End of summer

As the summer comes to an end, I am very thankful for my internship with the Florida Baptist Children's Homes this summer. I have been given the opportunity to learn from a wide-range of experiences from May-August.

As you read my blog, you may want to start at the bottom and work your way up, since the blog is in descending chronological order. Thank you for taking the time to read about my internship and trips to Guatemala and Honduras.

International Experience Reflection

Discuss at least two encounters/experiences that you believe arose primarily as a result of your nationality, race, gender, socioeconomic status (real or perceived), or education.

While working with the children in Guatemala, particularly on my first trip, I had funny experiences because of my blonde hair. Many of the younger children had not seen anyone with blonde hair before, and those who had still thought I was an anomaly. They would call me “rubia,” which is “blonde” in Spanish. The babies, especially, found enjoyment in pulling my ponytail.

Another experience I had due to my race was when I made lunch with the children waiting to be seen for the medical clinics on my second trip to Guatemala. Because there were so many sandwiches to make, I made peanut butter and jelly everyday. Most of the children had never had PB&J before, but they devoured them as soon as they tasted them. To explain to the other children where they could get their sandwiches, they would point to me and say “gringo.”

Identify several pre-conceived notions that you had about the country/culture you visited and describe experiences that either served to confirm or challenge these notions.

Before going on my first trip to Guatemala, I was nervous about interacting with the children and adults because of my limited knowledge of Spanish. However, I found that everyone I worked with was very tolerant of Americans who did not know Spanish, and they were patient, eager to understand what you were saying. This gave me the confidence to use what little Spanish I did know to convey what I was trying to say. They would look at my hand gestures, facial expressions, etc. to comprehend me.

Another preconceived notion that I had before going on my second Guatemala trip was that the locals would not have much access to health or dental care. This proved to be very true, and I experienced this sad reality during my work with the dental clinic. Although the clinic was originally only for children of the malnutrition centers in the San Juan area (due to limited workers, space, and time), families began seeking treatment too. Instead of turning down their requests, we first saw the children then helped family members who were in pain and needed immediate attention. Most of the children, and even some mothers, we saw had never been to a dentist before. Since the clinics were free, we had patients lining up outside the door before we even arrived at the clinic at 8:30am. Our system for seeing patients was based on numbered cards that they received at the door, designating whether they were here to see the dentist, doctor, and/or eye doctor. However, since several other people in the town of San Juan wanted medical attention, patients began switching numbers or making up cards with their own numbers in order to be seen. We treated as many people as we were able to a day, taking only a 30 minute lunch break, but it was difficult knowing how many people wanted the free medical care.

My last preconceived notion before each of my trips concerned the children I would be working with. I expected them to be, and would have definitely understood if they were, downtrodden and depressed or angry due to their circumstances. Many were malnourished, orphaned, and all lived in poverty. However, the children were joyful, playing games with each other, just like children I babysit in the U.S. They did not seem to have any concept of their poverty, having only know their surroundings for their whole lives. Their contentment was a sharp contrast to spoiled children in America who complain if they do not have the newest videogame.

Guatemala Aug 1-8

This was my last trip with my internship, and I returned to the same malnutrition in San Juan, Guatemala that I worked at in May. I was excited to go back and see some of the children that I had grown to know at the beginning of the summer. It ended up, however, that the four children whom I had gotten to know the most, were healthy enough to return home to their families. Even though I was not able to tell them goodbye, I was very happy to know they were with their families again. A blog from the trip can be found at http://fbchinternationalchildcare.blogspot.com/. Videos from the trip can be seen at http://vimeo.com/6076492 - this site includes one serious video of our experience as well as one "untold story" video.

This trip to Guatemala was a very different experience than my last one since it was primarily for medical clinics. Although I have no interest in medicine, the dental clinic needed a volunteer, so I spent the week as a dental assistant. The first day I was very queasy after seeing all of the blood from the teeth extractions, but I came to really enjoy working with the dental team throughout the week. We pulled over 150 teeth and cleaned about 50 children’s teeth (as well as teaching their mothers proper dental care). It was difficult to hold down screaming kids who had never been to a dentist before and needed several infected teeth pulled. However, I knew our work was for a better good.

Examining a patient's teeth

Working in a dental clinic was definitely out of my comfort zone, but I am so thankful for the experience. Coming to Guatemala, I did not know the capacity to which I would be serving. However, I went in being open to wherever help was needed – little did I know, I would be seeing the most blood out of anyone on the medical clinic team! However, as I came to know the patients’ stories, the blood did not bother me because I knew we were helping to prevent or relieve serious infections, tooth decay, and pain. It was very eye-opening to work with mothers who were younger than me and brought three children to the clinic. Also, many mothers did know how to brush their children’s teeth, making me appreciate my frequent dental trips growing up. For two particular four-year-olds, we had to pull seven teeth out of each because their mouths were so infected. It was extremely difficult to hold the children down as they screamed and did not understand why we were causing them pain. We tried to teach their mothers not to put their babies to bed with bottles and to brush their children’s teeth every night. At points it was overwhelming, knowing all of the teeth we couldn’t clean and how limited our capabilities were in a make-shift dental clinic. However, helping any number of mothers learn dental care was well worth it.

Research/Internship Reflections

What are the key questions being addressed by the research/organization for which you worked and why are they important?
During my internship, I will be analyzing the organizational arena in which the Florida Baptist Children’s Homes operates in order to develop an internship program for 2010 and develop new communication avenues by utilizing the internet. These projects are important in order to keep the Florida Baptist Children’s Homes up-to-date on technology. Furthermore, I will be interacting with the children they serve, both in Florida and internationally. This aspect of the internship is important because it is rewarding and is something I am passionate about.

What activities will you complete in order to fulfill these objectives?
In order to fulfill my internship objectives, I will completed the following tasks:

• Development of an Internship program for 2010
  1. Development of the program and all documentation needed for an effective program
  2. Time line for the program
  3. All communications for the program
• Writing journalistic publications and other communication tools for the web site
• Technology Project
  1. Research and develop new communication avenues
  2. Blogging design and development
  3. Implementing the use of Facebook
• Provide support of various office tasks
• Help in tracking and supporting Mission Backpack, a school supply and backpack drive for disadvantaged and orphaned children in Florida and around the world
• Develop an awards program to recognize grassroots organizations in Florida
• Be in a commercial for Florida Baptist Children’s Homes annual Mother’s Day Offering fundraiser
• Travel on three mission trips during the internship and participate in the Florida Baptist Children’s Homes annual summer camp, Camp of Champions
  1. May 16-23, 2009 to Guatemala
  2. June 16-19 Camp of Champions in Florida
  3. June 22-28, 2009 to Honduras
  4. August 1-8, 2009 to Guatemala

What did you learn about the population/clients served by this organization? Discuss the potential impact – positive or negative – of the work you performed/observed on a particular population.

Working with the FBCH provided me with the opportunity to interact with a variety of populations that the organization serves. In the US, work is mainly targeted to serving children living in the children’s home, whether this entails fundraising, donor relations, or direct services for the children. By interacting with the children at summer camp, I learned that they were not afraid to talk about when they last saw family members, about their father losing his job, or their life at the children’s home. However, they did not want to openly discuss the scary struggles behind being taken from their homes due to abuse or neglect. I learned that these children need a reestablished sense of structure. It is important for them to know when their next meal will be, to feel safe and secure in a bathroom, and to be rewarded for undertaking assigned responsibilities. The social workers and house parents who interact the most with the children informed me of these needs, which result from living in a broken home. Although it is desirable for children to be able to live with their parents or other family members, often this is not a good situation for the children. By working at the summer camp with the children, I saw the positive impact that a stable environment has on children. For instance, one girl in 11^th grade eagerly spoke to me about her dreams of going to law school. She wanted to hear about my experience at college, and why I am passionate about working with nonprofit organizations. Other children were filled with hope due to a new found spirituality in going to church and Bible studies. Furthermore, the house parents have rules for the children, but they try to teach the children that these boundaries are not restrictive but are for protection, preventing children from rebelling.

On an international front, the FBCH serves children in malnutrition centers and orphanages in Guatemala, Honduras, Russia, and Romania. Each of the children in these countries has different needs, since each comes from various cultures and backgrounds. By directly serving children in Guatemala and Honduras, I learned that it is very common for families to have up to ten children. Therefore, in serving the children and trying to nurse them back to health, it is just as important to serve the families of the children. Teaching proper dental care, hygiene, and birth control can help prevent families from having too many children that they do not have the means to care for. However, I learned that rather than directly stating changes that families need to make, they learn more by example. For instance, instead of explaining all of the reasons why Americans give their children baths each day, Guatemalan caretakers in the malnutrition center did not start giving regular baths to the babies until they saw us washing them every day. I learned that it is much better to serve through example than coming in as an American who knows everything.

General Reflections

Of the myriad of options available, why did this particular experience appeal to you?
In pursuing this experience, I hoped to gain insight into a not-for-profit organization by working as an intern. Since I want to pursue nonprofit management after graduating, this experience has allowed me to work in a nonprofit setting both in the organization and in the field. Since I have never visited a developing country before, I was also excited about the opportunity to travel to Guatemala and Honduras. This traveling will enable me to gain first-hand knowledge of the hardships and lifestyles in these countries. Also, I will be completing my internship duties both in the United States and in other countries, providing me with a perspective of non-profit organizations that I would not have received otherwise.

What do you know about yourself now that you didn’t know prior to this experience?

These experiences have given me a lot more courage and confidence. Prior to my trips to third-world countries, I was a little apprehensive about what I would encounter. However, I have learned that my compassion for the people I am serving vastly covers any experience that would be out of my comfort zone. I was provided with a confidence that I wanted to help others despite uncomfortable situations for myself – like having no running water or dealing with a lot of blood.

What impact will this experience have on the short-term (class selection, major, minor) and long-term choices you will make regarding your education?
Short-term, I am seeking to gain experience in the nonprofit sector in order to acquire knowledge and skills about management and the nonprofit environment. This experience will also help me present myself to future employers since I will be able to relate my duties as an intern to my HOD coursework. Also, this internship has helped to confirm that I want to pursue nonprofit management after graduation, providing a first-hand look into what could be my future career. In the long-term, this internship will provide me with once in a lifetime opportunities to travel to countries and serve. An ongoing goal of mine is to give back to the community, which this internship allows me to do. Furthermore, I have never done service work internationally in third-world countries, and in the long-term I think this experience will shape my world view and allow me to grow as a person.

How have your career/graduate study plans been affected by this experience?

Because of my experience in Guatemala and Honduras, I recognize the importance of international relations. I also have a desire to learn a foreign language, most likely Spanish, because of my travels. However, the internship aspect of my summer has emphasized that I am passionate about nonprofit and service organizations, fueling my desire to study these types of organizations.

Honduras June 22-26

My second international trip with FBCH was to Renacer, Honduras. There were six of us on the trip, and we spent the week at an orphanage there. To read about our entire experience, visit the blog at http://fbchinternationalchildcare.blogspot.com/. Our purpose of the trip was to help increase their garden in order to provide food for the orphanage. By the end of the week we had hoed land, cut grass with machetes, bought 60 fruit trees (and began planting them), and planted 1,000 onions. It was a lot of hard work in the hot sun, but the afternoons and evenings were spent playing with the children at the orphanage. We were supposed to stay in Renacer until the 28th, however we left early due to political unrest in Honduras. We got news that the airport had been shut down because of a poll that was taking place on Sunday, which was the cause of the unrest. The Honduran president lost all support of the military as well. Thankfully, the airport reopened on Friday, and we were able to fly back to Miami. Although we were supposed to return on Sunday, we are blessed that we left Honduras early. On Sunday, the Honduran president Manuel Zelaya was kidnapped from his home and taken to Costa Rica, and an interim leader Roberto Micheletti was put in charge. (Go to http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124628267418867961.html# to read more about the situation.) Even though we returned home early, the experience of working in the fields was humbling, and it was a joy to spend time with the children at the orphanage as well.

We spent the afternoons playing with the children at the orphanage

The three girls of the trip showing our muscles from hoeing the fields

Working in the fields during the day was extremely difficult, augmented by the fact that it was 90 degrees and sunny, and we did not have running water. Our hard work was definitely a lesson, and it made me appreciate the conveniences of home, such as flushing toilets and showers. Although the physical labor was more intense than I had expected, it was equally rewarding and humbling to spend the day working in the fields. We were able to get to know a farmer named Will, who taught us in Spanish how to properly prepare the land and make the beds to plant onions. Will worked a lot faster and more skillfully than us, but he appreciated our willingness to help the orphanage. Watering the 1,000 onions that we had planted by the end of the trip was very gratifying.

However, working in the fields was also humbling. Children from the orphanage would walk by us on their way to school and shout “Hola” to us. The orphanage’s director tried to instill in the children that they needed to excel in school or they would have to do grueling farm work for the rest of their lives. I felt out of my comfort zone as I watched others attend school, and I worked the fields. It definitely made me very thankful for my opportunity for education.

Furthermore, our hard work during the day made us all the more eager to play with the kids in the late afternoons and evenings once they returned from school. Whether giving piggy-back rides, pushing them on the swings, or shooting baskets with them, my heart went out to the children at the orphanage. As an only child, I am very close to my parents, and I cannot imagine growing up without their love and support. It was a wonderful opportunity to be able to show the children my love, through planting them food for the orphanage and spending quality time with them.

Guatemala May 16-23

My first international childcare trip with the Florida Baptist Children's Homes was to Guatemala. There were seven of us on the trip, and we spent the week working at a malnutrition center in San Juan. We helped repaint the building and put in new soffits, and we spent a significant amountof time playing with the children at the center. I blogged during our trip, which can be read at FBCH's international childcare blog site (http://fbchinternationalchildcare.blogspot.com/).

There were so many memories from the trip, but I had some particularly memorable experiences with two children, Juanita and Elwin.

Me playing dress-up with Juanita and Christina

Juanita is an eight-year-old, whom I met the first day when she ran outside in her plaid school uniform, eager to show me her schoolwork. In addition to being the oldest, she is also one of the children who has been at the malnutrition center the longest, having been abandoned by her parents at the center (as many of the children there have been).

However, instead of mourning her circumstances, she uses her seniority to be a role model for the other children. Although only eight, Juanita acts like an older sister, taking younger children to the bathroom, playing games with the other girls, and watching out for the other children. Gratitude for her schooling exudes from her, and she completes her homework each day with diligence and delight. Whether caring for the other children, wanting to help volunteers with repairs around the center, or excelling in her role as a student, Juanita lives each day with immense joy.

Juanita particularly looks after Christina, who is a typical, stubborn four-year-old. One afternoon when Christina was yearning for attention (probably because she never received any from her parents), Juanita took me by the hand to play with them. We went into a storage room, full of clothes donations that had been sent to the center. We spent a couple of hours playing dress-up and laughing. Despite the language barrier, I was able to understand the joy in Juanita's and Christina's eyes. According to the world’s standards, these girls should have been depressed, downtrodden, defeated – yet they were smiling and joyful. Juanita considered it a privilege to attend school during the morning and watch after the younger ones in the afternoon. She taught me to be thankful for any opportunity, large or small.

Me spending time babysitting twenty toddlers

Elwin tickling one of the younger children to make them laugh

Elwin is another one of the oldest children. When our team first arrived at the malnutrition center, he was reluctant to talk to or play with us. I learned that when he was brought to the center a few months before, he would sit on his bed, crying all day, and refusing to interact with any of the other children. However, Elwin began warming up to us, and I connected with him at a particularly hectic period of my third day. During this time, I was extremely busy watching about twenty toddlers, frantically taking some to the bathroom, while others were climbing on chairs and falling over. With at least three in tears at any given time, Elwin followed behind me whenever another child started crying. Recognizing that I needed assistance calming everyone down, he helped cheer the younger ones up by tickling them and making them laugh. It would have been understandable for Elwin to remain on his bed all day, crying about his dismal circumstances. Yet instead he broke out of his reserved, sad self and wanted to help the other children be joyful again too. Elwin’s desire for the other children to smile was a powerful lesson to me to smile in the face of adversity.