When I asked Victor what inspired him to create MSR International, he took some time to reflect before he told me, “The idea came to me in several stages.” The first time Victor remembers feeling like he needed to help was when he was about thirteen years of age, during his first visit to Thailand with his mother. “There I saw prostitutes for the first time,” he recalls. Victor remembers the feelings of repulsion and anger that he felt upon seeing young girls, approximately of his age at the time, dancing on tables and in the streets and being taken aside by older foreigners. These feelings stayed with him in his future travels.
In 2003, when he was only sixteen, Victor had the chance to visit Cambodia. It is during this trip that Victor fell in love with South East Asia, though he still remembers that he was, once again, disgusted and upset by the poverty and prostitution that he saw.
Meanwhile, in Paris, Victor came into contact with more and more people who had Lao origins, and who taught him about the culture and history of Laos. Victor’s interest in Laos grew as he became more immersed in this fascinating culture, culminating in his decision to visit the country by himself for the first time in 2007. During this trip Victor fell in love with this country, but he also saw an immense need for help and funding within it. Victor decided that he wanted to return to Laos, but next time it would be to help.
In July 2008 Victor went to Cambodia as a volunteer. It was during this trip that Victor understood for the first time that working as a volunteer was simply not enough, he wanted to create his own NGO that would operate under different standards than what he had witnessed up to date.
When reflecting upon this experience Victor tells me, "I met volunteers who were students in Law, Medicine, Marketing, Business, et cetera. Everyone seemed as though they had so much to offer, but they were given menial tasks that any monkey could perform. I saw potential to do so much more with the skills that people had.” Victor was put aback by the managerial decision not to give people work according to skill or specific field of study. This decision resulted not only in less efficiency, but also in boredom among the young volunteers, who spent their time partying instead.
This frustrated Victor even more. “Volunteers came to Cambodia and were not given any information about the history or culture of the land they were visiting.” As a result, some acted like they were still in their own countries, disrespecting the culture without necessarily understanding that they were doing so. “That is what really made me want to start MSR International,” Victor tells me.
Only one month later, in August 2008, Victor found himself in Laos again, this time talking to anyone who would listen about the dream he had for MSR. “It was very difficult,” says Victor, “every door was shut down. I was too young and I had no funds, people didn’t take me seriously.” His first break came when he met Julie’s uncle, who was working as a reporter in Vientiane at the time. Julie’s uncle put Victor into contact with a Lao-American doctor who made annual visits to Laos to train people in medicine. Victor, who was a pre-med student himself at the time, formed a partnership with this doctor so that students from France and Canada could accompany him as medical observers. Victor tells me, “I thought this would be a good idea because it would not only give privileged students a medical training in circumstances that are different from what they are used to, but it would also potentially give them a moral obligation to return to Laos when they are real doctors and help the locals here. It is because of this long term vision that the doctor agreed to help us.”
In July 2009, MSR International set foot in Laos for the first time as an official organization. The 2009 Mission was mainly a medical observation program. However, Victor also took advantage of the time and people he had in Laos to help local organizations, such as VYDA, by creating websites for them so that they could gain recognition and funding.
In 2010 MSR had expanded enough to send teams to Laos, Ghana, and Haiti. By this time Victor had enriched his idea of a medical observation program by adding emphasis on social development, work with youth, and forming partnerships with organizations that are native to the countries he visited. Victor stresses this as a key focus in MSR. “Other NGO’s,” he told me back in 2010, “go into foreign countries and impose their own beliefs upon them. We want to help local people in ways that they already know. We are no one to tell them what is good for them, they know best. We are only here to lend our support.” Victor also stresses that a key part in defining MSR and what differentiates it from other NGO’s is "the work we put into enriching the individual experience of each of our volunteers. We want everyone to leave with a feeling that they have not only helped, but also that they have learned immensely. We focus on giving everyone a good background about the culture and history of the countries they visit.”
In 2003, when he was only sixteen, Victor had the chance to visit Cambodia. It is during this trip that Victor fell in love with South East Asia, though he still remembers that he was, once again, disgusted and upset by the poverty and prostitution that he saw.
Meanwhile, in Paris, Victor came into contact with more and more people who had Lao origins, and who taught him about the culture and history of Laos. Victor’s interest in Laos grew as he became more immersed in this fascinating culture, culminating in his decision to visit the country by himself for the first time in 2007. During this trip Victor fell in love with this country, but he also saw an immense need for help and funding within it. Victor decided that he wanted to return to Laos, but next time it would be to help.
In July 2008 Victor went to Cambodia as a volunteer. It was during this trip that Victor understood for the first time that working as a volunteer was simply not enough, he wanted to create his own NGO that would operate under different standards than what he had witnessed up to date.
When reflecting upon this experience Victor tells me, "I met volunteers who were students in Law, Medicine, Marketing, Business, et cetera. Everyone seemed as though they had so much to offer, but they were given menial tasks that any monkey could perform. I saw potential to do so much more with the skills that people had.” Victor was put aback by the managerial decision not to give people work according to skill or specific field of study. This decision resulted not only in less efficiency, but also in boredom among the young volunteers, who spent their time partying instead.
This frustrated Victor even more. “Volunteers came to Cambodia and were not given any information about the history or culture of the land they were visiting.” As a result, some acted like they were still in their own countries, disrespecting the culture without necessarily understanding that they were doing so. “That is what really made me want to start MSR International,” Victor tells me.
Only one month later, in August 2008, Victor found himself in Laos again, this time talking to anyone who would listen about the dream he had for MSR. “It was very difficult,” says Victor, “every door was shut down. I was too young and I had no funds, people didn’t take me seriously.” His first break came when he met Julie’s uncle, who was working as a reporter in Vientiane at the time. Julie’s uncle put Victor into contact with a Lao-American doctor who made annual visits to Laos to train people in medicine. Victor, who was a pre-med student himself at the time, formed a partnership with this doctor so that students from France and Canada could accompany him as medical observers. Victor tells me, “I thought this would be a good idea because it would not only give privileged students a medical training in circumstances that are different from what they are used to, but it would also potentially give them a moral obligation to return to Laos when they are real doctors and help the locals here. It is because of this long term vision that the doctor agreed to help us.”
In July 2009, MSR International set foot in Laos for the first time as an official organization. The 2009 Mission was mainly a medical observation program. However, Victor also took advantage of the time and people he had in Laos to help local organizations, such as VYDA, by creating websites for them so that they could gain recognition and funding.
In 2010 MSR had expanded enough to send teams to Laos, Ghana, and Haiti. By this time Victor had enriched his idea of a medical observation program by adding emphasis on social development, work with youth, and forming partnerships with organizations that are native to the countries he visited. Victor stresses this as a key focus in MSR. “Other NGO’s,” he told me back in 2010, “go into foreign countries and impose their own beliefs upon them. We want to help local people in ways that they already know. We are no one to tell them what is good for them, they know best. We are only here to lend our support.” Victor also stresses that a key part in defining MSR and what differentiates it from other NGO’s is "the work we put into enriching the individual experience of each of our volunteers. We want everyone to leave with a feeling that they have not only helped, but also that they have learned immensely. We focus on giving everyone a good background about the culture and history of the countries they visit.”
For more information, you can visit MSR’s website at http://msr-intl.com/
Congratulations to Victor for his impressive accomplishments! He is an inspiring individual.
ReplyDeleteThank goodness for people like Victor! He is making the world a better place because of his convictions and determination.
ReplyDeletethank-you Viviane!
ReplyDeleteThis is indeed a very great and touching article.I am the Executive Director of the local NGO victor partnered with in Ghana,the site www.varas.org.
ReplyDeleteI always remind myself of the good work people like victor is doing to help the less privileged putting into consideration the customs and cultures of the community they visited.
VARAS is really proud of this partnership since volunteers from MSR to Ghana put aside their way of living and became like a rural folk where they volunteered.This really brought complete sense of empathy and love.
I am proud of you Victor once again and i strongly believed our partnership is of eternity.
Thank you Tasha.