Virgin Islands Service

for 9th-12th graders

The Caribbean is a beautiful paradise right in our own backyard. Virgin Islands Service offers the unique chance to see the Caribbean as few people ever do: by serving its communities and ecosystems in need. Our volunteer work in the US Virgin Islands will have a real impact on its warm people and gorgeous surroundings. As we work hard for three weeks in a small, spirited group (no more than 12 students or fewer than 2 leaders) in this island setting, we’ll grow closer as a group and have tons of fun in the process.

After we meet in Christiansted, we’ll spend two weeks volunteering with local organizations that serve St. Croix’s disadvantaged populations. We will have the opportunity to serve breakfast at a soup kitchen and work at a youth center. We will preserve a turtle sanctuary and help maintain the island’s natural beauty with the Nature Conservancy. During the late afternoons and evenings, we will have a chance to experience and enjoy Caribbean life as we seek out the best beaches, explore a tropical rainforest and visit historic ruins. Our work on St. Croix will have a direct impact on the people and communities of the island.

For the third week of our program, Virgin Islands Service will travel to the island of St. John, where we will work with the National Park Service to help maintain and protect the Virgin Islands National Park’s fragile ecosystem, cleaning beaches and repairing hiking trails. We’ll camp beachside, do a lot of hiking and at the end of each day, we’ll enjoy swimming and snorkeling on St. John’s beautiful north shore. At program’s end, we will look back on three weeks of service, exploration, hiking, swimming and fun, knowing that we have made a difference in the Caribbean on Virgin Islands Service; it's a life experience with value and resonance that extends far beyond the boundaries of a single summer.

“Overland has trip planning down to an exact science.” Jeana Campbell, Seattle, Washington

HIGHLIGHTS

• Reach out to the people of St. Croix
• Work with children from local communities
• Visit historic ruins and hike in beautiful settings
• Help maintain and protect the environment with the Nature Conservancy and Virgin Islands National Park
• Swim & Snorkel St. John's north shore

GRADE

For students who will finish grades 9-12 in June 2008.  We plan on 1 group with 9th & 10th graders and 1 group with 10th-12th graders.  Call us (800.458.0588) to check on current availability.

START & END LOCATIONS

Starts in St. Croix
Ends in St. Thomas

2008 SERVICE HOURS, DATES & FEES

3 Weeks

80 hours of community service

Sunday, June 22 to Friday. July 11
Sunday, July 13 to Friday, August 1

 

$4395

(airfare not included)

APPLY TODAY

Most groups fill in January & February. To download an application, click here.

“Allie loved everything...the kids, the leaders, the challenges." Jane Kaliff, New Canaan, Connecticut

 

Students: Is this the right trip for you?

Virgin Islands Service requires a positive attitude and a willingness to work hard as volunteers. The trail work on Virgin Islands Service makes this program physically challenging, as we'll work hard to build and restore trails. Participants should be eager to take part in a variety of service projects and be ready for both the challenges and rewards that service work in the Virgin Islands has to offer.

Keep in mind that your enjoyment of your trip will hinge on certain factors:

1. Your motivation. It's not always easy- you must be motivated!

2. Your desire to hike and do trail work. We'll spend much of our three weeks in the Virgin Islands working hard for the Nature Conservancy and the National Park on trails and other outdoor projects.

3. Your commitment to teamwork. Overland trips require compromise, patience and selflessness. Support your trip leaders and your trips mates and you'll find that you will have a great experience!

Please note that some of the service opportunities your group pursues will depend on the needs of the community and available service opportunities. We ask for students' flexibility in the service projects we pursue in the Virgin Islands.

Trip Itinerary

Program Start

Virgin Islands Service starts in the airport on St. Croix, where leaders will be on hand to meet students and help to collect baggage. From there we'll head to our group accomodations just outside of Christiansted to get to know each other before our service work starts the next day.

Service Projects

While in the Virgin Islands, we'll work with a variety of local organizations to serve both the people and the land. We'll be coordinating with these organizations throughout the year to come up with the best possible projects for our groups and to be able to best serve the islands once we arrive in the summer. Possible projects we will work on include:

Lighthouse

This organization provides a daily meal and a clothes donation program for Christiansted's homeless population. We will arrive bright and early to serve breakfast!

Nature Conservancy

With locations all over the US, the Nature Conservancy's projects in St. Croix include preservation of turtle nesting beaches, reforestation of natural habitat, and trail and park maintenance. They will provide the tools, direction and expertise, and we will provide the manpower for these important projects.

Friends of the Virgin Islands National Park

A local nonprofit set up to support the public National Park on St. John, this organization helps to coordinate volunteer groups to come and do trail work and beach cleanups for this understaffed national treasure.

Swimming & Snorkeling

We will have ample opportunity to enjoy the crystal clear water and abundant marine life in between our service work on both St. Croix and St. John.

Program End

After a fun final dinner and reflection on all that we have accomplished during our three weeks together, we will ferry from St. John to St. Thomas, from where students will fly home with memories to last a lifetime.

"Overland helped me grow and learn as a person and as a friend." Ross Feehan, McLean, Virginia

Supervision & Safety

Overland ’s two leaders, a man and a woman, provide 24-hour-a-day, 7-day-a-week supervision of the highest standard. Our leaders are dedicated, first and foremost, to making each student's experience with us a safe and enjoyable one. By creating a supportive and wholesome environment, our leaders help each student to feel comfortable and at home. In this kind of setting, friendships flourish and teamwork grows; challenges are welcomed and accomplishments are celebrated. For nearly 25 years, Overland 's students have felt safe and secure in our talented and conscientious leaders’ hands.

On Overland's Virgin Islands Service the group works with a variety of local organizations to serve both the people and the land, enjoys Caribbean life together and swims and snorkels together. Our focus on the group and our leaders’ commitment to providing superlative leadership and supervision separate us from the vast majority of programs.

Our Virgin Islands Service students can count on us to create a family-like environment that is active, positive, inclusive and healthy (there is never any drinking, smoking or drug use). Our days are full of hard work on our service projects, and our evenings are spent together as a group as we prepare dinner and dessert and talk about the day's adventures. We set high expectations for each student’s behavior: we expect respect and consideration for others, a positive attitude, and an eagerness to help make the trip a success in every way possible.

In every decision we make, safety comes first. We plan our  programs carefully, choosing well-established organizations for whom we can provide meaningful service and the best accommodations and activities. Since our first trips in 1985 our safety record has been superlative; it's no wonder, then, that Overland is one of the few organizations of its kind to earn accreditation by the American Camp Association.

For nearly 25 years our caring and competent leaders, our superlative supervision, our high expectations and our commonsense approach to safety have made Overland the number one choice for summer programs.

Overland Leaders

In a world where strong leadership skills make the difference between the average and the exceptional, Overland recruits and trains only the best to be our leaders. Not only do these remarkable people capably lead our groups, they also offer our students the kind of role modeling for which Overland has long been recognized.  Bright, charismatic and accomplished, our leaders ensure the safety and well-being of every Overland student, and then they provide much, much more, inspiring our students to reach for their potential in every way. 

You won’t find a more dynamic and talented group of people than Overland’s leaders. Most Overland leaders have played varsity sports and many have captained their teams; they have served as student government officers, volunteered as peer counselors and directed campus organizations. They are high achievers who come to Overland with a lifetime of leadership experience—but just as importantly, they are warm, wonderful people who are eager to work with Overland’s students.

Overland’s leaders prepare carefully for the summer. We know of no other program that requires certification in First Aid, CPR and lifesaving—every Overland leader has all of these plus our own 10-day training program that focuses on safety, supervision and leadership. All of our efforts prepare Overland’s caring and committed leaders to create safe, supportive and valuable programs where each of our students can flourish.

Meet some of our spectacular returning leaders.

How We Put Our Groups Together

We have a number of important criteria for every group:

Size: Every Overland group is limited to 12 students.
Gender: Groups are coed; the male/female ratio is always carefully balanced (6:6, 7:5 or 8:4).
Friends: We allow two pairs of friends in a group (we never allow three or more friends to travel together). With a maximum of two pairs of friends there will always be space available for at least eight students to come on their own without a friend. Furthermore, if we enroll two pairs of friends in a group and both pairs are of one gender, we generally try to: (1) enroll three or four more students of that gender in that group, or (2) close the group to additional students of that gender.

Getting To & From The Program

Families are responsible for making travel arrangements to and from the Virgin Islands. The group will meet in St. Croix at trip start and will depart at trip end from St. Thomas. Overland's leaders will be on hand at the airport to provide supervision and assistance at program start and end. 

Additional Costs

Transportation to and from program start and end locations, spending money and personal gear are not included in the program fee.

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