Location: Road Harbor, Tortola

After a stormy night, we kicked off today with an early, and very rainy 5 am sail to VISAR’s headquarters in Road Town, Tortola. VISAR (Virgin Island Search and Rescue) had decided to join with other services such as Tortola’s police force and firemen to bring the community together and educate them on their life-saving jobs. GoBeyond students were given a chance to help make the day happen, and we were all excited about the opportunity. Once we arrived, the sun came out, and we all got to work setting up the different tents and stations. The night before we had chosen our jobs for this event, which included greeting people, selling water and merchandise, managing the raffle, and showing the kids how some of the medical equipment works. From a couple of hours, we all did our part in interacting with the kids and families in the community, which was an amazing experience. Overall, the event was successful and a good time for everyone. Donations were made, kids were inspired, and the community was united. With this success, VISAR has decided to make this an annual event, and they were interested in hearing our new ideas for next year.

Following our work with VISAR, we got a two-hour shore time in Road Town where many students chose to relax at a waterfront restaurant and eat some delicious food (I 10/10 recommend the vegan pasta). After stocking up on some snacks, we headed back to Ewak and began our sail to the dock in Tortola where we had met on the first night of our trip. While preparing to dock, we were lucky enough to be visited by a dolphin who chose to swim along the side of our boat. Then, after we docked and finished our ocean showers, our boat joined with the other GoBeyond boat for a fun evening activity. We were asked 25 questions, and we were split into four different groups based on our answers. These groups represented the different kinds of leaders: the dreamers, the people-pleasers, the logic and number inclined, and the stubborn action-takers. We then discussed each group’s strengths and weaknesses and which groups work best together. After wrapping up this insightful activity, our boats were given time to hang out before bed. The day was an amazing mix of learning about the community in Tortola and learning about ourselves.