My name is Adam Aronovitz and along with dynamite travel leader Molly Ryan, we will utilize every skill and ability we have to create a life-changing experience in Southern Africa for you all this summer. I am sure you are as excited for this summer as we are, and I would love to take this opportunity to tell you a little bit about myself.
I grew up in the Boston area, spending my early years in Newton and the majority of my youth in a town called Sudbury, Massachusetts. I spent my undergraduate career at Tulane University in the majestic city of New Orleans where I fell heads-over-heels in love with the jazz, the magnificent food, and the unique culture of New Orleans and its inhabitants. I majored in International Political Economics, investigating the realities between international governance, the international marketplace, and all the invisible behind-the-scene forces that govern our international community. This academic focus has provided me with a unique perspective on international affairs; I understand WHY things are the way they are and have confidence in possibilities for growth and healing when a group of positive beings come together to put their energy towards a common and compassionate goal.
I had a life-altering experience during the fall of my senior year. I enrolled in an abroad program called Semester at Sea. For 100 days I lived and studied on a ship while circumnavigating the globe. Our ports of call were Japan, China, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Malaysia, India, Kenya, South Africa, Brazil, and Cuba. I could spend years recounting my adventures but highlights included volunteering at orphanages in Vietnam, India, and Kenya to seeing Fidel Castro speak in Cuba. Since this voyage I have constantly been seeking out opportunities to immerse myself in the unbelievable diversity of our planet. You could say that I have had “itchy feet” ever since.
Since I graduated from Tulane I earned a Masters Degree in London and spent 4 years in the Boston Public school system teaching math and outdoor education at a middle school in East Boston. My school was a fascinating place. 70% of the student population was from Latin America and I really enjoyed learning about their rich cultures and introducing them to the wonders of the natural world through the outdoor education program that I designed.
For the past two years I've been in somewhat of a dream world, traveling, educating and challenging myself throughout Asia. From trekking to the roof of the world in Nepal to living amongst Sadhus ascetics in India, to developing a reforestation children's program in Tamil Nadu, moving WAY beyond my limits over and over again whilst rock climbing in Thailand, to co-founding an international experiential education project called the Cookbook Project, I've continuously pushed myself to live authentically. I look forward to sharing my experiences with you and working together to discover ways of living and learning that enable each one of us to continuously feel challenged and fulfilled!!
This is my sixth consecutive summer leading a student travel program with Windsor Mountain. In the summer of 2006 I led a program to Puerto Rico, which was an incredible experience. The
highlights of this program were volunteering at a rainforest reforestation project and surfing on the West Coast of Puerto Rico. In 2007 I led the Project Mexico trip in Central Mexico. This program had a community service and cultural focus. One of the highlights of my time on our fine, fine planet was organizing a Medical Brigade for indigenous communities in Mexico that had no access to medical care. For the past three summers I led the Bridge Caribbean program and now consider St. Vincent and the beautiful inhabitants of the island (including all living beings and especially fresh mangoes) to be an integral part of my own being. This summer I jumped at the opportunity to facilitate the beautiful experience of Windsor Mountain student travel in Southern Africa!
Hello, Molly here!
I'm a traveling ice-cream lover bred in the Midwest. I was born in the small town of Westerville, Ohio into a family who encouraged risk taking, cultural immersion, and team building from the get-go. My family didn't go to the beach on spring break; instead we went camping in the Black Hills, fishing off the coast of Alaska, or on Civil War Battlefield tours through the South. During Middle School and High School I spent most of my time in a swimming pool; I was a competitive swimmer and Captain of my High School Team. Although I still love swimming, now I concentrate my efforts towards yoga; I recently spent time in India training as an Ashtanga yoga instructor. Have any of you done yoga? I am excited to share what I learned in India on this summer‟s Bridge Southern Africa trip!
I went to College in the great state of Wisconsin at Marquette University. During the summer after my freshman year my best friend and I got our first real taste of immersion-based-travel when we took a 43 day long road trip through 28 of the US States. My All-American adventure changed the way I thought about our nation, my fellow citizens, and my own abilities; it lit a fire in me to continue to immerse myself in communities different from my own. Throughout College I spent most of my Winter and Spring Breaks in New Orleans, Louisiana working at multiple disaster relief organizations on projects including an urban farming initiative and the creation of youth photography workshops in the Lower 9th Ward.
In 2008, I spent 6 months in Cape Town, South Africa Service-Learning at the Desmond Tutu Peace Center with Marquette. While I was in Cape Town, I took courses in Grassroots development, Leadership, Social Problems, and the Theology of Reconciliation. When I wasn‟t in class, I interned at a non-profit called E.M.E.P. (the Extramural Education Program), explored the diverse landscape of South Africa, went to live cultural events, and ate as many crazy foods as I could! At E.M.E.P., I was given the opportunity to design and implement a youth bookmaking program in a township elementary school. My work with E.M.E.P. allowed me to really get to know South African culture from the inside; I took a Kombi-bus to work, ate chicken feet from street vendors with my students, and learned about each of my student's lives through the work they created. The amount each of you will learn from our students at the Friendship Camps will amaze you! South African culture transformed my worldview, opened my eyes to the power of national reconciliation, and fueled my desire to continue to absorb the lessons taught through immersion-based travel. I cannot wait to share the incredible culture that changed my life with each of you. I know you will be deeply inspired by South Africa's resilience, forgiveness, and spunk!
As the school year begins to wind down I am sure you will find yourself thinking more and more about our upcoming adventures in Southern Africa. This summer, Adam and I hope everyone is prepared to learn, to be challenged, and to face new situations with patience, enthusiasm, poise, and most importantly, I hope everyone is prepared to have fun! You will be living and working with friends you will have for a lifetime, you‟ll be in Southern Africa...how much better can it get?!
In the next month, try to spend some time thinking about your personal goals for our journey. What do you hope to get out of this program and more importantly, what do you hope to leave behind in Southern Africa? As you know, a huge piece of our expedition involves designing, implementing, and running educational projects for the children of Southern Africa. Please be prepared with AT LEAST 10 ideas for activities that you could lead as part of the summer camp/educational program. What do you like to do? What would you like to teach? What kind of materials would you need? We will be working with youth in various circumstances in Southern Africa and also with younger children; keep this in mind as you brainstorm successful camp activities. Ideas could include games, songs, arts and crafts activities-- just about anything. Be creative (this should be fun)!
As you prepare for our adventure, we would like to leave you with a bit of information and a few tips to help you get ready:
1. We will be in the Southern Hemisphere in July. This means it will be winter. It is going to be cold! Think of very chilly mornings and evenings where you can see your breath. Bring a jacket, bring gloves, bring a hat; it does typically warm up a bit during the day and we will visit some warmer areas as well, but... pack light! We will be fitting everything including ourselves into two vans, so pack lightly an efficiently.
2. Read up a bit on South Africa, Swaziland, and Lesotho. The recent history of South Africa is complex and inspiring; make sure you have a grasp of the concept of Apartheid and the effect it had on this country and its people. Check out Wikipedia and perhaps one of the following books: Kaffir Boy by Mark Math bane, Welcome to the Hill brow by Phaswane Mpe, Khayelitsha by Steven Otter, Agaat by Marlene Van Niekerk, Playing Playing the Enemy by John Carlin, No Bread for Mandela by Ahmed Kathrada, Rabble Rouser for Peace by John Allen, Disgrace by J.M. Coetzee, Long Walk to Freedom by Nelson Mandela, or No Future Without Forgiveness by Desmond Tutu. Pre-reading will help you familiarize yourself with the people and politics of the regions we will visit. Study some vocabulary too; a few words in Zulu, siSwati, or Sesotho (depending on the area) can work wonders to break the ice with local people and show that you are ready to learn about their culture.
3. Be flexible and open to change in all the different ways that change can manifest. Remember: the only thing that is constant is change.
4. Prepare to be physically and emotionally challenged. We will have some long days that find us working with young children who have seemingly endless amounts of energy. We will see some beautiful sites this summer and will also witness some children and adults who have endured incredible difficulties during their time on Earth. You will never forget their smiles and the stories they share with us, but it can be challenging at times to witness the hardships they have endured.
5. We will have some days with early mornings, long drives, interesting foods, and late nights... it can be absolutely exhausting and having a positive flexible attitude and encouraging others around you to do the same can make all the difference in the world.
6. SMILE AND ENJOY!
You will be hearing from us over the phone in late June to discuss the final pre-departure details regarding the program. Enjoy the rest of your school year; we cannot wait to meet all of you!
Amor y Paz, Adam Aronovitz and Molly Ryan
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