Local teen tapped for Africa mission

By Toshio Suzuki

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For seven weeks this summer, one Lincoln High student will do hard labor in West Africa, likely sweating buckets of ambition as she helps build a secondary school in Likpe Mate, Ghana. She feels lucky to have been chosen.

The American Jewish World Service is dedicated to international development in the broadest sense, sending missionary teams every summer in an effort to alleviate poverty, hunger and disease among the peoples of the developing world, regardless of race, religion or nationality, according to its Web site.

While the mission statement is all-encompassing, volunteers like Gali Slayen of Portland are hand-picked for specific qualifications.

Lisa Safier, associate director of communications for AJWS, said 61 students were chosen for service groups in Thailand, Uganda, Honduras and Ghana, with Slayen's group of 15 being the lone high school assemblage.

"It definitely is a very competitive program because we get candidates across the country," said Safier. She said there were a number of things that made Slayen's application stand out, none more impressive than her demonstrated leadership skills as a member of student council, the Model U.N. and several other student groups.

"She's very involved in her school community and Jewish community," said Safier.

Slayen said she enjoyed the application process, which included an essay and phone interview, because she could speak of her academic journey from Portland Jewish Academy to Maryland and a return to Portland.

"I told them about being a coordinator for the National Eating Disorder Awareness Week, which I had brought to Lincoln and all the other activities I have been involved with," said Slayen.

"Also, speaking of my experiences attending PJA and since then attending public schools, I feel that I have lost a sense of my Judaism, which was one of the main reasons why I chose this particular program."

The AJWS group that travels to Ghana will work on behalf of the Institute of Cultural Affairs, a non-profit, non-governmental agency that manages community development programs in 35 countries.

The construction of a housing bungalow attached to the secondary school is a way for the community to retain qualified teachers, uplifting the educational bottom line in the underserved region.

However, there is much more to this community building expedition than American teenage manual labor.

"Study is a key part of the program—the study allows opportunities for processing," said Safier. "What does international development really mean ? and how does one translate tikkun olam to action?"

Safier added that the cross-cultural experiences the students get affects different people on different levels, often influencing career choices or for the high school kids, what they choose to study in college.

"It also instills in participants an ongoing desire to participate in social change work, locally and internationally," said Safier. "It'll bring the world to them and they in turn will be able to bring that back."

For a 16-year-old Hebrew student interested in communications as a future profession, a trip to Africa—where both her parents are from—with the organization founded by Ruth Messinger is an ideal summer vacation.

"I think ecstatic would be the perfect word to describe my feelings about this journey," said Slayen. "I felt very strongly about doing something meaningful this summer. I do not just want to sit around, I want to go out, try something new and really make a difference."

Along with purchasing DEET, hiking boots and "insect repellent-drenched mosquito nets," Slayen is reading the required materials for orientation in New York and her trip to the African nation roughly the same size of Oregon. For those interested in making a donation towards Slayen's $4,400 trip cost, volunteer-specific contributions can be made at www.ajws.org.