These days philanthropy comes in many versions. Volunteers tackle ecosystem restoration in the Grand Canyon and history buffs and nature lovers serve the National Park Service from the U.S.S. Arizona Memorial in Pearl Harbor to the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. Others assist with dolphin monitoring on the Amazon River or community development in India. Even resorts are getting in on this new type of giving. Guests of the Westin Resort St. John can volunteer to take part in an archeological dig at Cinnamon Bay. These vacationing volunteers help local scientists uncover 500 years of the ceremonial activity of the Tainos, the Indians that met Columbus, and the historic remains of Danish plantation ruins. Guests of all ages may participate from nine to five, Tuesdays through Saturdays. All that is required is an inquisitive mind and the desire to help - no training necessary. Past vacationers have discovered a golden disk that may have inlayed the eye of a wooden statue. And a seven-year old found a set of teeth carved out of a shell that would have been part of wooden statue belonging to a chief. "Volunteering is a wonderful, fulfilling, hands-on experience which benefits the volunteer as well as the community," says Bill Thompson, director of sales and marketing of the Westin Resort St. John. The resort, complete with spa, is set on a crescent-shaped beach surrounded by 47 lush, tropical acres with guest rooms, suites and townhouses all including Westin's signature "Heavenly Beds." Elderhostel, Inc., a non-profit educational organization founded in 1975, provides service programs as well as short-term academic and experiential learning programs, throughout the U.S. Canada and internationally. In 1999, more than 3,000 older adults rolled up their sleeves to do good works through Elderhostel Service programs offered at 120 different sites in the U.S and 15 countries overseas. Service participants pay their own way to cover room and board expenses during the programs, which run from one to three weeks in length, and to help subsidize the purchase of equipment and materials necessary for the project, such as building supplies, schoolbooks, scientific or medical supplies. Transportation (round-trip airfare) is included in the cost for most international service programs. Because these are volunteer activities, tuition and expenses (airfare, etc.) directly related to the program are tax-deductible. "With so many worthy causes, there is no shortage of projects and missions in need of assistance," says Brad Webb, who oversees Elderhostel Service programs and their development. At the Grand Canyon, Elderhostel teams take turns working on ecosystem restoration in the summer and fall. Each team spends a week on the project, and some participants even opt to sign on for more than one week for those projects that are ongoing. "I felt like one week was just enough to get my feet wet, so to speak," says Helen Reid-White, 63, of Oregon, who participated twice in the Grand Canyon project. "Returning for a second week was even more rewarding - I got to plant some of the seedlings which had grown from the seeds my previous team collected." No prior experience or skill is needed to participate in service projects, only enthusiasm and the desire to provide assistance. Training is provided on the job during the programs. Participants at the Grand Canyon take turns doing a variety of tasks from collecting seeds to pulling weeds (exotic plant species which crowd out native species), re-potting, fertilizing. "You get to do a little bit of everything," says Reid-White. "There is never a lull, because there is so much to do. You finish the week wishing you could squeeze in a bit more." Service project volunteers spend up to eight hours per day working, with breaks for meals, but the programs also include an educational component. When volunteers are not on the job, they may be getting a natural history lesson, a lecture from a local historian, or an opportunity to visit places of historical significance. "You don't just keep your nose in your work," says Arthur Lawrence, a retired landscape architect from Michigan who also spent a week in the Grand Canyon. Service programs provide a unique opportunity to both give service, and to receive experience, educational adventure and personal enrichment. Elderhostel, in collaboration with a variety of non-profit agencies and organizations, offers dozens of opportunities for individuals 55 plus (although a younger spouse or companion may accompany). Search for Specialty Programs in the on-line catalog or send for the U.S./Canada and International catalogs to find out about service projects in upcoming months. In a different form of philanthropy, many frequent flyers donate soon-to-expire miles for charitable causes. Similarly, Room for Hope of Priority Club Worldwide enables members to contribute points earned to charitable organizations such as the American Red Cross and CARE. Members earn points by staying at Inter-Continental Hotels and Resorts, Crowne Plaza Hotels and Resorts, Holiday Inn Hotels and Resorts, Holiday Inn Express, and Staybridge Suites. The program converts points donated in 8,000 and 12,000 increments to provide free hotel rooms for disaster-relief workers, people affected by a disaster, or those in need of emergency medical assistance. Priority Club also partners with Give Kids the World, the organization that enables terminally ill children from around the world to visit central Florida attractions. "With more than 3,000 properties in 100 countries, we can accommodate disaster-relief needs essentially anywhere in the world," says Thomas R. Oliver, chairman and chief executive officer Bass Hotels & Resorts. Explore the world with special interest volunteer projects and discover the rewards of this new philanthropy. A Few Resources to Get StartedWestin Resort, St. John, U.S.V.I.: 340-693-8000: http://www.westin.com
Elderhostel: 75 Federal St., Boston, MA 02110-1941: 617-426-7788: www.elderhostel.org
Global Volunteers: www.globalvolunteers.org/
American Hiking Society: www.americanhiking.org/
Association of Voluntary Service Organizations: www.avso.org
Art Institute of Chicago: 312-443-3500: www.artic.edu
Metropolitan Museum of Art: 212-879-5500; www.metmuseum.org
National Park Service: www.nps.gov/volunteer
Simon Wiesenthal Center and Museum of Tolerance: www.wiesenthal.com
CARE: www.care.org
American Red Cross: www.redcross.org
Priority Club Worldwide: 800-272-9273: www.priorityclub.com

Reprint permission given by Ann Hattes.

Award winning Ann Hattes has had travel articles published in English, German, Japanese, Arabic and Chinese.
Her book, Country Towns of Wisconsin (NTC/Contemporary Publishing) was published in July, 99.
When not roaming the globe, Ann can be found at home in Hartland, Wisconsin.
Visit Ann on the web at http://www.execpc.com/~hattes/words/words1.htm.