After recently returning from Sonsonate, El Salvador, Microsoft Canada’s Fiona Cheong says she feels she truly made a difference by donating her time to Habitat for Humanity, and is grateful Microsoft’s I Volunteer program made her trip possible. Fiona travelled to the country for 10 days in December, using the 40 paid hours Microsoft offers its employees for their volunteer time.

As a result of a string of natural disasters, El Salvador currently faces a need for housing both in rural and urban areas.  According to data Habitat for Humanity gathered from the Vice Ministry of Housing, the country’s current deficit totals 630,000 houses - 51 per cent of the total population. 

 “The locals shared some pretty unbelievable stories – they lost their homes because of heavy flooding and mudslides,” said Fiona. “Some had also lost members of their families.”

Volunteers like Fiona worked with the locals, who also invested hundreds of hours of their labour, to help build new houses in a relocated area. Supervised by advisors and experts, the volunteers participated in all aspects of the construction project.  Together, 35 international volunteers and 225 national volunteers were contributing to the construction of 50 new houses.

 “We did quite a lot,” said Fiona, describing her tasks of lugging of cement buckets, shovelling gravel, brushing away rust, and painting - all under the hot sun. “It was very physically exhausting,” she said. “There was a lot of hard work, but in the end it was so rewarding.”

Fiona’s favourite part of the trip was engaging with the local people the team was building homes for – especially the children.

“Those kids were just amazing,” she said, adding that she felt she was able to cross the language barrier through confidence-building exercises, games, intercultural events and play-time.

“The trip was an amazing alternative to a traditional vacation,” Fiona said, adding that through volunteering, she was able to truly connect with the community, sample the local food and practice her Spanish.

Microsoft Canada’s I Volunteer program was created by employees for employees, with the goal of enabling the team to share their most valuable asset – their talents and time. Each full-time employee is given up to 40 paid hours per year to volunteer to the charity of their choice. This opportunity translates into great experience for employees, who often gain knowledge and skills they can use in the workplace.

“I’m incredibly grateful that Microsoft gives us the opportunity to participate in initiatives like this,” said Fiona. “It breeds a culture in the company focused on giving more and sharing more.”

To learn more about the Microsoft I Volunteer program, click here.

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