5
A team of 13 from the U.S. and 3 South Africans are in South Africa celebrating Christmas with thousands… Here they sit after their third party of the day in Beaufort West.
8
“Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.” – Neale Donald Walsch
Dr. Julie Moss
Two teams of nursing students from USC Upstate’s Mary Black School of Nursing, led by Assistant Professor Moss, embarked on these trips designed to provide them with an opportunity to help meet the needs of people who live in extreme conditions and/or situations.
“Through these international trips, I can expose students to global health and a world outside the Upstate, even the United States,” said Moss. “Often, what they come back saying is ‘I want to give more’ either in this community or other places.”
In South Africa, Moss and a team comprised of 17 Upstate students and faculty, as well as two community participants, went to Cape Town and were able to work with counterparts in a certified nursing program there teaching sessions about diabetes and hypertension, as well as provide general health assessments for people in the community. The team also visited a private clinic and two public health centers seeing firsthand the significant need.
“In the clinics we visited, patients arrived for care early in the morning, standing in line all day waiting to see a nurse,” said Gigi Lattimore, a student participant. “Sometimes they were sent home without being seen and told to return the next day. And in the community health fair we conducted, people came from all over the community. For many, this was the only healthcare they received.”
In addition to the clinic visits, the Upstate team held an HIV Health Fair where they provided screenings for more than 200 people in one day. This was followed by visits to a local orphanage and an “informal settlement,” a title given slum areas, where participants worked with local healthcare workers from New Beginnings Development Center going door to door helping educate residents about tuberculosis.
“What surprised me most about working with the students at the New Beginnings program were the positive attitudes and amazing spirits,” said Kristina Kung, student participant. “Everyone was so eager to learn. One student I worked with listened so intently when I was teaching her how to take blood pressure. I thought I was confusing her, but after I explained it once, she picked up the blood pressure cuff and stethoscope and correctly took a reading practically on her first try! It took me weeks as a nursing student to perfect that skill.”
In Ecuador, Moss led the team of 18 Upstate students and faculty on a journey of comparisons and contrasts as they met with students and professors from Universidad de las Americas, local physicians and healthcare workers.
The team also had an opportunity to work in local kids’ clubs, provide assistance in local feeding programs and conduct health assessments in both cities and rural areas.
While everyone in Ecuador is guaranteed free health care, the team learned that it comes with conditions. Nurses, they discovered, are expected to be, more or less, the educators in terms of interacting with the people. The nurses, however, have learned to use this opportunity to make people aware of better health practices which can help minimize negative health conditions.
“Though the healthcare system is very different there, I was surprised to find out that the healthcare workers are very similar to the ones here in the U.S.,” said team member Kelly Pace, a 2010 Upstate graduate and registered nurse. “They are very hard workers and strive to put the patients at the center of their care.”
Overall, the Upstate students were intrigued, but they determined that it would be difficult, at best, to work in conditions with no real clinic and no supplies. However, there was no denying the gratitude of the people for any assistance that is available.
“The experiences I encountered while on this trip opened my eyes and heart to the people in a way that I never expected,” said Pace. “Whether it was playing with the kids, serving a meal, or checking their blood pressures, the people were always so happy. And these were people who were living in extreme conditions, conditions you or I would not enjoy. They made me realize that true happiness doesn’t come through material possessions but through time with family and friends.”
Nursing student, Hannah Kerr, agreed, as she noted, “I was able to see how my material possessions at home are insignificant in the bigger picture. Their gratification for a simple life showed me it’s not material possessions that make us happy.”
Of course, with any international travel there will always be some challenges.
“The language barrier between our group and the people we served was, by far, the greatest challenge,” said Kerr. “However, I considered it a ‘great’ challenge because it forced each of us to push ourselves out of our comfort zones. The people we were serving never let this barrier limit our interaction. They didn’t care that we couldn’t speak Spanish fluently; they cared that we made the effort to help them.”
Coordinated with Extreme Response International, a nongovernment humanitarian aid organization based in Atlanta, these international study trips were designed to provide participants an opportunity to see, experience and address some very real issues facing many of the less fortunate in both countries.
“We also had great support from faculty and staff across campus as we collected travelsize lotion, shampoo, toothbrushes and toothpaste for personal hygiene kits we shared with the children and families,” said Moss. “We are currently collecting these types of hygiene items for the trips in June and July 2012.”
Whether working to understand the needs of a city with 1.2 million people; an “informal settlement” of 40,000; children who live at the city dump or families in remote regions, Upstate students on both trips had their eyes opened to two very different parts of the world and two very different cultures.
“I realized that people are resilient and resourceful,” said Lattimore. “People living in desperate times sometimes take desperate measures. In order to help people of different cultures, it is necessary to monitor and adjust our interventions in a way that is useful given their circumstances and resources.”
One of the key lessons Moss felt both Upstate teams learned centered on understanding how to work with less; making do with what you have.
“Before I left South Africa, I found a book of photography showcasing shacks all around Cape Town. It was amazing to see beauty in something I initially thought of as not so pretty,” Kung added. “Because I was only considering the negative when we first visited the very poor township of Masiphumelele, I almost missed out on what was positive about that place.”
For Moss, the change in the students is exciting to see.
“They are no longer a round peg in a round hole, but a square peg in a round hole challenged to learn and grow from their experiences,” she said.
Experiences that now give them a broader view of what they are capable of, well beyond their comfort zone.
18
Music artist Jordan Anderson is preparing for a fourth trip to Ecuador, where he’ll lead music for volunteers and help with all the Christmas celebrations. He shares how the first three trips have shaped his world view.
Growing up you see a lot of pictures of poverty, images of kids who are hungry. But the first time I went to Quito was the first time I’ve seen it in person. It really impacts your heart when you go and see people who are hungry and don’t have much, and yet they somehow still have joy in their lives.
Last year we went with our daughter Lorelei. Having a child changes your perspective on other children. It’s interesting. There’s no difference between babies when they are born. It just happens that they are born where they are born into different circumstances. That creates a lot of thankfulness on our parts, but also we more clearly see the needs of children who don’t have much and probably never will. So anything small thing we can do for them, we want to do.
The thing that always touches me is visiting the children’s day care at the Zambiza Dump. I probably get more out of it than the kids do. They are so willing to jump in your arms and be loved on. I think it’s cool when you see people on your team who are more reserved, who keep to themselves, and during the course of the week you see them slowly start to reach out to other people.
I always enjoy going to Remanso de Amor (Haven of Love) and the school there. Having taught before, it draws me in. On one hand you have families, kids, broken homes, and poverty. But around them is incredible scenery. It’s like two different worlds. You have the poor with beautiful mountains in the background.
While these Christmas celebrations are going on, a lot of people forget about the situation they are in, whether that’s a job situation or their family life, or just not having anything. In America, we might try to get away from people with such needs. But they keep getting in lines at the parties because they know we’re there to help them. As much we’re there for them, it’s a huge impact on me personally, being able to serve them. Running a game for two or three hours straight is difficult physically, but the joy far outweighs it.
The first year we went to Quito, I spotted an American volunteer who was kneeling down next to a young girl he had befriended. He had spent a lot of the day with this girl, helping her play the games. She had gone through the food line and he was meeting her as she was walking out. For some reason I felt what he was feeling. And then he just started crying and he hugged her. He looked at me out of corner of his eye. He saw me looking at him and I started tearing up. He looked at me knowing that I saw what just happened, and that moment has always defined what I feel for these kids - to be willing to spend time with them and love on them. You can’t stay with them, but they have a special place in your heart.
I love seeing ER’s partnerships with other people around the world. ER’s mission is to team up with partners as long as the partner needs. And when that partner is sustainable, ER will step away without asking for any honor or glory from it. That’s the way it should be.
To listen to Jordan Anderson’s music, visit www.facebook.com/jandersonmusic.
25
True Grit: Extreme Needs Impact Joe and Julie Wendel
Like many people, Joe and Julie Wendel statistically comprehended the humanitarian needs in other countries. However, the Noblesville, Indiana, couple was busy raising two sons, running a successful business, and enjoying many fulfilling relationships with friends.
They were happy to help support people like Ruth Arteaga, a friend of Julie’s for 25 years, who is on staff with Extreme Response (ER) in Quito, Ecuador. The Wendels also knew Paul and Susan Fernane, who serve in Ecuador through ER.
Then Julie agreed to join a volunteer team headed to Ecuador to help throw Christmas parties in some impoverished areas of Quito.
The stories of Ruth, Paul and Susan became more than just stories. They became personal and very real. They had their concepts of overseas volunteer trips turned upside down. Julie has returned to Ecuador twice more to volunteer.
“Prior to going on my first ER Christmas team trip, I had a lot of preconceived ideas on what it meant to help people, such as digging wells and building buildings,” Julie Wendel said.
“Volunteering through Extreme Response was the perfect first volunteer trip. There is so much interaction with the people you are helping. You see the grit of their lives. The trip makes it more personal and impacts your perspective.
“Christmas at home in Indiana has not been the same,” she added. “Our involvement with Extreme Response gives us a different view of our stuff. We’ve been challenged to live and give sacrificially.
“We have focused our giving on needs-based ministries that focus upon orphans, widows and children who are marginalized in societies throughout the world. ER is a critical and trusted partner in these efforts. We are on a giving journey with real goals that we are challenged and burdened to reach.
“Leader Mundial (ER’s leadership training arm) has been one of the most influential things in our lives. Joe has been impacted deeply by the chance to pour into leaders in other parts of the world. He Skypes regularly with Gabriel Kpodi, who leads a school for refugees in Ivory Coast.
“One of the things we love about Extreme Response is that it is small enough to know everyone and, as a result, there is a naturally higher level of accountability. From a donor perspective, it’s exciting to be part of an organization filled with people we love caring for people we want to help. At the same time we are provided opportunities to get to meet those we want to help and love them with more than just money.”
by Tim Fausch
11
Ana Pallikan Discovers Silent Killer
Ana Pallikan never dreamed of going to Ecuador. But her friends kept talking about their positive experiences there, so she agreed to join a team of volunteers to help throw Christmas parties in several impoverished areas of Quito.
“Julie Wendel is a forced to be reckoned with,” Ana said, referring to her friend and trip recruiter. Ana and Julie attend the same church in Fishers, IN, so there was little chance of escaping the invitation.
Ana’s team from Indiana joined a large international team in Quito. The volunteers proceeded to put on seven Christmas parties in five days at community centers, a retirement home, and the Zambiza Dump.
The team spent many hours preparing crafts, assembling gift bags for children, and preparing food for distribution. The parties were high-energy, with games, face and nail painting, and family photos.
Ana said she the trip was eye-opening.
“I really noticed the immense needs,” she said. “I don’t know how much food the people have, but the gratitude they show is tremendous. What we would consider a little, they consider a lot.
“I was surprised how people can find joy in joyless situations,” she added. “It speaks to how we let materialism in the U.S. blind us.
“This trip was a reality check. Our wealth is a silent killer.”
by Tim Fausch
26
21
Chris Roina Challenged to Take Ecuador Lesson Home to California
Chris Roina could spend his vacation time at the beach or mountains of California. Instead, Chris has made two trips to Ecuador to help throw parties in several impoverished areas of Quito.
He returned home to Santa Maria, CA, with some powerful insights.
“I was thinking about the challenge to love my neighbor,” Chris said. “Are people in Ecuador my neighbors? It doesn’t seem like it. But when you are standing in Quito, loving on people and serving them, the cultural and language barriers don’t exist anymore.
“You have kids running up and hugging you even though they don’t even know you. You see the power of love to touch and change people’s lives.
“That does something to you and makes you want to be a part of it,” he said.
“One of the things I’ve been raised to believe is that if you’ve been given much, much is required. I feel I have a responsibility to give back because I have the resources.
“This morning, I got a hot shower. Most of these people (at the parties) didn’t. I have a lot of give and it’s pretty selfish if I don’t.
“The town I live in, Santa Maria, California, is actually quite similar to Quito, not only in weather, we also have a very high Hispanic population. I was thinking I should learn to speak Spanish so I can come to Ecuador, but I realized I should learn Spanish to speak with people who live in my own neighborhood. I can reach out and be a part of their lives as well.
“It’s funny how you have to go thousands of miles to realize some of the same opportunities are in your backyard.”
Chris said he was impacted deeply by the Christmas party at Pan de Vida, a community center that reaches out to street kids and homeless adults.
“Pan de Vida was amazing. There is just so much joy in the place, in spite of whatever hardship was going on.
“Even the power of a child’s heart – they are just so happy and joyful. You can’t help but catch that as well. It touched my heart. I hurt from smiling.”
by Tim Fausch
7
Canadian Teen Lauren Moyer Expected Tears, Found Joy in Ecuador
Most teenagers are focused on themselves and their friends. After all, self-focus is one of the signatures of being a teenager.
But when people from her church in Simcoe, ON, Canada, returned from a humanitarian trip to Ecuador in 2009, Lauren Moyer was inspired. She listened to their stories and wanted to join them on the next trip.
So in 2010, the 17-year-old Moyer became one of the youngest volunteers to go to Quito, Ecuador. For a week in early December, Lauren joined an even larger international team that helped throw Christmas parties in several community centers and the Zambiza Dump.
The teams ventured into impoverished areas of Quito to work with leaders who were passionate, but under-resourced. Lauren and the other volunteers provided the energy and help.
They participated in five Christmas parties in five days, serving thousands of people. In addition to providing games, face and nail painting, and family photos, the volunteers distributed food staples to the adults and gift bags to the children.
“When I first signed up to go, I thought it would be sad,” Lauren said. “I thought I’d be crying a lot. But instead, I’ve experienced real joy.
“Everyone here is so happy and polite,” Lauren said. “They have so little but are so happy. They are less greedy. I volunteer at an after-school program in Simcoe and the kids are never this polite.
“Coming here has helped make me see more clearly people who are in need. I am hoping to change the way I see things in my life. It’s been a lot of fun. I had a great time in Quito.”
by Tim Fausch
27
Chester Van Ness Collects Junk to Help Orphans
Chester Van Ness has a weird hobby. He picks up junk – mostly scrap metal – at businesses located near his home in Scotland, ON, Canada.
Some guys pick up scrap to make a few bucks on the side, maybe to help pay for hockey tickets or a nicer truck.
Chester recycles scrap because it helps pay for a few basic necessities for the kids at the Montanida Verde Children’s Home in Monta, Ecuador. It is run by the Por Amor Foundation, a partner supported by Extreme Response.
The idea for the recycling came during a discussion among the youth of the church Chester attends. The group wanted to become involved in giving back to those in real need, but did not have the financial means to do so.
“I told them if they were willing, they could ask for scrap to be dropped off at my place and help process it, then I would recycle it for the cash,” Chester said. “The idea blossomed and now if the youth feel the call to participate in something like Extreme Response, they have a means to do so.”
Chester hasn’t always been into recycling scrap metal. The idea came to him after returning from one of the four or five (he’s lost track) trips he’s made to Ecuador. He became determined to do more after seeing the orphanage’s lack of food, clothing, and educational supplies.
Chester has seen poverty in Canada too, but the magnitude and lack of options in Ecuador caused him to make some life-changing decisions.
“Children who come to the orphanage have no parents, or parents who cannot take care of them. Often, they were living on the street,” he said.
“The newest child there is two and one-half years old. Her name is Diana. She was beaten by her family and made to sleep outside at night. Whether or not she ate depended on whether she could scrounge food.
“It’s a pretty sad situation - heart tugging. Diana is such a beautiful child, ready to love on anyone willing to pick her up and hold her. I could have very easily put her in my suitcase and taken her home,” Chester joked.
“I have a great appreciation for the house parents. They give the children stability in their own country and culture. It’s better to give them a hand up in their own country.”
Witnessing the extreme needs first-hand in Manta and Quito, where Chester and other volunteers help throw parties in impoverished communities, has impacted his family profoundly.
“Working with Extreme Response has made me realize how important it is to give back to the world, not just people in my own country. I now try to do something in my country and other countries. It has caused my wife and I to look hard at what are truly our wants versus what are truly our needs.
“I was encouraged on my recent trip by the new community leaders that ER has come alongside and partnered with. That’s huge for me to see ER partner with on-the-ground organizations indigenous to the area.
“The leaders are the shepherds of their flocks. They are so passionate about helping their people. I have seen such a change in what we have been able to help them with in order to accomplish their vision. I don’t think we would have had the same ability to achieve what has been achieved without these partnerships.”
by Tim Fausch
20
Ecuador Trips Improve Michigan Couple’s Vision
While Dan and Karen Brown’s sight hasn’t actually changed, they now see the world more clearly. They attribute their improved vision to trips to Ecuador through Extreme Response. Dan has made three trips; Karen two.
The trips have impacted them powerfully and broadened their view of how they can serve others. Dan has lead teams from Michigan to Ecuador the last two years.
“My first visit was as part of a construction team to El Refugio,” Dan said. “I had never been outside the U.S. and Canada.
“One of our tasks was to work to enlarge the school yard. It was difficult to see the poor condition the school was in, even after we finished.
“I came away from that trip with a huge vision for what could happen with enough manpower. Visualizing children in an improved building was exciting to me.
“Being in construction, this kind of work was easy for me. I love hard work and I love what I do. When you add in the people and see the joy in their hearts, it makes it so much fun.”
“I was impacted by the love and passion the Quito pastors show to the people they serve,” Karen said. “They are there serving their communities day in and day out. I don’t know how they do it.
“It was so precious to see someone come into the parties with hurt on their face and then start smiling,” she added. “You hear about pain and suffering in the world, but to see it first-hand makes me realize my suffering is nothing.”
“Extreme Response uses these parties to demonstrate love for the people, to help bring them joy, changing lives one at a time,” Dan said.
“It was difficult to come back to the U.S. and listen to people whining over the wrong color tile in their $30,000 kitchens,” he added. “It’s a reality, and that’s OK, but there are huge needs in the world.”
by Tim Fausch
