Romanian Service Trip a Tradition

The summer of 2014 marked the 16^th time Rivers has sent students and faculty to Romania where they have provided companionship, support, and a helping hand to countless children through Romania Children Relief. The service trip is an opportunity for members of the Rivers community to take part in a genuine service learning experience while furthering the school’s mission to prepare students to be citizens of the world.

The 2014 trip included five Rivers students and two members of the faculty. Maura Crowley ’14, Kate Everett ’16, Holly Glass ’17, Ruby Jean ’16, and Delilah Knisely ’17 joined Director of Athletics Jim McNally as first-time volunteers while Head of Upper School Patti Carbery has been on seven of the trips since starting the trip in 1999.

“The mission of the trip is to extend service learning and to supplement the work we are already doing locally and regionally by providing an international experience,” Carbery said. “But it was also to take students to a place where there was a genuine need. The fact that it is a beautiful country with a fascinating history only adds to the job this trip has done to help us create global citizens.”

When the trip began it had been 10 years since the fall of Nicolae Ceaușescu’s regime, but the country was still feeling the effects of the orphan crisis spurred by this totalitarian regime and its legislation which made abortion illegal and incentivized having five or more children. Carbery was impressed with the mission of RCR and the work they were doing to prevent the abandonment of Romanian children while supporting an improved foster care system, giving birth to a partnership that remains strong today.

RCR operates programs in a pair of Romanian cities, the capital of Bucharest and the smaller Transylvanian city of Bistrita. This summer’s group went to Bistrita and provided services to two sites RCR serves within the city, as well as an after-school program called Open Doors. Their assignments ranged from direct care of small children to completing projects that help move the sites forward.

The breadth of service and opportunity offered by the trip stood out to McNally and moved him to take advantage of the opportunity.

“There are three things that you get out of this trip: the first is that this is a truly life-enriching experience,” McNally said. “Then, you have the experience of working in tight quarters with other members of the Rivers community on a project to help others. But the third thing is you experience the travel and see the development of a country like Romania. The range was eye-opening – you see people who have nothing, and then later you walk into a store almost exactly like a Home Depot. Really, the trip has so much to offer beyond just the service part – it’s a community experience for us and an incredible opportunity to travel.”

One of the sites the group worked in was a placement center with children of varying ages and needs and for McNally, whose background is in activity and athletics, this was the most fun. The days there would be spent doing different creative activities like tie-dying t-shirts, decorating boxes, or taking the kids to the park.

“For me, having worked at camps during the summer, tie-dye is something I’ve done a lot,” said Kate Everett. “But for the kids we were with it was completely new and they wore their shirts the rest of the time we were there. It was so cool to see something we did be so appreciated and have such an effect on them.”

These activities also gave the faculty on the trip an opportunity to learn more about the students outside of the academic or athletic environment they had previously encountered them in before, and vice versa.

“It’s one of the best teaching and community experiences you can have,” Carbery said. “We lived in a hostel in Bestrita cooking together and having a close-knit experience with kids who are so open to it. So much of the program’s success can be attributed to the kids we attract to the program. I am incredibly grateful to the many students who have given their heart and vacation time to this experience. This year’s group included some fantastic students who worked tirelessly and represented Rivers in the best way possible. We should all be proud of them.”

It is those students – and faculty – who spread the message of the trip and encourage new students to take advantage of what is truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Plans are already being made for this year’s upcoming service trip to Romania.

“It’s a genuine service learning opportunity in a place that will take you out of your comfort zone and challenge you to think about yourself and how you see the world,” Carbery said. “Particularly for students who have an interest in service learning, it adds to something you have already done in your life and helps you understand what it means to give and to serve others.”

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