Meet the frequent flyer volunteer

They’ve never met anyone quite so enthusiastic as vivacious Dunstable volunteer and keen traveller Angela Amitrano.

In the past two years the 40-year-old has visited slums, built hostels and taught street children in Cambodia, Brazil, the Dominican Republic and Kenya.

And she’s already signed up for Zambia in October.

“I’m just someone who likes to get stuck in,” she smiled.

It all started when Angela – an employment skills worker with Luton Borough Council – approached Mission Direct to see what job opportunities were available for her clients.

They gave her a brochure which included details of working abroad.

“I decided I needed a challenge and took the plunge,” she said. “I can remember being at Gatwick first thing in the morning feeling physically sick, wondering what I was doing.

“But as soon as I met the lovely team going to Cambodia I was fine.

“I wasn’t a practising Christian but you don’t have to be religious to go. It’s all about meeting people and being part of a team doing something positive.

“We were building a ‘happy’ village with a school for children living in slums.

“What you do depends on your skills - you can lay foundations, carry cement, paint. It was good fun and I found I could turn my hand to anything.

“It was really interesting although some of it was pretty rough.

“We went into the slums to do hair washing. They don’t have water there so we washed clothes, played games, practised English and gave out food.
“When I came back I thought ‘Wow, that was amazing!’

“You get to see the real country and meet the real people.”

Angela followed Cambodia with two weeks in Brazil in 2010 and then went to the Dominican Republic last year to help with homes for earthquake refugees from Haiti.

In March she visited Kenya.

“We were building hostels for girls who were running away from forced marriages and female genital mutilation,” she said.

“Lots of them just want an education. They have great ideas and aspirations.”

She said working with people in the Third World made her realise how much we have here: “My job is with disabled people and they are very, very lucky. There’s a lot of support out there.

“And although services are stretched, they’re amazing compared to what’s available at places in Africa where there is nothing.”

Angela, who has a dragon tattoo on her right shoulder, stopped smoking to help fund her trips, which cost about £1,500 each.

“But that includes everything – food, travel, insurance,” she said.

“Mission Direct organises everything so you don’t have to worry about anything – you just turn up at the airport.

“The facilities aren’t that bad although some of the hotels we stay in are pretty basic.

“But I love meeting people and the sense of community you get from helping them.

“It’s about building relationships and bonding.”

She added: “When you give money to a charity you never know where it goes but this way you get to see it firsthand.

“We know we’re really making a difference to that person, that family, that village.

“If I can do it, anyone can do it. You’ve just got to turn up and get involved.”

> If you’d like to know more about Mission Direct, call 01582 720056 or visit www.missiondirect.org