The first 3 days at Hacienda Hospital have really changed my perspective on life. The things I worried about in life seem meaningless compared to what these patients have to go through. One patient in particular, Robin, affected me the most. His ability to be optimistic despite his condition was inspirational. He was fun to hang out with and play with. When I came back to Hacienda on the second day it really hit me that those patients had nothing but the hospital. Their life was being in the hospital. I give so much credit to the patients who live there and hopefully I will have a chance one day to run into some of the new friends I made at Hacienda in the future.
- Marc, Community Service Arizona, 2009
This was the first time that I truly learned the meaning of the invaluable idea that the best gift is that of giving. On that day the most exciting moment I had was watching the patient Danny smile, and hearing the comments of one of our patients Robin. After breaking the ice it was amazing to see the development of these people, some of whom have severe disabilities. I went from thinking that they had no reaction to our interaction, to the realization that they understood the meaning of our presence. With that knowledge our group strove to make the lives of these men and women, boys and girls, as happy as possible. I would venture to say that we were very very successful, and I think we were all very pleased with the outcome of, not only our work, but also the relationships we developed in that short week with those we helped and with each other.
– Trip Member Community Service Arizona
The visits to Hacienda really opened my eyes and made me see the world around me in a different way. There was one resident who touched my heart, a baby named Kyle. He was born blind and has never been able, nor ever will be able to see the world like me. This made me much more appreciative of the little things I have. The three days that I spent at Hacienda are worth more than any material thing that I own and I would not trade them for anything in the world.
