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Inaugural ACE Class Checks in from Abroad
8/19/2016 6:00:00 AM | Rowing, Women's Lacrosse, Wrestling, Swimming & Diving, Athletics
DURHAM, N.C. – Several Duke student-athletes are abroad this summer as part of the inaugural class of the Rubenstein-Bing Student-Athlete Civic Engagement (ACE) program. The program provides one-time funding for Duke and Stanford student-athletes to engage in a three-week international service project.
Seven Blue Devils provided blogs on their experiences in India and China, which can be read below.
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World is One Family
August 17, 2016 | Michelle Staggers, Duke Women's Lacrosse, and Sammy Gallagher, Stanford Women's Swimming & Diving
When we first came to India, we immediately noticed the stark contrasts between our country and the one we would be living in for the next three weeks. The car ride to our home base was wild, the weather was moist and dusty, and the clothing was colorful and very conservative. The road was inhabited with cars, rickshaws, tuk-tuks, and a slew of animals. Food vendors lined the street, unfortunately alongside begging families. Buildings lined the sky — some magnificent structures, and some slowly crumbling.
Going into our second week of teaching, we started to realize the country that seemed so foreign to us upon arrival, now seemed familiar. We were beginning to grasp our bearings and felt confident navigating our way through the local markets. Realizing this, we decided we would teach our English classes the structure of Venn-diagrams. We educated the children on the process of comparing and contrasting differing subjects, so as to reach conclusions on how certain things may be alike, or dissimilar. We concluded the lesson by asking our classes to compare and contrast both of our countries.
Click here for Staggers's full blog post.
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7 Lessons Learned
August 16, 2016 | Jake Faust, Duke Wrestling, and Nicolette McNair, Stanford Women's Gymynastics
Over the past few weeks, we have been teaching English to children in grades 6-12. At first it was a little difficult, especially since we arrived a day late and missed a lecture about the culture and education system in India. The very first day we were thrown into the classroom with no introduction or background on the students and were expected to teach. Though it didn't take us long to find our rhythm and improve their English, the kids have done their fair share of teaching, too. We want to share the seven lessons we have learned from the children and community members since being here:
1. Being fortunate is all relative.
The values in India differ from those in the US in the sense that it doesn't matter how much material wealth you have or where you come from. The kids we teach live in slums right outside the school complex and yet they come to class with smiles on their faces, eager to learn and excited to spend time playing sports on the field with their friends.
Click here for Faust's full blog post.
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Many Facets of Diversity
August 16, 2016 | Michael Miller, Duke Men's Swimming & Diving, and Maddy Berkson, Stanford Women's Track & Field
Before this trip, we thought of India as a monolith. But during our stay here, and especially this past week, we've come to appreciate the incredible diversity of people and culture of this massive country. There are 28 states in India, many with their own distinct flavors. For example, even though the official language of India is Hindi, many of the states speak different dialects and different languages altogether.
On Monday, we took tours of different religious sites throughout New Delhi. Knowing that India is predominately Hindu, it was interesting to see different religions practiced so closely. On our first tour, we took off our shoes and walked through an archway onto the courtyard of the largest Mosque in India, Jama Masjid. We were captivated by the sheer size of the chandelier, domes, minarets, and the staircase leading up to the Mosque. The sight of 10 foreigners fascinated the locals, and we found ourselves as the subjects of many photographs.
Click here for Miller's full blog post.
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Shared Humanity
August 16, 2016 | Maria Sheridan, Duke Women's Swimming & Diving
This past Saturday our group traveled to Mother Teresa's Sisters of Charity House. This NGO focuses on serving mentally, physically and emotionally disabled members in New Delhi's community. Surrounded by huge red gates sits the house which caters to this community.
We walked around the complex and peered into a room with 30 cots, resembling that of a homeless shelter. We left the communal bedroom and were immediately met by a women who embraced each volunteer. The pure act of being squeezed on the shoulder prompted me with an understanding of the cruel reality I was about to face.
Click here for Sheridan's full blog post.
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A Drop in the Ocean
August 16, 2016 | Meagan Lew, Duke Rowing, & Alexa Romano, Stanford Women's Basketball
This past Saturday we took a break from teaching at Vidya and visited Mother Teresa's Sisters in Charity Organization. At the school, neither of us teach the same classes nor interact with the same kids, so this was an opportunity for us to share a new experience together.
Sisters in Charity is an organization that takes in and cares for anyone who needs food, shelter, medical treatment … or basically just a home. The specific location we went to cares for elderly and disabled men and women. The female volunteers and male volunteers split up, so we only interacted with the women. When we first walked into the room where all the women were sitting, we felt a little out of place. At school we are used to being warmly and enthusiastically greeted by the students, but here the women just stared blankly at us. It was a little uncomfortable because we couldn't speak to them so making that initial connection proved more difficult. We broke this barrier by smiling and going up to each woman, shaking her hand. We were told that the women just want human interaction and attention. Since we couldn't speak to them, we tried to connect with them by showing affection. We rubbed lotion on their hands and painted their nails, which brought smiles and dissolved the discomfort that we initially felt.
Click here for Lew's full blog post.
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A Bittersweet Homecoming
August 11, 2016 | Izzy Ruby-Hill, Duke Rowing
It is bittersweet coming home from China, and hard to say goodbye to everyone. I never thought that I would become so engaged in a culture that I knew little about and so excited to immerse myself. What I will take away from this trip will last a lifetime.
I am excited to have gone on this trip with a great group. I knew after meeting my fellow Duke student-athletes before coming to China that we would have a great time together, but I wouldn't know the extent. Upon meeting those from Stanford, I instantly knew it was going to be easy to share a great experience with them. In China, we'd spend most free moments together as a group. At CERS, we got to know each other when staying up at night playing cards in a gazebo outside and doing our daily workouts are together. In Old-Town, we'd shop together at night and hike up to the monastery and view the city from above.
Click here for Ruby-Hill's full blog post.
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The People We Meet
August 11, 2016 | Anna Quinn, Duke Women's Swimming & Diving
Throughout our time in Shangri-La, we had the opportunity to interact with many unique people of different backgrounds and experiences. At CERS, we learned from Drolma, Dr. Bill, and the Tibetan children who continued to surprise us each and every day. When we went into Old Town and began working at the farm and Compass, there was a new group of individuals with new stories and those who had overcome adversity that led them to their lives with Carol, the owner of Compass. One individual, Chris, struck me from the beginning with his story and passionate views toward giving to the community and serving for the pure purpose of helping others. During one of our breaks at the farm, I had the opportunity to talk and interview him, learning about his personal views and motives that continue to drive him to support himself and others around him.
Chris, a New Zealand native, is a veteran to the farm and Compass. After working three weeks with some friends at the farm last summer, Chris fell in love with the mountainous area of Shangri-La and serving the community through Compass. The family atmosphere of the group allowed him to grow and learn about himself. Chris was able to provide the team with skills and technology that were not yet acquired by the group. This year, Chris called Carol and Joe, wanting to come back to the farm once more to continue to serve and give to the local people. This time, Chris will stay at least a total of two years. While Chris is ready and open to work wherever is needed with technology or farm work, his main role revolves around English speaking groups that come through the café or the farm. Life here changes quickly and regularly and Chris is always up for the challenge and areas of need.
Click here for Quinn's full blog post.
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For additional information on the ACE Program, visit www.ace.duke.edu.
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