NuttZo Organizes Voluntour Trip to Peruvian Orphanage

The NuttZo team recently returned from a trip to Cusco, Peru, where they and 10 other women from California, Massachusetts, North Carolina and Pennsylvania  volunteered at a local orphanage supported by the company’s non-profit, Project Left Behind. This was the second “voluntour” trip organized by Danielle LiVolsi, NuttZo’s CEO, and her sister Shel Dougherty, NuttZo’s marketing director.

The goal of the trip was twofold: volunteer at one of the non-profit’s orphanages and inspire the group members with a number of tours and stops over the course of seven days.

“We want to help the small independently funded orphanages that are dedicated to helping children,” LiVolsi said. “We’ve found that these homes are often the most desperate for funding while overflowing with love and good intentions. They just want to help the children and often don’t know where the money is going to come from. We choose these orphanages carefully and want to help them with their financial burden so they can do what they do best — give these children the education and care they deserve.”

“We make special stops along the way during these trips because we want to show the volunteers that we all can play a part in making this world a better place,” she continued. “This year we toured Casa Mantay, a safe house in Cusco for young mothers and Kausay Wasi Medical Clinic in Coya, a medical clinic that serves poor and underprivileged people from across Peru. Doctors from all over the world come to this clinic to donate their skills and perform thousands of surgeries for many indigenous natives who live high in the Peruvian mountains, many of whom have never been to the doctor in their lives.”

The group volunteered at the Semillas de Jesus orphanage in Urubamba, a small private orphanage established three years ago by a retired professor from Cusco that’s home to 22 children ages 8 to17. The women planted a vegetable garden, built a stone floor/foundation for a bike shed and made a lasagna dinner for the children.

“This group was amazing; everyone was so eager to work,” LiVolsi said. “There was some serious labor involved and we got a ton accomplished.”

The trip, dubbed ESCAPE2016, was carefully designed to incorporate fun, exploration and inspiration, something LiVolsi and Dougherty feel is unique for an organized trip like this.

“We know many of the people who join us are probably feeling pretty burned out from their life and responsibilities at home,” Dougherty said. “We want the trip to be rejuvenating, fun and rewarding on many levels, so we take time to have some amazing meals together, take cervesa breaks, and, of course, marvel at the grand finale of Machu Picchu at the end of the week. Because of this balance of work and play, the group organically bonds and develops friendships that last beyond the seven days. It’s pretty special.”

NuttZo LLC is a nut butter and snack brand based in San Diego. Founded by LiVolsi, NuttZo creates innovative and unique nut butter and snack products that blend seven healthy nuts and seeds in every creation. Sold nationwide in most natural foods and specialty stores, NuttZo is a Certified Women’s Business Enterprise and certified B Corp with a portion of every sale donated to the non-profit Project Left Behind.

Project Left Behind is a non-profit 501c3 started in 2010 by LiVolsi and her husband after they adopted two boys from the Ukraine and wanted to give back to the orphaned and neglected children who were “left behind.” Today, Project Left Behind supports four small independently run orphanages in Peru, India a