A young couple stumbled upon one of the hottest new travel trends around. The Rochester-based business, GoPhilanthropic, hopes to change the way travelers see the world.

Lydia and John Dean lived in France with their young children and ran a villa rental business.

The couple has been in the travel industry for 10 years.

"We feel disconnected when we travel from what's going on in these communities great projects," said John.

"We wanted to learn more about what was facing these regions and what was being done to help," said Lydia.

Lydia and John say they were both shocked by the lack of basic needs in many communities they visited.

That's when they decided to move back home to Rochester and launch a company called GoPhilanthropic.

"The people that we get are people who have arrived to a point in their lives where they're ready to give of themselves, they're ready to look outside of themselves and they're ready to do something positive in the world," said Dean.

GoPhilanthropic works with families to set up a trip that focuses on supporting social and economic development worldwide.

The couple helps create a schedule that connects travelers with projects unique to each region. Some of the trips have included bringing books to children in Vietnam, helping provide water to a community in South America and visiting with tribal women who sell their jewelry in exchange for supplies for others.

"We're exposed to incredible humanitarians and not people who necessarily have a lot of visibility in the world, but little gems out there doing amazing things, day in, day out, in a selfless manner for humanity."

Through their business, John and Lydia Dean are hoping to change the face of philanthropy, all in hopes of making a difference worldwide.

GoPhilanthropic