July 22, 2009

Dear Friends,

2009-2010 YAV team in Guatemala, left to right: Allie Naskret, Celeste Mason, Jane Atkinson, Hanna Kim, Anna Hill, and Callie Vandewiele during a retreat at the beach.

Living in a household with a turkey that prefers laying her eggs in your bed; riding a 15-person public mini-van to work with 25 other people; participating in evening devotionals with a group of visiting North Americans and hearing their revelations of how their lives are intimately connected to the lives of Guatemalans; cooking a Thanksgiving dinner for your host family’s whole extended family from scratch with a wood-fired oven; traveling to villages only accessible by an hour’s walk to visit women who weave some of the oldest known patterns in Guatemala and who can tell you how the abstract figures represent stories from the time of the Spanish conquest. These are some of the experiences of this year’s group of Young Adult Volunteers, who finish their service this August. 

The YAV program’s slogan is “A year of service for a lifetime of change.” These are the folks who have completed their year of service.

Hanna Kim, from Michigan, supported a local church’s lunch program for elderly people with low incomes who wanted a nutritious meal and community.

Celeste Mason in English class with her Maya Kakchiquel elementary school students.

Celeste Mason, a teacher from Pennsylvania, used her training at a school that attempts to incorporate Mayan cultural values into education, such as sitting in circles and designating new student leaders each day. They teach in their Mayan Kakchiquel language, which many students are losing, and in Spanish. Once the students have progressed in both those languages Celeste began teaching them English to prepare future English teachers.

Callie Vandewiele, from Oregon, especially enjoyed her work with Cedepca’s Women’s Pastoral program, where she did workshops about domestic violence and created spaces for women to grow and express themselves in a culture that leaves little room for women to tell their stories.

Allie Naskret, from New Jersey, was placed in the most rural setting of the volunteers, living with Maya Quiche people and participating in the life of several local churches. She became the church’s piano player and gave lessons to several church members. She also facilitated Bible reflections with women’s group, taught English classes, and participated in the life of her 11-member host family.

Jane Atkinson, from Florida, supported elementary school classes at Ceipa, an institution doing education and advocacy for street children and child laborers (who are often several years behind in their education). Jane tutored students behind in reading and filled in for other teachers—not an easy task with children who have very little structure in their lives! She also participated in the youth and women’s groups at a Mayan Mam Presbyterian church.

Anna Hill helping to decorate the street with a sawdust carpet, an important Catholic and cultural activity for Holy Week.

Anna Hill, from California, worked at an organization for youth and children with mental and physical handicaps. She lived in a town deeply affected by Guatemala’s civil war and, more recently, by a landslide in 2005 that took many lives. She heard many people’s stories and says, “These months have been marked for me by a deep gratitude, just to be here. I’ve never been this close to so much pain, joy, and struggle before.” 

The YAV experience is often one of those transformational parts of life that come in difficult packages. It’s not an easy year. Living with people who speak a different language often makes us feel isolated or helpless. We like the idea of “being” and having time to relate to people, but some days we’re not connecting with anyone, let alone reflecting, and it seems ridiculous! Living with a host family is the best way to really get immersed in and understand a culture, but you have to eat what other people cook for a whole year, and every family in the world has a few traits that are difficult to live with (for a year!).

I think that both joy and a bit of frustration are necessary for that slow but steady transformation and growth to occur. One of the YAVs described it as “change by osmosis”—you don’t notice it happening day by day, until suddenly you realize you’re different.  

Hanna is discerning her call to some sort of ministry; Jane hopes to get a master’s in social work; Callie will work for a project she came into contact with while in Guatemala that documents historic weaving techniques; Anna will study law and may end up giving legal support to immigrants; Allie is discerning her vocational direction; Celeste will continue to do education focused on social justice issues.

I hope that all these young people have fulfilling lives and that their experience as YAVs has given them more patience, more confidence, greater joy in relating to marginalized people, greater yearning to build community with those around them, and deeper reflection on how to live lives with more integrity than they might otherwise have had.

Read more about the program and visit blogs that the YAVs are keeping at the YAV Web site. At the Mission Connections' YAV newsletter page you can read their newsletters.

Peace,

The 2009 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 277