Dartmouth Athletes Volunteer Worldwide
10/7/2009 10:45:00 AM | Athletics
October 7, 2009 - Dartmouth Athletes Volunteer Worldwide
By Jeff Friedman, Jaeger Civic Intern
While many college student-athletes do internships, compete in their sports, or even take classes over the summer, there were several Dartmouth student-athletes who volunteered to do community service abroad in various capacities. Lauren Campfield, an '11 on the Women's Cross Country and Track and Field teams, went to Benque-Viejo, Belize this summer and worked at a Catholic mission. There, she helped with a youth summer program and was an English tutor. Campfield had an amazing experience and particularly bonded with one family that needed to learn how to speak English to become Belizean citizens and receive paychecks. Campfield recites how “I really bonded with this family as well as the other people I worked with and met in this small town that possesses characteristics of both Latin America and the Caribbean. This society struggles greatly with a machismo culture fostered by alcoholism and abuse, and I hope to do what I can to help by returning after I graduate from Dartmouth to become one of the volunteer teachers and coaches at the Catholic high school.” Overall, Campfield's experience cannot compare to a difficult running race or a hard exam. She recalls that “Volunteering in Benque was the most challenging, growth filled and peace-filled experience I've had in my life.”
Fellow track teammate Hannah Raila also went abroad for the summer and volunteered in Ecuador with an organization called Pastoral Social. Pastoral Social is a rural outreach organization that goes out into local villages and talks to them about basic health, nutrition, and sanitation. As a volunteer, Hannah served many roles as she developed a presentation on alcoholism and talked to the village groups about any psychological issues they would bring up at the meeting, from low self esteem to relationship problems. As a Tucker fellow in Ecuador, Hannah learned a lot about impoverished societies and how they can grow stronger by the influence of a positive, optimistic person in their lives. Hannah really enjoyed her experience in Ecuador.
Similarly, Molly Khalil, a '12 on the Women's Softball Team, also went to Ecuador to volunteer for a few weeks this summer, yet she went with Medlife and traveled to underprivileged villages, giving families necessary medical attention. Khalil said that “Every day we helped a different pueblo; we set up a clinic, brought doctors, and the natives lined up to see doctors and get prescription medications and vitamins that they have been needing for years.” Like Campfield and Raila, Khalil learned so much from her experience in Ecuador, especially by seeing the need for help and care that there was in the impoverished villages that she visited.
The Tucker Foundation provides a great opportunity for students like Lauren, Hannah, and Molly to do these life-changing service activities through its funding for community service programs. The athletic department would like to thank the Tucker Foundation for their continued devotion to community service both in the Upper Valley and throughout the world. We hope more athletes will go to unique places and help better the world like these three Dartmouth student-athletes did!
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