Orientation & First Thoughts

Well, I’ve made it to the 10 day mark in Ecuador. Things here have been very busy and this is my first chance to really spend some time at the cyber (internet cafe). To start with I had two great weeks of orientation in Ohio, my RdC group of 12 was also with about 25 Jesuit Volunteers International (JVI) who were all going to different parts of the world. It was great to meet such a diverse group of people! We also had some fantastic speakers, who spoke on topics from living in an intentional community to teaching and social work 101. One of my favorite parts though was a two day silent retreat to PA. It was a great opportunity to reflect on what we’d learned at orientation and the year to come.Now for some Ecuador stories. Our first week here all twelve of us were in one retreat house as we began to meet our community and visit the potential site placements. One of the perks of this in-country orientation though was that two of our Ecuadorian workers Diana and Aide would come over in the evening and teach us to cook Ecua food, I am definitely a huge fan of fried plantain. As for job sites, we have a variety of different opportunities ranging from healthcare to social work and teaching. Before I divulge where I ended up I would like to share one particularly inspiring story. A couple days ago we visited the Padre Damian House for people with Hanson’s disease (leprosy). One of the men there had not received treatment for the disease until it had severely progressed and due to this he had both of his legs amputated, was blind, missing all his teeth, and had sores all over his arms and hands. However, before we went into his room to visit him the director of the program Sr. Annie told us that despite his condition he believes that he still has an important role in the world and that he can bring happiness to people by singing. While I couldn’t understand the words he was using as he sang to us there was definitely an immense positive energy radiating from him. If this wasn’t a lesson in sharing your talents, whatever they may be, I don’t know what is.Now for the two placements I fell in love with. As RdC volunteers we have both morning and afternoon placements. The afternoon placements are three after school programs that RdC runs and also teaching at a private school that is for the wealthy in the morning and is for poorer students in the afternoon. At first I was fairly sure that I wanted to work at the program that would be near the house I’m living in and where the children are academically farther ahead and there is overall more structure. Then I visited Manos Abiertas (Open Hands) an after school program located in 28 de Agosto. 28 is an invasion community that was built on a trash dump, which they say is no longer a dump, but in reality dump trucks are still seen there on a regular basis. The children of 28 normally don’t have as much formal education and some even make money by sorting through the trash fields. However, their energy and spirit is clearly present from the smiles on their faces. I love everything about Manos, but the moment when I knew I wanted to be there was as I was reading Jorge Curioso (Curious George) to a couple children and as it was time for me to leave they said ok we’re on page 22, so don’t forget to come back and finish reading to us. While choosing job sites is a community effort and sometimes requires compromise, I was grateful that it worked out that I was able to be the director for Manos Abiertas and I will be working with one of our Ecuadorian workers Aide and two other volunteers Elyse and Danny.For the morning placement I was starting to worry a little because I hadn’t seen one that I really felt called to. Then on the last day of visits we went to Santiago Apostal. This is a school whose mission is to end child labor, but instead of just pulling kids of the street they have a very dynamic system that not only promotes educating kids but that includes bringing in parents and providing micro-business opportunities for parents to make more money so that the kids won’t have to work on the street. This includes teaching baking and cooking, and from that helping the parents, normally the mothers, to setup Panderias (bread stores) to sell their goods, they also have a sewing shop where the moms make clothes and purses, and this Saturday Miss Ecuador will be introducing a new line of clothes that will be made by the moms of the children of Santiago Apostal. All of this is very exciting, especially considering that the organization is only in its third year. So I am very excited to have the chance to work with and be a part of this organization.One final note, we moved into our house four days ago. I am living with four other girls in Antonio Jose de Sucre (AJS). This is a more developed community and has had RdC volunteers for around 15 years now. The seven other volunteers are in Arbolito about a mile and a half away. This community has only had volunteers for about 5 years, the community is much larger and there are still some fairly dangerous areas. But the upside is that the space we have there is a little bigger than the one at AJS. Overall, I think both communities are amazing and will have an exciting year together. I’ll try to give another update in a couple weeks once I have actually been at my placements for a while. Feel free to send me comments or e-mail and I will try to respond as quickly as I can. Hope all is well in the states.