Lexington, KY - When Mike and Janette Heitz first contacted representatives from Sisters of Charity of Saint Mary in Buenos Aires last year in regards to leading a small international group of do-gooders to Argentina with the intentions of helping renovate the school they operated, the nuns were a little “leery,” the couple said.
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Mike and Janette Heitz at Angor Wat in Cambodia.
After all, the Heitzes, who live across the street from Woodland Park in Lexington, weren’t affiliated with any benevolent global volunteering outfit, and they wanted to travel over 5,000 miles to offer their unsolicited hard work for two weeks. Something seemed askew. Even after Mike flew down on an initial visit to coordinate resources prior to the rest of group’s arrival, “they still had doubts,” he remembers.
But, by the end of February of this year, as the work was complete and the school enjoyed a new playground, a new classroom and revitalized grounds, among other improvements, Mike asked one of the sisters during the farewell ceremony: “Do you believe me now?”
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Mike Heitz towers over some of the organizers at Sisters of Charity of Saint Mary in Buenos Aires, where he and his wife, Janette, helped renovate a school.
They did. And they weren’t the only ones who have benefited from the Heitzes’ “voluntourism.” Every year Mike and Janette lead a group of 16 to 20 people to the far corners of the globe on a humanitarian mission; in Buenos Aires, the group’s members were aged 29 - 87, with their neighbor, Beanie Pederson, being the only other Lexington representative.
Prior to Argentina, the Heitzes have worked in Laos, Egypt and Vietnam. Before they started heading up their own expeditions a few years ago, they did projects with Habitat for Humanity in countries such as New Zealand, Mongolia, South Africa, Mexico, Costa Rica, Cambodia and Romania.
When they are scouting out their next operation (next year will see the couple working in Myanmar), they try to work in large city centers, because while the top priority of their travels is to help others, they’re also interested in cultural activities that can’t be afforded in remote places. Logistically, it’s also much more difficult and time-consuming to gather resources outside of city centers. “Argentina was good,” Mike said, “they even had a Wal-Mart down there.”
To complement their travels, the Heitzes will often tack on another week or more for their own cross-country exploration after the hard work is done; their favorite mode of transportation: bicycles.
“You see things slower,” Janette said. “You can stop when you want to, you can say hi to a person that’s by the road. You can smell the smells, and the exercise is wonderful.”
They also chart numerous other biking excursions, and this year will see the couple pedaling through Colorado and Europe, right after they completed a trek from Nashville to Mississippi for a fundraiser in March. “It’s just 400 miles,” Janette said, nonchalantly.
The couple, who will be celebrating their 40th anniversary this year, pinpoint their affinity with traveling back to when Mike played professional basketball in Switzerland, following his college career playing ball for West Virginia University. In 1972, Mike had the opportunity to play Russia in an European tournament after the team had won the Olympics earlier in the year. “We got to go to Moscow, which was interesting in 1972,” he said. “We got beat.”
But now, as the couple talks about other places they would like to visit once they get the chance, the humanitarian and diplomatic roles they fulfill are just as important to them as seeing the world.
“I think some of the people in these countries might not have such a great opinion of the United States,” Janette said. “But now, when they think of the United States, they’ll think of us. ... If you know a person one-on-one, face to face, and you help them, they can’t hate you. I think it’s the answer to world peace, if more people helped one another like this.”
When she’s not biking or helping others throughout the world, Janette publishes a prolific lifestyles blog, The 2 Seasons, with her daughter, Jordan. Visit it at www.the2seasons.com.