By Deneka Michaud

 

When it came to choosing which school trip would highlight her grade 12 year, Nicole Gerwin said her decision was a no brainer. “I wanted to go on a trip and going to Cambodia was way better than the typical Mexico party trip,” she said. “It is more of an adventure.”

It was a decision she certainly does not regret.

In March, Gerwin and eight other Seaquam Secondary students headed to Cambodia to undertake a cultural experience highlighted by volunteering and providing productive support to those in need. They spent 15 days taking part in various activities, ranging from building fences, to community celebrations and historical exploration.

The trip truly was a milestone juncture for them all.

In preparation for their travels, the group undertook several workshops led by Stratosphere, an organization that facilitates international travel for student groups to learn community development and global citizenship.

Their workshops covered culture, history, volunteerism, global citizenship, communicating across language barriers, teamwork, and the overall logistics of travelling.

A major focus of the training was to educate the students about useful aid that empowers communities, versus band-aide support that does not generate lasting solutions.

The trip started with six days of volunteering on the small island of Koh Pdao in the Mekong River. Being fully immersed in this rural community was a significant learning experience. The island has just one dirt lane with small bamboo homes lining it.

There are no cars, no electricity and no running water.

Sleeping under mosquito nets, waking to roosters crowing each morning, and eating rice for every meal were all new experiences for the Seaquam students.

The students lived with the families in their homes, enabling them to make personal connections.

“It was really hard with the language barrier, but we tried to learn a couple of words each day,” says Jocelyn Cater, a grade 12 student on the trip.

Yet, despite not being able to speak to one another, strong bonds were still made – proving that people can easily connect across languages and cultures.

“They were probably the friendliest group of people I have ever met,” said Logan Kenler, a grade 11 student.

While on the island, the students helped the locals build fences. These fences are important because they separate livestock from crops. Volunteer projects such as this that enable self-sufficiency and sustainability, in this case via agriculture, are the types of aid initiatives Stratosphere encouraged the students to undertake. The students also helped repair dirt walking paths.

“We did whatever they needed us to do,” said Gerwin.

“We worked alongside the locals. We worked together,” added Kenler, noting that this work deepened the connection they made with the community.

In addition to the volunteer work, there was also lots of play. The students played with the little kids, went to community dance celebrations, swam in the warm Mekong waters, saw rare fresh water dolphins, dined on all sorts of unique foods (including crickets and silk worms), received fish pedicures, and visited the Angkor Wat ruins and Phnom Phen.

They also learned about Buddhism and studied the tragic history of Pol Pot’s leadership that saw 25% of the population die due to executions, starvation and exhaustion from being overworked.

All the students as well as the two teacher chaperons, Erika Hardman and Afamdi Onukwulu, signed up for the trip because they wanted to experience helping others in another country. What they ended up taking away from the trip, was much more lending a helping hand. They learned to bridge cultures, appreciate different environments, delve into history and provide meaningful international aid.

“There are no words to describe it. We’ll never have another experience like this. It was life changing,” said Shannon Yu, a grade 12 student. “On our last day we were all crying.”

The Cambodia trip was led by teachers Erika Hardman and Afamdi Onukwulu. The nine students were in grades 10 through 12: Jocelyn Cater, Nicole Gerwin, Gurpreet Sohi, Shannon Yu, Eric Hillman, Luke Fahrmann, Logan Kenler, Luke Pasin, and Emily Aono.

 You can read more on their blog:  www.seaquamcambodia2012.blogspot.ca.