of the summer and then transition to recording, editing, and creating videos and slideshows for Summer outreach camp.
Laundry Intern (1)
Serve as a housekeeping, kitchen assistant during Expedition Teams and then transition into running the laundry room full time during Summer outreach camp. This includes making sure every camper has clean sheets, all assign team and work crew laundry is done, and keeping track of inventory for the housekeeping department.
Lifeguard (1)
Serve as a work boss with Expedition Teams for the first four weeks of the summer and then transition to serve as the Lifeguard during Summer outreach camp. Must be Lifeguard Certified.
Summer Staff
Summer Staff at Pico Escondido looks different than Summer Staff at a U.S. Young Life camp because our summer staff serves primarily with the Expedition Teams. They serve as work bosses or laundry/housekeeping/kitchen staff and are led by two summer staff coordinators.
Apply by submitting both Young Life’s Online Summer Staff Application and the Supplemental Summer Staff Questions.
(Note: if you do not have a Young Life Area, enter X336 and put royclif@gmail.com as the Young Life staff email address)
Summer Staff Positions (5 Weeks):
Work Bosses (8)
Supervise small groups of Expedition team members in construction/landscaping projects.
Laundry/Housekeeping/Kitchen Helpers (2)
Cook, clean, do laundry and assist with other general housekeeping duties.
Summer Staff Coordinators (2)
Supervise the Summer Staff. Email Roy Clifford for more information.
Medical Volunteers Needed!
Medical Professionals needed to serve at Pico Escondido this summer. Doctors or nurses can apply for a position as a camp doc during Vida Joven's summer outreach camps. There are nine summer camps total and a medical volunteer must serve for at least two camps (minimum). All costs will be covered while in country for the volunteer. At this time cannot accept volunteers with families. Spanish speaking abilities are a must.
