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IVEP alumni in India give backPress Release, September 2002 "IVEP alumni in India are the cream of the crop!" I told myself recently, having just returned to Kolkata (Calcutta) from visiting a Mennonite community in Korba, India. I had taken a new MCC volunteer from Pennsylvania, Sandra Solomon, to Korba to help her get situated. Sandra was welcomed by several Indian colleagues who participated in MCC's International Volunteer Exchange Program (IVEP) years ago. Sandra is participating in the MCC Serving and Learning Together (SALT) Program for young adults. She will teach English at the Beacon schools for one year while learning about Indian culture and taking Hindi lessons. (The Beacon schools were begun by Mennonite missionaries in the 1960s; today they offer the best English-language education in the area.) Many current Beacon teachers and administrators participated in IVEP, a sister program to SALT, during the 1970s and '80s. IVEP alumni in Korba have warmly welcomed and extended a special kind of friendship to Sandra and the other new SALTer in their community - Elizabeth Tellier, from London, Ont. These IVEP alumni consider the SALTers to be their counterparts and cheer them on their way. The alumni have shared with Elizabeth and Sandra about their experiences in North America and how IVEP enriched their lives. Their stories encourage the newly-arrived SALTers. By sharing their memories, struggles and joys, the IVEP alumni are saying, "We know how it feels; we have been in your shoes." The alumni and SALTers plan to connect throughout the year. MCC's IVEP and SALT programs have greatly enriched the global church, and the ripple effect continues. |
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