Daniel is a 26 year old who was looking to shake up his engineering career.  With his wife by his side, Daniel & Kayla will be living and volunteering abroad in Trujillo, Peru. Daniel will be working with both Moche and Earth Peru.  A few things Daniel will be helping with include engineering of building with reusable materials (such as building a kindergarten out of plastic water bottles), helping form a technical plan for the captation box of a water system, & installing solar panels in elementary schools.  Continue reading to learn more about Daniel and why he put in his two weeks notice to make a difference and join Venture With Impact.

Kayla and Daniel McMullen

What motivated you to sign up for Venture with Impact?

I am passionate about traveling, helping others, and learning. Venture with Impact combines all three of these! I feel motivated by the chance to use my knowledge and skills to help others, and at the same time learning about another culture and lifestyle firsthand.

Have you ever lived abroad before?

No.

What made you decide that now was the time to experience living abroad?

I was planning on moving on from my job at the end of this year, and I heard about VWI through my wife (who will also be doing the pilot program). My wife and I have always talked about the possibility of living in a different country, and that combined with volunteering is really appealing to me.

Did you have a remote position prior to joining Venture with Impact?

No.

If not, how were you able to convince your boss to let you join VWI?

No convincing was necessary other than putting in my two weeks notice.

Have you done much international travel prior to VWI?

Other than traveling to Mexico and Canada, the only other international travel I have done is a trip my wife and I took to Ecuador in 2014. We were there for two weeks and have been itching to go back to see more of South America.

What are you most excited about most for your volunteer experience with VWI?

I'm most excited about the chance to make a difference in someone's life.

"Would you rather fight 1 horse-sized duck, or 100 duck-sized horses?"

I think about this question every day. I would choose 1 horse-sized duck, although it would be very intimidating. I think fighting 100 duck-sized horses would be extremely overwhelming.