Help CenterWho can be a host family?
AMIGOS Host Families are households identified in AMIGOS communities who have an interested in hosting a volunteer for a period of one to six weeks, depending on the project.
Many families host AMIGOS volunteers year after year and love the opportunity to get to know care for a new volunteer each summer. Other host families may be new to AMIGOS, but all share the same excitement and love of cultural exchange. Any family that will host a volunteer must meet certain criteria. These include:
-
A real interest in hosting a volunteer
-
Gender-specific sleeping space with an individual bed or space for a cot
-
Host family has the means and agrees to feed the volunteer or AMIGOS has set up an alternative feeding arrangement
-
No signs of domestic concerns such as violence, alcohol abuse, or neglect
-
Living and cooking spaces that meet adequate hygiene standards
-
No signs of animal infestations including bats
-
At least two members living in the household full-time (similar age host siblings are preferred)
-
For female volunteers, at least one woman must live in the household full-time
-
Host home is located within a reasonable distance of another volunteer’s host home
-
Reliable access to a phone in the household or with a neighbor in case of emergency
-
Head of household attests that no member of the household has a criminal conviction
-
Head of household attests that no member of the household has tuberculosis or signs of tuberculosis such as a persistent cough
Before volunteers arrive, project staff work closely with AMIGOS Partner Agencies and community leaders to select host families. A member of the Senior Staff team visits each host community to vet potential host families accompanied by a trusted local or Partner Agency contact. Then, the Project Supervisor working in the community will visit the community again, sign Host Family Contracts with each household, affirm that the Host Family meets AMIGOS criteria, and spend the night in one of the host homes.
What training do host families receive?
Before volunteers arrive, at least one member from each host family must attend an AMIGOS-led Host Family Training. Here, project staff set expectations, review AMIGOS health and safety policies, teach host families what to do in case something goes wrong (such as an illness), and share best practices for cultural exchange.
What happens if something goes wrong during a volunteer’s stay with a host family?
Each volunteer is provided with an emergency contact plan that they can use should any incident arise during their time in the host community. AMIGOS project staff are on-call 24/7 to respond to incidents or concerns. Should a concern arise, project staff will respond quickly to address it. Depending on the nature of the situation, possible responses include speaking with the host family to resolve the issue, re-assigning the volunteer to a new host family, or re-assigning the volunteer to a new host community. Historically, the rate of serious incidents related to the volunteer’s host family is extremely low.
Explore more about host families in the Family Preparation Guide.