Help busy arts business owner in Hillsborough, New Jersey and Brooklyn NY, USA

United States

Favourited 203 times

Host rating
Feedback
18
Last activity
14/10/2019
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Availability

2019

Min stay requested: at least 3 weeks

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Description
This project is based in central New Jersey. We run a thriving music and theater Arts school with my family and some really great young arts educators. We help children in our community develop confidence by running acting and music programs throughout the year and in the summer four fully-staged youth musical theater plays. We are also responsible for running a music festival with extraordinary local bands to raise money for youth suicide prevention efforts and creating mental health programming for the community. The school is quite a whirlwind! We need lots of help around the house, around the school and with our charity! I am the mother of grownups and we love to meet people from other cultures, build lasting relationships and help mentor and share experiences that make life better. We live in New Jersey (during the week) and in Brooklyn, NY (most weekends.) We are looking for enthusiastic, hardworking travelers who will share their culture and help out our efforts along this journey.

The type of help we are looking for changes month to month, so it is always better for you to let us know how you can help us and we can discuss further if our project is a good fit for you. Please include this information in your initial inquiry to ensure a response.

We are looking for someone with skills and interest in the following areas:

MARKETING/ADVERTISING
Web-design/programming, video editing, social media marketing and management, blog writing, digital marketing, and branding to help improve our online marketing, web sites, social media advertising, as well as print promotions.

VIDEO PRODUCTION
Creative and digital technology skills are needed in film and video editing for our projects. We use Final Cut Pro and can also work with Premiere.

ORGANIZATION, YARDWORK, AND OTHER PROJECTS AT HOME AND SCHOOL LOCATION

You should be energetic, cheerful, self-motivated, resourceful, and creative. Independent as well as a team player. A sense of humor is a must!

NOTE 1: volunteers must understand that the project is in suburban central New Jersey and must be committed to our objectives during the exchange. If your primary objective is to be in NYC, this project is not a match.

Note 2; We prefer to receive volunteers who have their own laptop and can stay a minimum of 1 month or more.

NOTE 3: We prefer to receive volunteers who know how to cook and enjoy it, and are willing to clean and be proactive about it.

NOTE 4: We prefer to receive volunteers who have experience working with children and have knowledge of the craft of acting, visual art and/or music OR have experience with doing organization, cleaning, building, outdoor landscaping projects.

Please let us know what experience you have with regard to the above when sending your message, thank you!
Type of help
Gardening
Building
Elderly Companion
General Maintenance
Cooking / shopping
Help in the house
Animal care
Charity work
Language practice
Art project
Help with Computers / internet
Teaching
Cultural exchange and learning opportunities
Work with and support a dynamic and successful woman leader in a fun multicultural youth arts environment with special projects related to youth mental health. Learn about social media and learn about the operations of a successful music school. Practice language skills.
Help
Help busy woman business owner with various projects focused on organizing and cleaning home, garden, and business. Additionally, help organize theater costumes and props. We have opportunities to help with social media.
Languages spoken
English, Spanish
Accommodation
Semi-private or private bedroom and shared bathroom. Good food, spacious suburban New Jersey house with access to Philadelphia and NYC.
What else ...
Explore Princeton, New York City, and Philadelphia. Meet and socialize with young professionals in theater and the arts. Gain language and conversational skills and business management and entrepreneurial skills.
A little more information
- Internet access
- Limited internet access
- We have pets
- We are smokers
How many Workawayers can stay?
More than two
Hours expected
Maximum 4-5 hours a day, 5 days a week

Photos

Feedback left by and about host (18)

These are extra optional ratings when members leave feedback. The average rating left for each option is displayed.

Accuracy of profile:
(5.0)

Cultural exchange:
(5.0)

Communication:
(5.0)

07/08/2019

Left by Workawayer (Talia) for host

My experience at Donnetta’s and Yuri’s place was wonderful ! They are a very welcoming family and make me feel good since the first day I arrived, I can only recommend this workaway !

This trip wasn’t only about exchanging services, I had such interesting conversations with them and I’ve really learned more about the American culture and… read more

(Excellent )

06/08/2019

Left by host for Workawayer (Talia)

Talia is a smart and energetic young woman. Don't be deceived by her young age! She is responsible and can be counted on to hold her own and complete challenging tasks with cheerfulness and a minimum of instruction. She arrived in the final week of the planning for a music festival. It would have been completely understandable if she was… read more

(Excellent )

07/08/2019

Left by Workawayer (Valencia) for host

I reached out to Donnetta and Yuri due to a gut feeling, and it led to a beautiful collaboration and exchange that felt very much 'meant to be'. I felt 'called' to the project, even before arriving, and once I got there and became involved, the feeling only reaffirmed itself. The type of help they needed was almost perfectly suited to my… read more

(Excellent )

06/08/2019

Left by host for Workawayer (Valencia)

Valencia was fantastic! True to her self description in her profile, she was energetic and a quick study. She was able to immediately impact the multiple deliverables of a fast-approaching music festival. We had a limited amount of time to complete gargantuan tasks. Valencia attacked the work fearlessly with joy and cheerfulness. She is a highly… read more

(Excellent )

02/05/2019

Left by Workawayer (Mello) for host

Dear Donnetta and Yuri
Thanks a million for all you family did for me! Thanks Jojo, Anisha, Jamaal and Allegra school for everything what I’ve been through.
It’s my first Workaway. It’s also the best memory in my life. To be really honest, I didn’t did a really good job. However they’re willing to communicate and teach me with a lot of patient.… read more

(Excellent )

21/03/2019

Left by host for Workawayer (Mello)

Mello is a pretty awesome young man. He comes with a spirit that opens wide up to new opportunities. He Is joyful and fascinated by new experiences He renewed our appreciation to enjoy things that we take for granted. He was equally eager to work and to help out wherever needed. He is very coachable and did good work on his projects which he took… read more

(Excellent )

05/02/2019

Left by host for Workawayer (Sreekanth)

It was wonderful having Tej in our home. He shared wonderful Hindu teachings regarding introspection, meditation and stress management. This was quite enlightening and fun. He created many stunningly delicious meals for us. The highlight of his visit was a trip to the beautiful Swaminarayan Mandir in Robbinsville, NJ where we had another… read more

(Very good )

16/12/2018

Left by Workawayer (Sreekanth) for host

It was wonderful doing Workaway with Donnetta and Yuri. Both are so hospitable and kind. Jordan is also a loving person and he plays piano well. The entire family is great to live with. Spacious house. Excellent accomodation. Nice food. Interesting tasks. Unfortunately, had only time for a week. Will return in the near future for a longer period.… read more

(Excellent )

19/01/2019

Left by Workawayer (Julie) for host

Donnetta and all her family are fantastic. I spent a wonderful time with them. Thank you so much, I am so grateful for your welcome, kindness, generosity.. I felt like a person in the family, so my shyness is gone ! We had great discussions about psychology, life, art, movies, political.. so interesting ( Jordan's best word !) I was able to… read more

(Excellent )

11/01/2019

Left by host for Workawayer (Julie)

French Julie, as Julie became affectionately known has the distinction right now of being our longest work away guest. She appeared magically right before Thanksgiving and stayed until just after the New Years Eve holiday. Julie came at first not trusting her English, but we found ways to communicate through our projects. By the end, Julie's… read more

(Excellent )

18/01/2019

Left by Workawayer (Timea) for host

I am so grateful for every moment I spent at Donnetta and Yuri's home. I volunteered during the holidays: we celebrated Christmas together in their lovely New Jersey home, and welcomed the new year in Brooklyn. Can’t believe how fast those 2 weeks went by! It was filled with trips to interesting destinations (Philadelphia, New York City,… read more

(Excellent )

11/01/2019

Left by host for Workawayer (Timea)

It was so much fun meeting Timi. She is a lovely young woman who came bearing traditional Hungarian treats. She came just before Christmas and helped us trim our tree. She created wonderful Hungarian baked goods for our holiday celebration that were enjoyed by all. As a volunteer, you will find her to be focused, hardworking and diligent. She… read more

(Excellent )

11/01/2019

Left by host for Workawayer (Keyla)

What a delight it was to have Keyla volunteer in our home for the holidays. First of all she is an inspirational trainer and helped me improve the level and quality of my workouts. She was extremely generous with her tips and expertise! Keyla was very useful and effective in helping to organize our garage and basement. She did wonderful work with… read more

(Excellent )

14/12/2018

Left by Workawayer (Frederic) for host

Donnetta and Yuri are amazingly generous and kind people! They truly cared about me every second I spent in their home and were always open to interesting conversations. If there even is a topic they are both not knowledgeable about, I at least didn't manage to find it.
They both treated me with the kindness you would hope to receive from a… read more

(Excellent )

03/11/2018

Left by host for Workawayer (Frederic)

It was a fine experience to have Freddy join us in NJ and NYC. He is a fantastic young man with great energy and kindness. He worked on several projects such as creation of a website for our foundation, editing a book about Hip-Hop, which he had good insight about, cleaning up a garage and helping with some outdoor maintenance work. He is a… read more

(Excellent )

13/11/2018

Left by Workawayer (Anna) for host

I have no words to describe how generous Donnetta and Yuri are. The whole family is so welcoming and will make you feel at home right away. Lovely conversations, such enjoyable work and overall a lovely time. I highly highly highly recommend this workaway for anyone! You will not regret it.

(Excellent )

02/10/2018

Left by host for Workawayer (Marcia)

Marcia,
What a wonderful time we had! How bright, cheerful and true you were each and every day! It was a pleasure to have you in our home and at the school. You left us better than you found us and I am truly grateful for that. You were such a hard worker and made my first Workaway experience so great! It was a pleasure having you in NJ and at… read more

(Excellent )

01/10/2018

Left by Workawayer (Marcia) for host

What a beautiful experience it was to meet Donnetta, Yuri, and everybody that surrounds this family! I have been so profoundly touched by their grace, wit, and kindness and I’m so grateful I got to spend a month with them... Bottom line, don’t wait one more second: apply for this place right now and thank me later. If you need more details, just… read more keep reading and I'll try my best to convey the amazingness of this workaway :)

Work: Everything about this volunteering is just perfection. you help out around the house and at the school. For me, a lover of theatre, this is a match made in heaven. My tasks included things like put together an inventory of theatre costumes, help plan their social media strategy, restore some chairs, organize cabinets and assist Donnetta while she was cooking one of her delicious meals.

Location: oh, beautiful New Jersey. The Garden State will be forever in my heart after this experience. Donnetta’s house is located on an amazing township that’s very peaceful, and interesting. You’re also a short trip away from New York and Philadelphia, so you can visit lots of amazing places on your days off.

Volunteer benefits: you’ll have a beautiful room with a super comfy bed and high-speed internet. You’ll also have amazing, hearty, healthy meals daily. I don’t think I ever ate this healthy while traveling. I’ll miss Donnetta’s food so much (But I’ll miss her even more).

Hosts: how do I even start? Donnetta and Yuri welcomed me to their beautiful house as If I was a long-time friend. They showed me so many amazing places in Princeton, Brooklyn, and Manhattan. We went to the movies, restaurants, parks, museums… Many times I couldn’t believe this was actually a Workaway gig and not a friends reunion. We’ve had so many great conversations on culture, race, politics, and just life in general. They were genuinely interested in knowing about my culture and very open to sharing theirs.

TL;DR: If you love theatre and music; if you want to have a female role model who’s bright, empowered and fierce; if you want to experience what’s life in the US with a welcoming family; if you want to be inspired on a daily basis … come volunteer here. I promise you this is going to be one of the best experiences of our life.

Donnetta, Yuri. I’m trying to keep it short, but it’s so hard to be concise when you want to shout out to the world how grateful you are. Thanks for everything you’ve done for me, thanks for allowing this goofy Latina lady to be part of your family, thanks for all the laughs and cookies and good times. I’ll never forget you guys and I hope you don’t forget me <3 <3

(Excellent )

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