Louise in South Africa

My story

In my gap year I really wanted to go abroad for a longer period. The trip couldn’t cost too much money, it obviously had to be fun, and I wanted to do cool things. Quite a lot of wishes hahaha, but with The Power of Sports this combination was definitely possible!

I volunteered for 10 weeks with United through sport (uts) and at the end I did the South Africa Expierence with UTS. This is the Garden Route from Port Elizabeth to Cape Town. For me it was truly one big adventure! Lots of people asked me whether this period wasn’t too long, but I’d rather say too short

In those 10 weeks I mainly taught rugby and dance, but also cricket and swimming lessons now and then. I only had a little experience of working with children through Scouts, but luckily that didn’t matter at all. After a few days I soon found my feet and it really just got better and better!

It’s just so special to see how grateful, cheerful and loving those children are. They enjoy sport so much that you really get a lot of energy from it yourself. The motto for every session was always: “Inspire The Kids Guys!” It’s not even necessarily about taking the children to the highest level in sport, but about giving the kids something special, letting them have a great time and making them feel that they matter too. As I did the full 10-week programme, I really saw the children grow in the sports, and you become closer and closer, because they also get to know and trust you.

The whole volunteer group lives together in one accommodation, which means you become really close. It’s also lovely that it means you truly experience your adventure together with the others around you. In no time you’re all one big family, together with the South African mamas who look after us! During the week we regularly went to the beach, chilled by the pool or went for a run with the group. Every Monday there was Games Night, on Tuesdays we always went to Barneys for karaoke night and on Wednesdays we played football together. So there’s more than enough to do besides the coaching! At weekends trips were organised too, such as surfing in Jeffreys Bay, safari, skydiving and shark cage diving in Mossel Bay. At the end we did the South Africa Expierence with UTS, which really rounded off the trip perfectly! It basically gives you one more holiday to Cape Town with almost all the volunteers before the adventure really comes to an end.

The combination of coaching the sweetest and most fun children, living together with the group and doing fantastic activities together in the area made it absolutely perfect for me!

For me these 11 weeks were truly one big adventure and the weeks flew by! If my money hadn’t run out and I hadn’t needed a visa to stay longer, I would still be in South Africa now.

What advice would you like to give future interns and volunteers?

My advice is to really not forget to enjoy it!! It’s such a special adventure, and not everyone gets a chance like this. Don’t be afraid to stay for a long time and grab the adventure with both hands, because it’s over before you know it! Oh yes, and definitely do the bungee jump!