McKinnon Takes Teens on Mission to New Orleans
Atlas Travel International EVP of Global Business Development Kerin McKinnon recently returned from taking her two teens, Kim and Kiley, to New Orleans for a week of volunteering to help Katrina victims.
"We gutted homes, volunteered in day camps, rebuilt part of a school cafeteria, fed the homeless, cleared yard debris," said McKinnon. "Despite the hard work we managed to truly enjoy ourselves. We went with a group of 29 people... all strangers until our week together. We were housed in a warehouse on cots with 250 people."
McKinnon says this certainly wasn't a glamorous vacation, but she and her daughters managed to get to Lake Pontchartrain for a night out and a taste of Jambalaya, as well as visited Café du Monde, the original coffee market in the French Quarter, where they sampled the legendary pastries known as beignets.
"I would highly recommend this type of trip for any teenager," says McKinnon. "It was a life-changing experience and the people of New Orleans are so grateful for the help."
For more information on this trip, email Kerin at kerin.mckinnon@atlastravel.com. To book a trip to New Orleans and help revitalize the tourism economy, contact Atlas Travel International's Vacation Department at 800-878-8626.