2010 Pine Ridge Trip
There are three areas of focus that Leonard Little Finger has described to us. They are the physical, the spiritual, and the metaphysical.
We, as individuals, have our bodies, our minds, our souls, and then we have the souls from the spirit world. If we are able to appreciate the quiet, to truly immerse ourselves into it, we can find the influence that each of these have on our ability to engage in our existence. The Lakota beliefs and customs concentrate on this. To deny yourself exposure to this way of thinking, to this way of life, is to deprive yourself of the true journey.
Monthly Archives: May 2010
Feels Like Home
2010 Pine Ridge Trip
What a wonderful experience it’s been. The second I arrived, all I wanted to do was be outside. It feels like home in more than one sense.
It’s now Tuesday, May 18 and it’s a beautiful day in Oglala. Yesterday was a memorable experience. The group built a Lakota teepee together and had time to reflect out in the hills. The teepee is a symbol of the link between heaven and earth (the triangles and inverted triangles meeting where they cross). What is in heaven is on earth, and vice versa. Once the teepee was finished, Stanley Good Voice, with his young counterparts, presented us with unique Native American music from various ceremonies that are held within the culture. We even got to do the Circle Dance! But we’ve met so many people here and they’re all a piece of “wonderful”.
Yesterday, Leonard Little Finger, one of the elders, honored me with making me his niece; he is my “lekshi” – my uncle. This was very special to me because he said he felt like I was family and I felt the same. It’s difficult to explain, but you just know . It’s a feeling you have inside you. I truly love these people here and feel like I’m where I’m supposed to be. Having my sister here to share it with is also an experience that I wouldn’t trade – family is so important out here and I’m so fortunate & lucky to have mine physically here with me.
Until next time…
Hey lady, tuk tuk?
2010 Mission Trip to Cambodia
from Stephanie Brooks
We have arrived in Phnom Penh! It has been one hot, fantastic day! After settling into our hotel, we walked down the street to a cafe for lunch that had amazingly good food– pumpkin soup (the group favorite), lime soda, and pizza for those of us who needed a little break from Asian cuisine! We seemed to cool off a bit during lunch, but once we reached the market all bets were off. There is more stuff crammed into a teeny tiny space than I thought humanly possible. Mrs. Taplin knows many of the dealers, though, so we got the best quality and lowest price. Needless to say, we became shopaholics (well… I was a shopaholic)… Most of us walked home with armfuls of merchandise, some for ourselves and some for you at home! 🙂
Our mode of transportation to and from the market was by tuk tuk, a small motorcycle with a buggy hooked to the back. Not only did we experience Cambodian culture by riding in a tuk tuk, we experienced the whirlwind of a dozen tuk tuk drivers waiting outside our hotel to let them drive us. They practically came running at us! We only needed two, so it was a tough choice. From every angle we heard, “Hey lady, tuk tuk?” We were glad to give business to the chosen ones!
“Back that bus up!”
2010 Mission Trip to Guatemala
To start our day we had a delicious breakfast and headed on the school bus to the Children’s Hospital. Once we arrived at the hospital the guard was not sure if he could let us through the gate. After 10 minutes of blocking all traffic we ended up backing through 8 lanes of traffic (traveling both ways) needless to say anyone in the 8 lanes of traffic was late to work… BEEEEEP is all we heard!! Although passengers were very worried we made it through safely with no casualties.
“Tell me why”
2010 Mission Trip to Cambodia
from Kim Engholm
We began our day meeting three young University students from Hanoi: Heng (Hung), Hong (Home), and Linh (Ling). They served as our tour guides and guardian angles for the day by negotiating everything from taxi rides to shoe prices. They took us to the University of Literature that served as the first University of Hanoi that began over 1000 years ago. Today, it serves as a museum and temple where students come to pray before their final exams. If prayer is not enough, some students will rub the head of one of the ancient stone turtles for luck and good fortune. We then made our way across town to Salt Lake to visit another temple. This temple was unique because it was in the middle of the lake and featured a cremated turtle. Taking in the culture of the temples was truly a unique experience, and one I am sure we shall never forget.
We made it!
2010 Mission Trip to Guatemala
Just a quick little blog as we drive down the roads of Guatemala City. We have all arrived safe and sound after an EARLY morning, very long layover in Miami, and a adventurous landing in the rain. We are on the way to take a tour of the Shalom Surgery Center. More to come later!!
Haiti Update #11
Jen Watters Haiti Blog
Sunday, May 16, 2010 at 2:50pm
Bonswa tout moun! (Good afternoon everyone)!
I am sitting here, thinking of everyone and enjoying a VERY quiet Sunday afternoon. Almost everyone has gone to the beach today and I am here with just one other housemate. It’s strange that the house it so quiet, but it’s kind of nice too. I’ve very much enjoyed living with all of these different people, but I’m starting to realize that I go a little bit nutty without any personal space or quiet time! So this is a nice treat!! They also brought us four more fans this week so now we have one for the downstairs living area and it’s actually quite comfortable during the day – amazing what some moving air does!
“One, Two, Bat” (Bat pronounced “Bot”)
2010 Mission Trip to Cambodia
from Emily Tice
What a day! We all woke up this morning and boarded a van that took us on a 3 1/2 hour journey to Hon Long Bay, which not only showed us the beautiful countryside of Vietnam, but let us experience some of Vietnam’s culture in one of their most popular tourist spots. Once we got on a boat that would take us around the bay, our tour guide (Hong –> greatest tour guide ever!) educated us on some more Vietnamese culture and history.
We stopped once to explore on of the famous caves in one of the hundreds of islands within the bay, which is also where we took most of our pictures for this day (hopefully we will be able to add them later). This is where the title of my blog (“One, Two, Bat”) was created. As Hong was trying to teach us all Vietnamese numbers (and what a struggle that was!), we all decided we liked the number three in Vietnamese (bat), so instead of saying “one, two, three” before we would take one of our many pictures, we said “one, two, bat!” Not only did we all fall to pieces in laughter every time we said this, but other tourists found our hilarity and silliness amusing as well.
An early morning start
2010 Mission Trip to Guatemala
Thirty two somewhat blurry eyed healthcare professional and students met at the Nashville International Airport in the wee hours of the morning to begin their week long trip to provide heathcare and training in Guatemala. This years’ multidisciplinary team consists of nursing, occupational therapy, physical therapy and speech-language pathologist. By 5 am everyone was checked in with their luggage and supplies including orthotics, gloves, masks, casting supplies, (and lots of Belmont T-shirts!). After a layover in Miami, they should arrive in Guatemala this afternoon. Good luck Team!!!!
Let Us Commence the Journey!
2010 Pine Ridge Trip
It is Saturday morning, May 15th, and I’m on Belmont campus amidst the many preparations for Commencement. The music from the carillon is calling all of us to gather, remember, and to celebrate. Our Belmont phrase is From Here to Anywhere and as the 630 names are being read we will all be having our own images of Anywhere.
I will be thinking about Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota and the spirit of the Lakota people. What will we discover and learn about ourselves as 18 of us from the Belmont community commence our journey together tomorrow morning? Will we have a wider definition of community? Will we find friends and new directions?
This quote by Maria Montessori speaks to me and may resonate with those who hear the bells of Belmont:
We abandon all and travel the world, as did those in former times who would sow seeds and go their way. This is our destiny: to sow! To sow everywhere, without ceasing never to harvest.
We Have Arrived!
2010 Mission Trip to Cambodia
Well, we have finally made it to the beautiful Hanoi, Vietnam. It was a long trip, and for a first time international traveler like myself, it was a little scary and overwhelming at times… well pretty much all the time. By the time we were boarding our international flight in LAX, we were all so exhausted and delirious that everything was funny to us. After our 13.5 hour flight to Taiwan, and another 2.5 hour flight to Hanoi, we finally were at our short term destination. During this process though,we completely skipped Friday, which was kind of a joke among us!
Thursday’s Departure from Nashville
2010 Mission Trip to Cambodia
from Chelsea Stevens
Guatemala Missions Trip 2010
2010 Mission Trip to Guatemala
On Sunday, we leave for Guatemala City, Guatemala for the 2010 Guatemala Missions Trip. There are a total of 32 students and clinicians going on the trip this year in a variety of fields such as physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, and nursing. For a handful of students going, it will be their first time out of the U.S. We are excited for this wonderful opportunity to serve others and we appreciate all of the support and prayers as we travel almost 1500 miles.
Pharmacy Students Embark on Pine Ridge Trip
2010 Trip to Pine Ridge Lakota Indian Reservation
Six students from the Belmont University School of Pharmacy and myself, Dr. Mark Chirico will leave for Pine Ridge, SD on May 16, 2010 to engage in cultural learning experiences on the Lakota Indian reservation. This will be the first time that the pharmacy program will have such a large representation on this annual trip.
A total of 18 participants will begin the mission of “Okiciyapi” which is Lakota for “Helping One Another”. We look forward to partnering with several tribal elders, including Leonard Little Finger and Basil Brave Heart to learn of the health needs of the Lakota people. We will have the unique opportunity at the end of this trip to interact with community members to discuss their medication issues. Follow us on this blog to keep up with our adventure!
A Snapshot of the Trip
2010 Mission Trip to Cambodia
from Susan Taplin
Today we leave Nashville for our 6th trip to Cambodia! We are so grateful to each of you who sacrifice time with loved ones so we can go make a difference in the lives of poor and needy in Cambodia. This year there are 5 nursing students going along with Sharon, Keary and I.
Our first stop is Hanoi Vietnam where we will visit Halong Bay and other cultural sites. We will use this time to bond as a group and recover from the long flights and 12 hour time difference. We get there on Saturday around 11AM. We should be able to email/post a blog entry while there. Not sure about phone calls.
We head into Phnom Penh on Tuesday the 18th around 8AM and will be there until the weekend. For the two weekends we are there, we will be visiting a village on one and going to Siem Reap for the other. The plans are not yet finalized for which weekend we will be doing which.
MSN Grads Perfect Again
For the sixth consecutive year, Belmont University graduates from the master’s program for Family Nurse Practitioners (FNP) have achieved a 100 percent first time pass rate on the advanced practice nursing examination for family nurse practitioners, administered by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC).
ANCC, the world’s largest and most prestigious nurse credentialing organization, recently announced that the overall first time pass rate for the FNP exam was 93% in 2009. Belmont School of Nursing graduates did particularly well in the exam sections that measured assessment of acute and chronic illness, research, and health promotion and disease prevention, exceeding the mean scores of all test-takers in these areas.
More than a quarter million nurses have been certified by ANCC since 1990 and over 80,000 advanced practice nurses are currently certified by ANCC. ANCC certification is accepted by governing boards throughout the United States, as well as insurers and the military. The program validates nurses’ skills, knowledge and abilities, and empowers nurses within their professional sphere while contributing to better patient outcomes.
Haiti Update #9 (lost but now found!)
Jen Watters Mission to Haiti
Tuesday, May 11th, at 8:57pm
So I forgot to post this on the 3rd when I wrote it, then I couldn’t find it – turns out I had accidently deleted it and it was hiding in my “trash” folder – oops!! I guess my brain was on vacation too!!
Hello everyone!! Bonswa tout moun!!
I was thinking that I should have sent out my email on Saturday this week, since we had the day off, but the power was not really cooperating. Yesterday was my travel day and now I am on my little vacation in Les Cayes in the South of Haiti. I will tell you a little bit about the past week and then save my vacation stories for next week, but I will tell you it has been wonderful so far!!
Haiti Update #10
Jenifer Watters Mission to Haiti Blog
May 9 at 8:10pm
Wow!! I’m now up to double digits!!!
I hope that this finds everyone well. For some reason I can’t find my Haiti update #9 and I don’t remember exactly what I wrote, so I apologize if I am redundant. I also just realized I never posted it here either, so when I find it I’ll put it up!
I am back in Port-au-Prince now after a wonderful week of vacation! I spent the week at Pwoje Espwa, which is an orphanage just outside of Les Cayes in the south part of Haiti. It was such a great week!! My friend Linda runs the guest house there, so I stayed on the property with them. It was perfect timing as they were in between groups and I was really the only extra person around. I got to sleep in a real bed, with a real pillow and since I was the only person in the room I pointed BOTH fans right at me at night – it was wonderfully ridiculous!
Dr. Debra Wollaber selected for Distinguished Nursing Alumnus Award at Hartwick
Belmont University School of Nursing Professor, Dr. Debra Wollaber, has been selected to receive the Distinguished Nursing Alumnus Award by Hartwick College in Oneonta, New York. The award honors a select few who represent the best of nursing through their contributions to practice, research, education, and/or service. Dr. Wollaber received her bachelor’s degree in nursing from Hartwick in 1973.
Dr. Wollaber began her tenure at Belmont as an adjunct assistant professor in 1988 while completing her doctorate in child and family studies at Syracuse University. She became Dean of the Gordon E. Inman College of Health Sciences & Nursing in 1997, a position she held for a decade until moving back to full-time teaching in 2007.
In commenting about her alma mater, Dr Wollaber says, “Hartwick is a special place for me. I really don’t think my career would have taken the trajectory it has without the solid, fine foundation that Hartwick gave me.”
The presentation of the award will occur at the Nurses’ Pinning Ceremony for Hartwick at the end of May, at which Dr. Wollaber will present the keynote address to the college’s graduating seniors.
Pharmacy Students Serve Ronald McDonald House
Belmont University School of Pharmacy Class of 2013 recently made two visits to the Ronald McDonald House in Nashville. Approximately 20 student volunteers went on two occasions to prepare lunch for the Ronald McDonald House. RMH provides living arrangements and adequate food to families that have children receiving medical treatments far from home and strives to provide a home-away-from-home comfort for these families. The student pharmacists at BUSOP were delighted to learn more about RMH and the residing families through conversations over spaghetti and meatballs or by playing with the children in the playroom, all while helping to serve the families and make their stay in Nashville more enjoyable. BUSOP Class of 2013 hopes to make these volunteer lunches for RMH a monthly project that continues to grow as a way of service and outreach to the Nashville community.