Jacob

United States
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Travel information
I am currently
Travelling
Activities i am interested in:
drawing, painting, sketch booking, writing, electronic music, dogs, swimming, running, hiking, camping, learning Spanish/language exchanges, plants
Description
Originally from Maine in the US, for the past two years, I've been working as a freelance writer in Spain. I arrived with my Australian cattle dog, Sam, who is the absolute love of my life and ideal travel companion. At first, we lived all throughout Cadiz where I attempted to become a windsurfer, yet in the end, we ended up in Asturias where we feel much more at home. After moving north and living in Oviedo for the past three months, I would like to explore the rural parts of Asturias while volunteering on farms and homesteads. At this point in my life, I want to be closer to nature while collaborating with hardworking people. I want to learn new things while offering the skills I possess.

This is my second time living in Spain after teaching English in Murcia and Madrid from 2016-2018. During this time, I did Helpxchange projects with farmers in Catalonia, Galicia, and even Braganza in Portugal. Some activities included gardening, harvesting, building new plant beds, doing basic construction work, and tending to animals. Professionally my background is in journalism and content writing, but I'm equally passionate about getting my hands dirty, whether that be volunteering on farms, learning about permaculture principles, or doing conservation work.

In the past, I have lived in Guadalajara, Mexico where I worked for an English-speaking newspaper, as well as studied in Santiago de Chile for a semester. Previously I received a grant to initiate a sister-school partnership between my local high school and a Quechua indigenous school in Quito, Ecuador; worked with indigenous leaders and survivors of the Internal Armed Conflict in Guatemala, created a promotional documentary for a non-profit and did disaster relief work in Haiti eight months after the 2010 earthquake / served with All Hands Volunteers, among many other adventures. I have also worked for the Maine Conservation Corps where I constructed stone staircases in various state parks with my team, in addition to a long-term farming project in rural Québec Canada.
Languages
Languages spoken
English: Fluent
Spanish: Intermediate
More details about my language interests
This workawayer has indicated that they would be interested in sharing their language(s) or learning a new language. You can contact them directly to discuss this.
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Skills and knowledge I'd like to share or learn
Some knowledge of:
Gardening
DIY and building projects
Life at a Farmstay
Eco Projects
Helping around the house
Teaching
Animal Care
Able to teach about:
Languages
Art Projects
Helping with Computers/ Internet
More details about your skills
Basic Construction: assembled transitional shelters and built water filters with All Hands Volunteers in Haiti (eight months after the 2010 earthquake); constructed garden furniture made out of wooden pallets with Cochise County 4H Club in Arizona; spent a summer building stone staircases and blazing new hiking trails at various nature preserves with Maine Conservation Corps; collaborated with Habitat for Humanity in Colorado; made miniature and large scale¨Village in a Box¨ prototypes for the Center for Maximum Potential Building Systems in Austin, Texas

Farming/Gardening/Permaculture: spent one month at a homestead in rural Québec where I harvested, planted, jarred provisions, and took care of animals with other volunteers from around the world; enhanced the local ecosystem at Bisbee High School in Arizona by reintroducing native desert plant species (such as mesquite trees and deer grass) to the land; conducted permaculture gardening workshops with Cochise County 4H Club

Spanish: studied abroad at Universidad Diego Portales in Santiago, Chile while living with a host family; enrolled in B2 level Spanish classes at a private academy in Murcia

Teaching/Tutoring: worked as the Paso a Paso Program Coordinator at Comunidades Latinas Unidas en Servicio in St. Paul, Minnesota where I piloted a tutoring program for Spanish-speaking children; spent one school year teaching English at IES Los Albares in Cieza, Spain; worked as an English instructor at Cambridgetown in Murcia, Spain where I taught B1, B2 and C1 levels

Art: painted murals at the Yachay Wasi Intercultural Community Center in Quito, Ecuador, Kips Bay Boys and Girls Club in the Bronx, and Center Consolidated School District in Colorado where I also facilitated an after-school art club; trained drawer and painter

Writing/Journalism: studied journalism at American University in Washington, D.C., former contributor at News2Share, Revista Revolver, Law Street Media. I have worked as a journalist in Mexico at The Guadalajara Reporter newspaper and Contxto, an online media platform where I covered start-up news. In more recent years I have become a freelance write with various clients in Europe and the US.

Video: well-acquainted with Adobe Premier, Final Cut Pro and iMovie; produced informational videos for Cochise County 4H Club; video news segments for News2Share; made a promotional documentary for Vermont Haiti Project; independently covered the educational reform protests in Chile
Age
33
What else ...
COUCHSURFING PROFILE: https://www.couchsurfing.com/people/jahhh100
LINKEDIN PROFILE: https://es.linkedin.com/in/jacob-atkins-33732b84
PRESS PORTFOLIO: https://muckrack.com/jacob-atkins-4
Some more information
- Smoker
- Driver's licence
- Allergies
  No
- Special dietary requirements
  No

Feedback

29 Jul 2023

Left by Workawayer (Jacob) for host (Experience rural life in the ...)

It was a very pleasant experience volunteering with this family! Everyone is super friendly, easygoing, communicative, hardworking, and welcoming. I had a fun time getting to know them, sharing meals, and being part of their world for a few days. Some of my projects included the beginning stages of assembling a railing for the cabin, digging out… read more

(Excellent )

26 Jul 2023

Left by host (Experience rural life in the ...) for Workawayer (Jacob)

Jacob is helpful, flexible and easy going. He is very good in cooperation and it was joy to work with him. His dog Sam is very friendly and nice. We enjoyed their company very much.

(Excellent )

14 Jul 2023

Left by host (Help with our goats and learn ...) for Workawayer (Jacob)

Jacob was our first helper in the "new era", having the gypsy wagon for himself. The whole concept of part-time working while travelling and volunteering is great and thanks to Jacob's clear communication, we knew what to expect. He was the first helper who managed to take care of everything on their own: milking the goats, making the cheese,… read more

(Excellent )

5 Jul 2023

Left by Workawayer (Jacob) for host (Help with our goats and learn ...)

Where do I begin with Tomas and Daniela?! Patient, friendly, easygoing, fun, laidback—these two were the ideal Workaway hosts who went above and beyond in making me feel welcome on their farm! I volunteered with them for about one month and had a great time. Everything about this experience was interactive and educational! When it comes to work, a… read more lot of it revolved around their 16 goofy goats, each one full of character. Goat responsibilities mostly involved milking, preparing cheese, and closing the corral at night. I absolutely loved working with the goats and very much appreciate them teaching me how to care for them, not to mention how to make cheese. This was inspirational and motivated me to have my own goats someday! Oh, I can't forget about the big cuddle monster of a dog named Sky who lives among the goats, often preparing her food and giving her some love whenever entering the corral. There were also chickens and the nicest rooster ever, making sure they had food and water, plus collecting the eggs. Another area of work involved helping them continue the construction of their beautiful home. Part of this often involved glazing wooden floor beams and doors, as well as making adobe walls on a few occassions. This was educational and fun work, not to mention collaborative. There were also a few carpentry projects that I undertook like building a cart for their wheel barrow and making a new top for a work table. Other job responsibilities included going out to scavenge for big stones to place in their terrace, in addition to weed-whacking around the fence of their large pasture, which took a few days. Although my allergies went ballistic during this time, they were understanding and flexible when I needed to "recover." There was also a few days of shoveling manure, which was dirty work but satisfying in its own way. There really was never a shortage of work to be done. Most of this was collaborative too, which I appreciated. Even though I had my online work to do in the late afternoon/evenings, and had a few days of fatigue and feeling under the weather, I am grateful for them being patient and considerate with me. Outside of work, Both Tomas and Daniela wanted to make sure I got to unwind, so they were regularly inviting me to events in the surrounding community, whether it be live music, golf tournaments, carpentry workshops, weekly pub sessions, etc. I wish I had more time to go on outings with them, but I had a blast during our day trip to a neighboring Polish town, plus my yoga session with Daniela. I also enjoyed sharing meals with them on most days and felt right at home in their cozy gypsy wagon. In the end, this was the best experience I've ever had on Workaway. These two are fantastic, so I highly recommend volunteering with them and getting to know their remote corner of the Czech Republic.

(Excellent )

5 Jun 2023

Left by host (Come and help in the garden ...) for Workawayer (Jacob)

During his three-week stay, Jacob proved to be an invaluable asset to our household. He assisted with various gardening tasks such as watering, weeding and transplanting some plants. Additionally, he contributed his time and skills to renovating my sister and her husband's home. Jacob also dig out soil for an additional parking spot.

Aside from… read more

(Excellent )

30 May 2023

Left by Workawayer (Jacob) for host (Come and help in the garden ...)

After spending about three weeks with the Lutz family, I can definitely say that this was the most positive Workaway experience ever! Michèle, Ailan, and Monika are very kind people who made me and my pup feel like part of the family. They are fun, humorous, easy-going, down-to-earth, intelligent, and hardworking people who I admire greatly. They… read more also have two incredible dogs, Bonnie and Onyx, who are adorable and playful.

When it comes to the work projects, they were laid back and never daunting. I was always able to go at my own pace and get instructions when needed, which was never stressful because the family is approachable and great at communication. It did rain quite a bit during my stay, so at times we had to figure out what needed to be done indoors. When it wasn't raining, I enjoyed my time in the garden doing yard work and maintenance projects. Digging, transporting soil from one area to another to make room for a driveway extension, trimming trees and bushes, mowing the lawn, organizing garden supplies, weeding, etc. There were even a few carpentry projects like helping their older daughter and son-in-law install insulation at their home, doing a little drywalling, as well as sanding and painting shelves to place plants on their terrace. Other tasks included basic household chores like taking care of dishes, sweeping, and even walking the dogs on numerous occasions. There was also a lot of English conversation going on to help them learn new vocabulary and refine what they already know, which is substantial!

On the weekends after dinner, I enjoyed learning new board games with them, even though they always destroyed me in everything we played, haha. It was good competitive fun. Another cool experience was attending a dog "military" competition (obstacle course) with them in Mels and seeing their canine companions in action. Also on my last day, they took me on a long hike to their local mountain, which was lovely. Oh, and I even went to Lucerne with Michèle to see her rock band perform. She is very talented!!!

All the while, there were a few challenging moments when it came to my dog interacting with Bonnie and Onyx. He got a little territorial and marked his territory one too many times in the house. Of course, this was a learning experience for me as a first-time dog owner and will certainly influence future volunteer projects. Despite this, they were patient and understanding, providing me with positive and constructive feedback to prevent this from happening again. The fact that they are dog training professionals and preparing Bonnie to become a service dog was a great inspiration for me.

Once again, thank you all for welcoming Sam and me into your world! It was a beautiful experience. I truly hope to stay in touch and cross paths again. Until next time!

(Excellent )

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29 Jul 2023

Left by Workawayer (Jacob) for host (Experience rural life in the ...)

(Excellent )

26 Jul 2023

Left by host (Experience rural life in the ...) for Workawayer (Jacob)

Jacob is helpful, flexible and easy going. He is very good in cooperation and it was joy to work with him. His dog Sam is very friendly and nice. We enjoyed their company very much.

(Excellent )

14 Jul 2023

Left by host (Help with our goats and learn ...) for Workawayer (Jacob)

(Excellent )

5 Jul 2023

Left by Workawayer (Jacob) for host (Help with our goats and learn ...)

(Excellent )

5 Jun 2023

Left by host (Come and help in the garden ...) for Workawayer (Jacob)

(Excellent )

30 May 2023

Left by Workawayer (Jacob) for host (Come and help in the garden ...)

(Excellent )

28 Feb 2023

Left by host (Help with our garden in Spain) for Workawayer (Jacob)

Jacob y su perro Sam han sido encantadores. Jacob es una gran persona tiene un español muy bueno y siempre está dispuesto a ayudar. Todo fue genial con el por su puesto siempre tendrá las puertas de casa abiertas. Nos veremos pronto . Un abrazo y no duden en abrir las puertas de su casa a Jacob

(Excellent )

27 Feb 2023

Left by Workawayer (Jacob) for host (Help with our garden in Spain)

Pasé una semana con Andrés y fue genial. Desde la huerta hasta la obra, trabajando con él fue educativo, interesante y tranquilo. Nos enseñó mucho de la cultura asturiana, disfrutamos de paella y sidra con el grupo, además hicimos una gran escapada a La Cuevona en Ribadesella después del trabajo. Cómo anfitrión es acogedor, adaptivo, comunicativo… read more

(Excellent )

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