Where do community service groups live, and what do they eat?
Putney community service groups live in very simple conditions generally in sleeping bags on pads on the floor of a local school or other community building that is not in use. Sometimes our groups rent one or two small, simple houses in the village. There is separate space for boys and girls, and basic bathroom facilities. Generally there is running water, but in a few locations students use an outhouse and learn to shower using a bucket. Food is provided by one or two local people who shop for food for the group and do the cooking. Students, in small work teams, help out with this on a rotating basis. The food is simple and nutritious and emphasizes local products, e.g. beans, rice, chicken, eggs, and fresh fruit in Central America and the Caribbean, rice, noodles, chicken, seafood, and fresh vegetables in Vietnam. Students (and leaders) who are vegetarians participate in our programs every summer. While the local cooks make an effort to accommodate American tastes, students whose di
