Benedictine Volunteers Describe Their Experiences
in Tanzania, Newark and
Rome in
Letters from the Field
Severin Kolb and Paul Walters at Saint John’s Abbey, Collegeville, Minnesota
Severin from Russikon, Switzerland, spent ten weeks at Saint John’s. Fluent in German, he tutored four Prep School students in the language, assisted Mark Thamert, OSB, in the university’s German department, and did odd jobs on the grounds and in the sacristy.
In a recent e-mail, Severin wrote, “I met people who live a religious and peaceful life and this inspired me. The abbey is one of the most peaceful places I have ever been. I had a quiet place for myself and time to think about my life. I became much happier and open. “
Paul, a 2005 Saint John’s graduate, works closely with Paul Richards, OSB, on the volunteer program. He is developing fund raising strategies through grant writing and solicitation and revamping the application process. Each week he shops in St. Cloud for items requested by the monks. Paul says, “My time here has been meaningful and valuable. I am enjoying the work and the wonderful experience of living and praying in fellowship with the monastic community.”
Jonathan Seldat and Ted Welle at Saint Benedict Prep, Newark, New Jersey:
"As members of this small monastic community of Newark Abbey (eighteen members), we are called to take part in the prayer and work that are vital to our daily schedule. We have grown to appreciate silence and solitude after working among the 571 young men of Saint Benedict’s Preparatory School."
"We are the “in-house substitutes” who never know what adventure lies chemistry class of thirty. We organized a tutoring program for our students with nearby college students and we see that grades of all students are improving. We are seeking funds to hire two or three full-time staff persons who will also work with the tutoring program."
"Being removed from the safety that Saint John’s gave us for four years has made us see issues that exist in the States and the world. If we have helped just one student or left an impression on this small community of monks, this year at Newark will be a success."
Paul Conroy, Lewis Grobe
and Derek Johnson talk about their work with the Hanga Benedictine Abbey in Songea, Tanzania."W
e teach English and math to first year students and opened the new abbey website (www.hangaabbey.org). I (Paul) continue to teach English to second and third year students at the Hanga Seminary while improving their grammar skills in the new English and debate club. We’re finishing a Library of Congress labeling of the 3,000 books from the Books for Africa program.The experience has been amazing and eye-opening. The people of Tanzania are genuine, happy and grateful to have people who want to help them. We are grateful for this opportunity to serve them."
Photos from Hanga Abbey, Tanzania.
Michael Anderson and
Liam Sperl report from the Abbey of Jesus Christ Crucified in Esquipulas, Guatemala."Bienvenidos a la Abadia de Jesucristo Crucificado! Our projects range from working in a citrus orchard to teaching English, assisting medical missions and working as fundraiser and laborers on a project for homeless children called the City of Joy. Aimed to give new hope to abandoned children, the City of Joy will be home for eighty Catholic Sisters and 100 children. For more information and how to help, e-mail us at michaeland3@yahoo.com. We started a recycling program to address a large problem throughout Guatemala - the quantity of unattended litter and trash. We use bamboo sticks to fill up bottles with litter. We are amazed at how much trash can be forced into a bottle. When the bottles are full they are used as building blocks for the library we are helping to construct in the City of Joy project.
Our time here helps us grow in our ability to be self-driven, mature, fluent in Spanish and prayerful. Our interactions with the monastic community make our life one of tranquility, mindfulness and peace."
Nick Briese reports early November 2006 on his life as a Benedictine Volunteer in New Jersey.
"I'm
in Newark at St. Benedict's Preparatory School. My normal day varies a bit but
usually involves substitute teaching if a teacher is away. I also taught a
section of the criminal justice class here for a month while the regular teacher
was recovering from surgery.
In addition to the subbing, I work with two periods of a research and
writing class called Newark Studies every day. In Newark Studies I'm usually
busy pulling kids out of class for one-on-one help with their writing
skills." Read the rest of Nick's report.
From Andrew Krueger at Hanga Benedictine Abbey, Songea, Tanzania
"One of the monks about forty years old died here unexpectedly from heart failure. The average life expectancy is something like 44. While it was sad for the community, crowds of people came in support and it was a really good cultural experience. The ceremony was leagues away from anything I'd ever expect in the States--long church services, women wailing at times, lots of music.
My birthday celebration was great. One of the monks decorated our place
with balloons and beach balls and surprised us when we got home. Lots of
monks and others showed up. After drinks and presents a group made their
way down the hall with a large cake singing, "Cakey, cakey, cakey" and
clapping their hands. The group stopped in front of me and the song changed
to "Cut the cakey, cakey," repeated over and over until the cake
had been entirely cut. Then the song changed to a Swahili word for distribute
and, of course, "Cakey, cakey, cakey." It was fun to experience
a birthday in a new culture.
One of my goals was accomplished when last week I had four separate encounters
with siafu. Siafu are the crazy ants that you will often see on animal and
plant shows. One of the columns was protected by soldiers, so I made sure
to sit and observe and play with them for a while. Anything you dip towards
their stream of movement gets absolutely devoured. It's crazy."
From Paul Conroy at Hanga Benedictine Abbey
"I have been in Tanzania for a little over a month now, and I have quickly gotten used to eating the same foods every day: a lot of rice, occasionally pasta, meat sometimes and a lot of bread. At the end of a meal if I am still hungry I stuff my face with a few pieces of bread with sugar and bananas. The bread is homemade and very good. While I still have the occasional craving for a Saint John's buffet or McDonald's dollar menu, I am content with everything we are provided here. Our menu is much more diverse than many peoples'.
My knees have finally become adjusted to the hard wooden kneelers at church.
The first time we knelt on them, two minutes into it was like "O, Sweet
Jesus, there is no way I can do this!"
But now it is no big deal except when we pray the rosary; that gets a bit long.
A very interesting part of life here I have slowly gotten used to is hand holding. People hold hands everywhere.
Men walk down the street holding hands, women and men, women and women, children, everyone. It has taken a little getting used to holding hands for an extended period of time with people as we sit and try to converse or walk down the dusty road. But it is part of the culture and a very interesting one I am happy to experience . . . usually. I am doing very well here and am having an amazing time. Africa is wonderful."
Three months later .....
"My main job is teaching Form One English to fifty Tanzanian seminarians, ages 12-30. I have also helped build a two-story greenhouse out of mud, embarrassed myself playing soccer with the young monastic community, gotten a little too close to a deadly snake, gazed in awe over the infinite African wilderness and experienced the unparalleled hospitality and friendships of the Hanga Abbey and Tanzanian communities.
Africa has awakened all my senses -- the taste of a succulent mango fresh off the tree, the feel of a finger-sized centipede creeping across my bare foot, the smell of a saturated earth breathing the cool sigh of relief after a long awaited rain, the sound of my students greeting me with " Good morning, Teacher" and the sight of a shoeless child chasing a herd of goats into the setting sun.
Being an absolute minority is also an insightful experience. But the most
important thing I have learned is seeing a different face of a nation damned
by the outside world as a hopeless abyss festering with HIV, civil war and
destitution. My experience is of a people filled with pride for their country,
optimism for their future, resiliency in the face of difficulty and proactive
determination. This is Tanzania and what an incredible place it is.
I would like to say "Thank you" again to the Saint John's monastic community for allowing me this life-changing experience. Your community has played such an important and influential role in my life, I cannot thank you enough. Nashukura sana kwa yote! (Thank you very much for everything!)
While I am thousands of miles away I can feel the Benedictine spirit of Saint John's more than ever."
From Michael Hahn at Saint Benedict's Prep, Newark, New Jersey
"I have come a long way in just six months, not only in cross-country miles but also in learning about my new job and myself. At first I found joy in just getting to know my way around the school and the abbey buildings without getting lost, knowing the monks and students and making friends and capturing what it is that I was being asked to do as a Benedictine Volunteer.
I am especially pleased to discover that I love teaching and I am good at it. Even though I am in a very different setting than at Saint John's, I connect well with the students and enjoy their respect. I like pushing them to learn and mature and they are responding well to my encouragement. Thanks to this year of service I am considering further studies that might lead me towards a teaching career."
From Andrew Dirksen at Saint Benedict's Prep
"My primary work is mentoring, tutoring, substitute teaching and being a computer technician. Praying with the monastic community is also an integral part of our work. Every day there are new challenges such as adjusting to the lifestyle changes in the big city of Newark as well as being away from family and friends.
The best part of volunteering is tutoring and mentoring a student and seeing the positive results because of the help I gave him. This experience will teach me much more about people who come from different socioeconomic classes than I do. My desire is to pursue a degree in higher education administration so I can continue to work with youth in an academic setting. I highly recommend this experience to other Johnnies. The program will change your life in significant ways."
From Mark Hoffman at the Benedictine Collegio
di Sant'Anselmo, Rome, Italy
"Two-thirds of my work is in the library and one-third on the grounds. Given a small library staff, we have just started to sort through 100 boxes of books donated by a professor four years ago. Sant'Anselmo has large grounds; before I came there was only one person in charge. Now there are two.
This is the only place I am aware of in the world where people from forty different countries live under the same roof. I get a glimpse of the entire world during lunch as I sit across the table from an Iraqi and between a Brazilian and a Russian. I came to Rome hoping to connect with Romans and make friends, but I will leave with connections all over the world.
Pope Benedict XVI came to Sant'Anselmo on Ash Wednesday, and, as one of the servers, I was able to receive ashes from the the Bishop of Rome!
Each day I am speaking more Italian than English. Crossing the street with traffic coming at me full speed has become the norm. On every corner there are sites such as the Forum, the Coliseum and others that are much more historic than anything in the United States. When I leave I will miss the many cultural aspects of Rome and the feast day lunches, being called " Marco" and the view of the southeast part of Rome from my window."