Mongolia: Under One Sky

This summer, our Youthlinc team had the incredible opportunity to serve in Mongolia and begin a new relationship with a country and community that quickly became very special to us. It was an experience filled with service, culture, adventure, laughter, and more than a few moments of simply figuring out things together.

Mongolia is a beautiful country with wide-open landscapes, rivers, mountains, livestock, and a sky that seems to go on forever. But what made the experience so meaningful was the people. From the beginning, we were welcomed with warmth, generosity, and a willingness to work side by side.

One of the things that made this trip so special was that so much of it felt like a true exchange. There were times when we were teaching, times when our Mongolian friends were teaching us, and plenty of times when we were learning something for the first time together.

Our team worked on a wide range of service projects. We taught vocational skills to women, including sewing, soap making, and making candles from sheep tallow. We also learned how to turn a very dirty sheep skin into felt, which became one of those memorable experiences that is hard to fully explain unless you were there.

We taught English, painted murals, built life-size Jenga sets, worked on construction projects, built a greenhouse for growing vegetables, and planted more than 250 trees.

Our team also visited the local medical clinic and kindergarten school, where we were treated to a traditional Mongolian game.

Some of the most meaningful experiences came during home visits with nomadic families. We watched horses being milked, fed baby lambs, and tasted fermented horse milk. During those visits, families were also taught about a water filtration system and were able to watch as one was put together right there inside their Ger. Seeing their interest and amazement as they learned how the system worked was so meaningful.

Those visits gave our team the chance to experience everyday life in a way that would never have been possible from a tour bus. We were welcomed into people’s homes, shared experiences with them, and learned about traditions that have been part of Mongolian life for generations.

We also had plenty of opportunities to experience the culture and have some fun.

Our team went horseback riding and river rafting, rode through a river in a Russian truck, watched traditional horse racing and Mongolian wrestling, and even had the chance to participate in archery and wrestling ourselves.

During our excursion, we stayed in traditional Gers and attended a cultural evening at the theater with Mongolian dancers, singers, music, and beautiful traditional performances.

And we ate a lot of mutton.

A lot.

One of the best cultural exchanges happened when our team taught the Virginia Reel. Watching our Mongolian friends and our team dancing together, missing steps, laughing, grabbing hands, and trying again was one of those moments that captured the spirit of the entire trip.

Another incredibly meaningful moment came when our hosts presented every member of our team with a traditional Mongolian shirt. It was a beautiful and generous gift that represented so much more than something to take home. It became a reminder of the relationships that were built and how warmly our team was welcomed into the community.

International service requires flexibility. Plans change. Days are long. Food is unfamiliar. Language barriers are real. There are moments when no one is completely sure what comes next.

Our team embraced all of it.

They worked hard, laughed often, stepped outside their comfort zones, supported one another, and were willing to try just about anything. They showed up for the service projects, but just as importantly, they showed up for each other.

One of the things we loved most about this experience was having the opportunity to begin a new relationship with Mongolia. It was about creating trust, building friendships, learning from one another, and opening the door for continued connection in the years ahead.

Our team helped begin relationships we hope will grow over time. We planted trees that will continue to grow, shared skills that can continue to be used, and created memories and friendships that we will carry with us long after returning home.

We went to Mongolia ready to serve, but we came home having received just as much in return through friendship, culture, generosity, adventure, and a deeper appreciation for the people we met.

Beautiful country. Beautiful people. An incredible team.

And a relationship with Mongolia that we hope is only beginning.