At World Health Outreach, our Smile Journey program blends hands-on outreach with mentorship, creating space for shared learning and locally empowered, sustainable impact. Volunteers work alongside community leaders while developing leadership, critical thinking, and cross-cultural communication skills.

In 2025, Hanna joined us in Kenya. What she experienced shapes how she understands prevention in healthcare and meaningful impact. Below, Hanna shares her reflections.

My Volunteer Experience

Hanna Krampl

Last May, I spent two weeks in the Maasai Mara with my friends Piper and Katy. Under the mentorship of Mandy, a public health professional, we volunteered alongside several organizations, including Days for Girls Kenya – Olmalaika Enterprise and World Health Dental Organization. It was an incredible experience that I am grateful to have had the opportunity to take part in while at a young age because of all the insight I gained from my mentor and the locals running these programs.

“What stayed with me wasn’t a single moment, but a shift in how I understand what meaningful help actually looks like. Working with these organizations changed how I think about prevention in health care. ”

— Hanna Krampl

*Grace empowering mothers through prevention education*

Teaching mothers how to care for their children’s teeth early is far more effective than treating problems once they’ve already caused pain or damage. A toothbrush, or a simple lesson and a book, can not only shape a child’s health for the rest of their lives, but also aid them in the future, like getting a job or going to school. Prevention doesn’t look impressive from the outside, but it’s incredibly effective.

What impacted me most was that these programs are community-led. Grace, a local Maasai woman, runs a dental health program in the Maasai Mara with her small team. They travel by motorcycle to rural schools and community health centers, teaching lessons they were trained to lead themselves.

*Grace at the forefront of community-led prevention programs*

The women working with Days for Girls sew reusable menstrual kits at a local enterprise and distribute them directly to schools. These are not outside solutions imposed on a community, they are solutions built within it. Sustainable, eco-friendly projects in rural areas aren’t just better for the environment; they create independence and long-term change. When programs are run by locals, they don’t disappear when volunteers leave. They grow, adapt, and last.

*Cecelia cutting fabric for reusable menstrual kits*

Being in Kenya reminded me that impact doesn’t come from stepping in and taking over. It comes from listening, supporting what already exists, and trusting people to lead work that affects their own communities. That understanding has stayed with me long after leaving the Maasai Mara.