rotary connection en route

02 mayo 2009

Continental flight 1037 newark to lima….dona teresa, ~75, with a broken arm sits on the aisle next to molly and me. Flight attendant anne comes by and helps dona teresa get comfortable and thanks me for helping her. From time to time anne checks in, like when she serves supper and dona teresa only wants pan y leche (she also ate the brownie which was ’muy dulce’). On a visit to the lavatorio, anne asked how dona teresa is doing and I relayed that there are some questions on the immigration forms that i could not help her with – and anne will have one of the native Spanish speakers help her.

Then, she told me some of her story: she loves being in peru – and seeing how the children help the elderly and the citizens put money in the hands of the poor (not many of them, but the tourists don’t do that). And the Canadian nun who started a school 26 years go…the working boys’ school…that involves the whole family in helping with the tasks of daily serving meals and maintenance for the children. The school requires every family member to come every day to help and then they can eat and shower. Instruction is 2 hours a day so the children have time to do the work to help support the family.

Anne has her own amazing story of life which has imprinted the preciousness of each day on her. She was the first child protective services worker in southwest seattle, then was a medical social worker in Colorado dealing with death and dying issues. She has family members who have died at very young ages and others who have had accidental injuries and death that have greatly impacted her attitude, her joy of living. And she was a widow who was by her daughter’s side doing volunteer activities to build a supportive community and her daughter caught the bug! Rotary recognized her daughter…and so the connection to the GSE team.

What a treat to have connected, see her her compassion and caring, and hear her stories. n

ps…anne is the second continental flight attendant who liked the "Good-Bye Polio Rotary fun meter". And the guys waiting for the flight thought that it needed to be at ‘medium’ level so that when we get to peru it can be on max – there’s got to be something that’s more fun than the airport?!

so, this photo shows the team refining the team's presentation while waiting in newark!

Tentative Itinerary

Today, we heard from our hosts in District 4460: we have a very tentative, completely subject to change itinerary!

• May 2: Arrive in Lima
• May 2 - May 7: Huaraz
• May 8 - May 13: Trujillo
• May 14 - May 19: Piura
• May 20 - May 26: Chiclayo
• May 27 - May 29: Chimbote
• May 30: Depart from Lima

Check out the map at left to see these cities on a map of Peru.

Thankfulness

"Blessed are those who give without remembering. And blessed are those who take without forgetting."

This afternoon, the District 7170 team met at Cornell Cooperative Extension for final preparations. We discussed our presentation, packing, attire, travel plans, and a million other details. It seems that there is so much to happen over the next four days for all of us!

Even though last minute preparations are occupying our thoughts, we took a moment to reflect on the generosity of the many organizations and individuals who have helped us get this far. We would especially like to recognize the following:

• Gary Herzig and the District 7170 GSE Committee: thank you for this amazing opportunity and all of the guidance you've given us!
• The Ithaca Cayuga Club (especially Chuck Broadhead & Doug Armstrong), Ithaca Sunrise Club (especially Christine Hausse), and the Ithaca Rotary Club "Noon Club" (especially Rich Spingarn): thank you for your endorsement and your sponsorship!
  
• Sergio Pedro, Department of Modern Languages & Literatures, Ithaca College: thank you for your crash course in español--you did a great job of presenting helpful and relevant topics!
• Museum of the Earth/ PRI (especially Warren Allmon, Executive Director): thank you for the fossils for sharing with our hosts!
• Ed Forman: thank you so much for graciously printing our team business cards!
• Gina Gammage-Sikora and Rebecca Heller-Steinberg, our talented team alternates: your involvement and support every step of the way has been invaluable!
• Nancy would like to thank George Gull and Bill Cadwallader.
  
• Gabriella would like to thank Ann Hales and Nicole would like to thank Charlie Brundza & Sue Willcox. We learned about Group Study Exchange through you, and without your advocacy we wouldn't be here!
  
• We would all like to thank our employers & colleagues for their support and for allowing us to take time away from Ithaca to develop professionally and personally. Thank you to the Department of Modern Languages & Literatures at Ithaca College, Cornell Cooperative Extension, John Snyder Architects, Ithaca Youth Bureau, and Tompkins Consolidated Area Transit.
• Finally, we would all like to thank our families and friends. Your love and support goes with us on our adventure!

We depart at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday, May 2. Perhaps our next dispatch will be posted from PERU!