With just a few days before our departure, we have one of our last installments in our special summer exploration series. This one is about one of our leaders, Alex Sidlak. He will be leading the Anawim Home Team on his second visit to Nigeria. In his words:
This summer, I’ve been busy working at Franklin Square Hospital in the Microbiology lab. When I’m not working, I’ve been trying to enjoy my last summer before I graduate – going to O’s games, the beach, tubing on the Gunpowder, and just relaxing by the pool.
I’m excited to return to the Anawim Home and build upon the progress and relationships we developed in the first two years of this program. I hope that our group will make a tangible impact with the various projects we have planned – rebuilding a wall of the orphanage’s compound, painting the children's rooms, and working on basic infrastructure improvements. In addition, after dealing with an inconsistent curriculum at the local school, we have organized lesson plans and workbooks for the children so that we can teach more effectively. I wish to give back as much as I received - in the lessons I learned and overall experience of my previous trip to the Poorest of the Poor Orphanage.
The current events in northern Nigeria where extremism grew from the distressing poverty of the region further confirms the need of this type of social work (of which we serve only a small part) in order to address the debilitating epidemics of Africa and the growing economic disparities, which even best those found in the U.S. I hope that our continued commitment to this organization develops not just into a temporary, yearly aid, but a significant, lasting contribution to complement the amazing work that these Nigerian nuns have built from basic foundations.
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