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January 27 Marked Global Volunteers' 25th Anniversary
It's often said that peace is a journey. At Global Volunteers, we believe that's true -- literally. Each year, our volunteers journey millions of miles across the globe to serve local people -- forming connections which foster peace through understanding and mutual respect. It's a bold people-to-people adventure!
The faces of these peace-wagers are diverse: presenting their humanity in all sizes, ages and in shades of red, yellow, brown, black and white. For local people in our host communities, these partnerships can be the most profound experience of their lives.
For many, the action of leaving their personal comfort zone of their family and homeland is the greatest leap of faith. And yet, when you struggle with the fear of the unknown, you open up to some of the greatest lessons in life: that we share hopes, dreams, struggles and accomplishments in common with others worldwide.
We founded Global Volunteers 25 years ago to provide you the greatest opportunity to gain this perspective while providing true service to others. I believe we've succeeded. Volunteers' poignant personal stories on our web site and blogs and in letters and phone calls all testify to the powerful change that occurs in peoples' hearts and minds. Please share your own stories, insights and photos with us as we mark this milestone in international service. We'll feature them in future issues of the LINK and on our web site.
Save this date:
Global Volunteers 25th Anniversary Gala - Friday, Dec. 11, St. Paul, MN |
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Students Create "Daily Life" Documentary in India
Three-time volunteer Thomas Barker recently worked with the students of SEAM (Southeast Asia Mission) in Chennai, India to create their own "real life" documentary on a Global Volunteers service program. Employing a method of instruction he developed two years ago on a Global Volunteers Cook Islands program, Tom taught the students how to storyboard, film and edit the video. Following are links to this inspirational video and his background on the project: Video on You Tube and The "Backstory"
I'm Tom Barker, a film maker and educator. This is the story behind the making of the movie "The Children of SEAM."
Stephen, the Global Volunteers India country manager, worked with the children before I arrived to get them to write their story in their own words. Stephen translated the stories written in Tamil, and sent them to me via email before I arrived in India.
On site, the students watched the movie I had made on how to make movies on my laptop computer. They quickly began the process of storyboards and script writing based on the compilations I had put together from their individual stories.
They are talented artists and put the words into pictures that would soon become moving images captured by the cameras I trained them to use. I gave each team of three a camera for shooting the scenes. I even engaged Global Volunteers handyman, Barabus, to build a makeshift movie light for the animation footage!
The color footage was transformed into black & white during editing. We used crayon tips for the bottle and part of an eraser for the glass. The actors are pin dolls with pipe cleaners for arms. The teams did the shooting of the scenes assigned to them right on schedule. There were a few retakes, but for the most part, the filming went smoothly! I did the final editing with my computer software. Our "premier showing" was on Friday of the second week of the program, The kids did it. They wrote the story, created the storyboards, filmed from the script, and narrated the film. It's their ideas, their words, and it's their movie!
Read Tom's reflections on the India blog
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Volunteers Help Establish Scholarships in Peru and Ghana
As true partners in development, our volunteers frequently approach us with ideas for continuing their service to host communities once they return home. In July, 2007, we collaborated with Peru volunteers Nancy Glassman and Barbara Lubran to establish a scholarship fund for PPA graduates who wanted to go on to college. The Peru Scholarship Program is featured on our web site and has given new educastional opportunities to Michael, Silvia and Rosa in Lima. This year, frequent volunteer Kathleen Ismail visited Senchi Ferry, Ghana and was similarly motivated to help the talented youth who have no means to continue their education after high school. She's initiated a fundraising effort to collect donations from her friends and relatives, and likewise, we've worked with the host community to establish a Ghana Scholarship Program. Following are her reflections on children who now dominate her daily thoughts:
"This past January 2009, I traveled with Global Volunteers to Senchi Ferry, Ghana; and, unlike any other place on the earth, the children and this village captured my heart.
Senchi Ferry is a clean, friendly and joyous village and the Queen Mother and Chiefs welcomed us with warmth and ceremony. No one asked for anything, but they offered us their generosity and wisdom. I grew to love and understand this community as we worked side-by-side during oppressively hot days to achieve the common goals that they want for their children. Their dreams are about health and education..they want their children to learn. They don't talk about cars or fancy houses. They talk about growing a mind. All the children want is to finish school so that they can find a fulfilling job that allows them to help their family and community. I know this. I talked to the children. While there, I had the distinct honor of teaching for over three delightful weeks. These beautiful children had no books, no paper, no crayons..all they had was a blackboard and a willing teacher. Yet, they were eager and bright and hungry for any scrap of knowledge I could pass along to their open and thirsty minds.
I learned that most of the children of Senchi Ferry would only attend school through eighth grade, as high school costs $300 to $500 per year. Since the average family income in this remote and poor community is $50.00 per month, you can see the financial barrier to higher learning that these youngsters face. Shackled with limited education comes the reality of a future of limited possibility and this breaks my heart. So, I am committed to raising enough money each year to ensure that all interested and qualified children of Senchi Ferry, Ghana can attend high school (qualified refers to the state's requirement of passing an entrance exam) and I am pleased to say that Global Volunteers is willing to partner with me to make this happen! Please view my new web site for additional information and photos or my You Tube video, or contribute directly to the Global Volunteers Ghana Scholarship Program. It's a wonderful "alternative" birthday, wedding, or holiday gift for someone you love!"
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Host Communities Note Milestones in Partnerships
We're celebrating the ten-year mark with our host community partners in:
Working in partnership with local people on long-term community service work projects is foundational to our relationship with host organizations worldwide. Our investments of volunteer service, financial support and international recognition are hallmarks of our commitment to this partnership.
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"We're links in a long chain of those who have come before
and will follow to help improve the lives of people around the world."
~ Bud Philbrook, Global Volunteers co-founder
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YOUR SUGGESTIONS ARE IMPORTANT TO US
Do you have specific topics you'd like to see in a future issue? Send us your ideas. Since 1984, we've worked alongside local people in every corner of the globe -- laying a foundation for peace through mutual international understanding. In mobilizing more than 25,000 short-term volunteers, we've learned valuable lessons about honoring local customs, methods and perspectives. We hope to share what we've learned with you.
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(c) Global Volunteers 2009 All content and images inclusive
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