This past summer Donna\ntraveled to the Gambia in West Africa for four weeks as a volunteer with\nStarfish International, founded by WTB member Yassin Sarr. This initial\nsix-week program focused on educating and empowering 107 girls, and provided\nyearly school fees for the girls that successfully completed the six week\nsummer program. Donna also spent time offering teacher training at the Gambia\nschool for the blind. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Donna told us that she had missed the January 2009 WTB meeting when Yassin told of her foundation whose mission is to teach teen-age girls in Yassin\u2019s home village to improve their English literacy, to set goals, and to gain confidence. However, the minutes of that meeting inspired Donna to volunteer to join the project. Sabra Reichardt, also a WTB member, was the second volunteer. They lived in a rented house near Yassin\u2019s mother\u2019s home, with Sabra and Donna sharing a room, and Yassin, her husband, and their daughter sharing a room. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Donna illustrated her talk\nwith a succession of images of Gambia natives and many school-age girls with\nradiant smiles. Donna explained that this was the inaugural program for\nStarfish International, which will eventually open a school for local girls. The\nstudents were 13 to 16 years old. The volunteers helped the girls set\nmeasurable, attainable goals for themselves. An important aspect was to help\nthese girls, living within a strongly patriarchal system, to recognize the\ncontributions that women make to their society, to recognize that they are\nexperts in what they do and to build their confidence and ability to\nself-advocate. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sabra designed a project\nwhere the girls learned to make beaded bracelets. In a female recognition\nceremony, the girls gave the bracelets to their mothers or aunties. The\nemotions were so strong that the girls and mothers embraced openly, an unusual\noccurrence in this restrained culture. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The curriculum for the\nproject had been designed by Yassin, who as a native of this village\nunderstands its culture. The girls were taught the five qualities of a Starfish\nGirl that they will need to be successful. The first is Knowledge. In the past\ngirls have been raised to be mothers, and schooling has not been considered\nimportant. Indeed, some girls are taken out of school to work to earn $75 for\nschool fees for their brothers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The second quality is\nCourtesy, as contrasted with obedience. In the past, girls have been accustomed\nto keeping their eyes down and complying with parental and societal directives.\nInstead, Starfish Girls listen politely, think about what is best and share\ntheir thoughts politely. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The remaining qualities are\nNobility, Independence, and Service. One girl knew that she had become more\nconfident when she was able to tell a bus driver to stop the bus at the place\nshe needed. Other girls were starting to buy more personal items for themselves\nand not rely so completely on their families. A major focus was placed on\nService as each girl is required to give back to her community as a part of the\nStarfish International Program. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
On Thursdays, local female\nguest speakers spoke to the girls about how they had fought the odds to get an\neducation. The girls learned to have confidence that they had talents to offer\ntheir communities, and they could now recite in front of audiences of 200\npeople and speak up for themselves. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Toward the end of the\nprogram, the girls elected nine Council members from their midst. These girls\nselected assistants and the group engaged in discussions that led to decisions\nabout their goals for the rest of the year, after the Starfish organization\nreturned to the United States. The girls understand that they must repay their\nsociety for this educational opportunity by providing service, specifically by\nhelping in the local library. In the publicity for this meeting, attendees and\nWTB members had been asked to donate books for children of all ages, and\npossibly money to help pay for the shipping (\u201ca book and a buck\u201d). These books\nwill contribute to the first children\u2019s library in the country. In addition,\nthe girls decided that they would be involved in peer tutoring and community\nservice. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Donna read to us from the\njournal that she kept during her Gambia stay, while continuing to show\nprojected photos of the village and its people. It is a communal culture, with\nextensive sharing of food and tasks. The warmth and regalness of the population\nis pervasive; the people build extended families, they visit and welcome, and\nthey pray together. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Donna would awaken early on\nschool days to walk the village, armed with a few greetings in the native\nlanguage. Children would greet her, and women would point out their food\npreparations. Donna knows she is an oddity, hard to ignore and harder to\ncomprehend. Her fast pace and foreign clothes set her apart yet the villagers\nalways focused on their sameness and respected differences. A photo shows tall,\nblond Donna standing with short, dark-skinned villagers, all smiling. They\nrespected one another and would part with smiles. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Yassin had instructed Donna\nand Sabra not to give gifts during the visit, as that sets an imbalance in\nrelationships. Relationships based on smiles and greetings encourage the\nlowering of barriers and they are able to enter one another\u2019s lives. One woman\ngreeted Donna daily with her only English words, \u201cmy friend.\u201d Before leaving,\nDonna wanted to give some gifts: sweets, sports equipment, and school supplies.\nDonna had a favorite child, Tomalo, who always wanted to be near her, but spoke\nno English. She seemed to be a sad child. When others received parting gifts,\nTomalo\u2019s wish was translated to Donna. Tomalo wanted Donna to phone her on a\nneighbor\u2019s phone. Donna protested that they couldn\u2019t understand one another;\nTomalo made it clear that just Donna\u2019s voice would be enough to bring her joy. Donna\u2019s\nvoice was breaking with emotion as she showed a final photo of Tomalo with a\ndazzling smile. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Yassin needs land to build\nher school. This must be arranged by the female acalo, the land deeder, located\nat the President\u2019s Garden. Donna and Sabra accompanied Yassin on her walk to\nvisit this official. On the way, they approached an open-air hut where four\nwomen were cooking in a large pot. They were recognized by a Starfish mom,\nstirring the pot and wearing her bracelet given on female recognition day. Donna\nrealized that at the ceremony, the girls were wearing uniforms that obscure\nfinancial status, and the mothers were wearing their very best clothes and the\nsmiles of proud moms. Here in the fields, the poverty of the area was apparent.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Yassin and Donna passed many\ngroups of women resting in the limited shade of scattered trees. They stopped\nto chat with these people, addressing each of the ninety women, and taking\ngroup photographs to give equal respect and dignity to each person. Throughout\nDonna\u2019s month-long visit, the dignity toward each and every person was apparent\nand shared and directed toward visitors as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This volunteer opportunity\ngave Donna the eyes to see and the heart to feel humanity\u2019s brilliance. Other\nvolunteers are needed for the summer 0f 2010. Visit www.starfishinternational.org\nfor more information on how to get involved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/wtb.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/07\/Vonn_Lee_CU.jpg\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nOur second presenter was Vonn Lee<\/strong>. She is a native of\nLaos who came to this country in 1976. Vonn now works as a Registered Nurse,\ncoordinating surgery at North Medical Center. She described what she called\n\u201cthe journey of a lifetime.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Vonn\u2019s family are Hmong, an ethnic group from South China\nthat in the 1700s dispersed to Laos, Thailand, Myanmar, and VietNam. The\npopulation of Laos, Vonn\u2019s birthplace, is about six million and the people are\nprimarily Buddhist. Like the people of Gambia, education was only considered\nvaluable for boys, and girls were raised to marry and have a family. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Although Hmong are primarily farmers, they were recruited by\nthe CIA in the 1960s to assist America\u2019s guerilla war. When the United States\nwithdrew from Vietnam, the rulers turned on the Hmong, who were forced to flee.\nIn May 1975 Vonn\u2019s stepfather had crossed the Mekong River to Thailand to prepare\na place for the family, leaving her mother to arrange a boat crossing for\nherself and her children. Because it was monsoon season, the river was\nturbulent, and during their crossing water filled the boat. Vonn and three\nyounger siblings were rescued by a boat launched from Thailand, but her mother\nand three older siblings were lost. The remaining family lived in a refugee\ncamp in Nong Khai where there was not enough food and disease was rampant. At\nage eleven Vonn was now the oldest and responsible for her three younger\nsiblings. This experience inspired her to become a nurse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In 1976 Vonn\u2019s family was sponsored by a church in Berne,\nIndiana, and they lived there for awhile. However, by 1978 her family moved to\nChicago because it had more Hmong people. There she helped her community,\ntranslating for people at doctors\u2019 offices and clinics. Nursing became her\ninspiration. However, when Vonn was sixteen her step-parents arranged a\nmarriage to a good man from a good family. She acquiesced \u201cwhatever you think\nis best\u201d but was hurt that she hadn\u2019t been asked if she wanted this. Her major\ndistress, however, was that the man was from Syracuse and she cried because she\nhad to leave her family behind. An audience member asked Vonn about the success\nof the arrangement, and she said that her husband is a very good man whom she\ncame to trust, respect, and love. They learned how to love one another. When\npressed, she said that she will not arrange her three children\u2019s marriages,\nalthough her son is not happy with the dating scene and has told her that she\nshould choose for him!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Once Vonn was in Syracuse and living with her in-laws,\nagainst all Hmong tradition she wanted to continue her education. Her husband\nand in-laws supported her in this, but after high school, she was pressured to\nhave a family. She had a daughter and then attended Onondaga Community College\nnursing school while her in-laws babysat. Counselors said that her English was\nnot good enough, she would not pass state boards, she should not waste her\nmoney and time. Her husband, however, encouraged her and she graduated in 1987.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Since Vonn did not have a son, the family pressure returned, and she became pregnant two more times, with two sons. When they were grown, Vonn felt empty, so returned to school to complete her dream of a Bachelor\u2019s degree at Keuka Nursing, an adult accelerated program. One requirement was to do 140 hours of field work or spend two weeks on a medical mission. Vonn had heard of medical missions to Africa or South America, but not to Asia. Eventually her sister called her with information about Christian Missionary Alliance Church which sends medical groups to Laos and Thailand. At the end of a phone call in which the program was explained to her, Vonn said, \u201cSign me up!\u201d Immediately she had second thoughts about returning to the site of such sadness in her life, but at the same time she was excited.<\/p>\n\n\n\n All members of Vonn\u2019s medical team were Hmong, although some\nwere born in the United States, and did not speak the native language. Because\nthey were denied entry to Laos which actually needs more assistance, they were\nonly able to work in Thailand. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Vonn projected photos of clinics held by the group. One\ndelay was that the donated medications that they had arranged were detained, so\nthey used funds that had been donated to their mission to go into town to buy\nwhat they needed. Since medicines are unregulated, they had no problem\nacquiring drugs. One consistent problem was malnutrition of women due to lack\nof protein; women are care-takers and feed others before themselves. Vonn gave\nmany vitamin B shots while she was there. The group also offered several\nwell-child clinics. Venues varied, including an orphanage, a Buddhist Temple\nand Nakora Islam Church.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Vonn wanted to visit the refugee camp where she had lived,\nand the river that had taken half of her family. She found it difficult to\nvisit the camp although it now has beautiful signage and nice lawns. At the\nMekong River Vonn\u2019s legs were weak and her throat was tight. She laid flowers\non the water for her mother and paid respect to her family. She thanked her\nmother for taking them across the water to what became a better life. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Vonn\u2019s husband had accompanied her on the mission, and they\nvisited his cousin who had been in the last group to escape Laos.<\/p>\n\n\n\n An audience member asked what\nvoices tell her to hold on to her Hmong culture. Vonn responded that she\nfollows \u201cwhat is right,\u201d not a particular culture. However, her daughter is\nmore traditional than she is. Service is a very important value, and Vonn and\nher husband expect to join another medical mission in two or three years, with\nthe same church. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Vonn summarized her life lessons learned: First, life is\nfull of surprises and your plans may not work out. Second, have faith. Third,\ntake one day at a time. Fourth, there are wonderful people in this world. Fifth,\nlearn to swim; her three children are all lifeguards. Finally, take a chance on\nsomething new. She jumped into this trip and it was wonderful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Vonn ended with a traditional portrait of the medical group,\neach person in jewel toned native clothing and jewelry, and a quotation from\nauthor Amy Tan, \u201cIf you can\u2019t change your fate, change your attitude.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n In closing, all of the women present gathered in a large\ncircle, holding hands. President Gay Montague reminded us that the next day\nwould be the World Day of Peace, and read the following statement concerning\nWTB\u2019s desire for peace. \u201cWomen Transcending Boundaries extends our deepest\nsympathy and condolences to the people who have been victimized by violence in\nrecent weeks. We hold all who have experienced loss and who have been\ntraumatized in our thoughts and prayers, and we continue to grieve at the\nongoing violence against women, children and men in so many countries\nthroughout the world, including our own. In doing so, we renew our commitment\nto improving understanding among all people and to focusing on the common\nconcerns that unite us as we continue to create a more peaceful world. \u201c<\/p>\n\n\n\n In conclusion, Renee-Noelle Felice led us in singing \u201cGive\nUs Peace\u201d in three languages: Latin, Arabic and Hebrew: Dona nobis pacem,\nSalaam, Shalom.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" One woman told of traveling from Syracuse to The Gambia to work with Yassin Sarr-Fox’s educational projects, and a Hmong woman described leaving Laos for the US and then returning to Laos on a medical mission as part of her nursing education.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7497","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-programs",""],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wtb.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7497","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wtb.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wtb.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wtb.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wtb.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7497"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/wtb.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7497\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8903,"href":"https:\/\/wtb.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7497\/revisions\/8903"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wtb.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7497"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wtb.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7497"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wtb.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7497"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}