Volunteer Experience Report at Finca Noah (Barbara and Bernadette)

Two "Repeat Offenders"

It felt a little like "coming home"

When we drove through the gates of Finca Noah in mid-July, it felt for both of us a little like "arriving". With every meter we drove up the welcoming driveway, we were more and more excited to see our friends again — Farah, Nadine, and Juan. Eloy and his gang, Rambo, Coco, and all the others hopped right back into our hearts. The last time we enjoyed the cheerfulness and hospitality of the residents was in September 2023. Even then, we combined our friendship visit with a week as volunteers.

Like in a film, the memories from back then unfolded before us. We wondered: "Who will we still know? …Two-legged and four-legged friends?" There were quite a few! I was particularly curious to see how the animal world had developed at the Finca. The many posts on social media and the newsletters from Farah and Nadine regularly reported that life at the Finca never gets boring. And so it was this time too! The facility presented itself as invitingly as ever. Everything was spotlessly clean under Farah's regime. Yes, she can be quite meticulous when it comes to order, cleanliness, and animal welfare. An excellent training ground for mindfulness and respect toward everything and everyone at the Finca, we think. But honestly: it's wonderful to be able to enjoy the marvelous atmosphere and energy of this place. We believe that it's a pleasure to contribute to it.

It was very hot when we arrived. We had just escaped a weather trio consisting of dampness, cold, and an autumnal feeling. And that in July! All the more reason we enjoyed the work at the Finca. Yes, we truly enjoyed the already meditative task of collecting countless sheep droppings! It's incredible how these little "rubber balls" can scatter.

Appointments, pending tasks, and "important business" lose all their importance at Finca Noah. That this is about "real life, saving lives, caring for them, and protecting them sustainably" becomes clear when we hear a loud, persistent bleating of a lamb from the neighbor's property. How quickly active help can look is shown to us firsthand by Juan, Nadine, and Farah: when they checked on what was happening, they found a dead mother, a dead lamb next to her, and another one still alive that was crying for help. Long story short: a call to the animal owner resulted in another sheep that has found protection and a home at the Finca…

Barbara, a former professional cyclist, summed up our visit perfectly at the end: "This is the best bootcamp ever!"

Barbara and Bernadette, Wald