4 + 4 = A Full Heart

It's day three and it's already extremely difficult to pick just a little piece about which to write.  So I've chosen these two photos of four.  The first is a group of girls who were chosen to be our guides at their school.  Aren't they beautiful?  The school serves families who otherwise couldn't afford an education of this quality.  A foundation, funded by the newspaper we visited earlier in the day, provides the resources for this school.

The picture below is our team leaving the school grounds.  I'm crazy about this team.  We jumped into preparations for this trip without having much time to get to know one another.  We're making new friends every day but we're also growing together in friendship and understanding within our team.  Tudo bem?  Tudo muito bem! 



Bad Blog Part Two

(So, I promise that this isn't supposed to become a running joke.  I will add the words REALLY soon. :)  This technology stuff is exhausting.)

Some one once told me that just because architecture is ´´interesting´´ doesn´t mean that it´s attractive.  While I don´t disagree, I happen to really like the Sorocaba City Hall.  Another day of warm greetings, this time by the mayor of Sorocaba.  What a lucky guy.  He´s got the best view in the city.  It made me wonder if our mayor was possibly meeting with our Brazilan counterparts at the exact same time.  Most likely they would not be meeting with the Governor.  You know what I love about traveling around the world?  You get to do things like visit water treatment plants and walk around in places that in America, there are too many rules and safety concerns to allow.  I´m not going to say that Mark got scolded for messing with the controls... because he didn´t, but he could have.  Look how excited he gets when he is near industry!  In the afternoon, we got to visit ´´city school´´ where children learn things like boxing and guitar.  Don´t let me forget that this was the moment where I first heard Brazilian Funk.

So fresh and clean! - SAAE Sorocaba

One of today's adventures was an insider's tour of the local water treatment facility in Sorocaba.  (this followed our exciting visit to the mayor's office, but I will allow others to share that story...)  This may seem like a rather mundane excursion, but for me it was quite interesting.  My brother is a transportation engineer, and we have enjoyed learning about and discussing all manner of civil infrastructure over the years.  So for me, this was pretty much awesome.  For a couple of reasons -

1. We were given a tour by some of the guys that seemed to actually operate the place.
2. We got to actually walk out along the tanks and filtration ponds.

#1 made for a tour with some interesting tidbits about the operation.  The average Sorocaban ("Sorocabino"?) uses 200 liters of water per day.  There is a reservoir 50 km away that provides the local water supply, and the lake itself is 30 km long.  I actually looked it up; here's a quick view:

There is apparently an impressive dam that attracts some visitors - this can been seen on Google images pretty quickly as well.

Aside from the technical details, I was impressed by our opportunity to see the treatment plant up close and personal.  Reflecting upon the many camping trips and sightseeing tours of my youth, I considered that a pair of fighting children could create serious problems very quickly.  Or a curious kid deciding to pull a lever here and push a lever there could incite some pretty significant confusion.  The type of thing you just don't get to do in America these days.  I would describe in more detail, but the pictures will demonstrate rather well.  Hold onto your camera!

http://www.saaesorocaba.com.br/

-MM

Morning in Sorocaba

Bom Dia!

We are beginning to settle in here in beautiful Sorocaba, and I've just enjoyed a nice sunny breakfast with my host Daniel and his wife.  I am treated to the sounds of a busy and vibrant neighborhood, similar to what you might hear in a small town or suburb in the U.S.  A worker down the street is hammering away and conducting various other construction activities.  Either a lawn trimmer or a power sander of some kind joins the tune, and laundry next door rounds out the symphony of daily life.  Some might consider this a lot of noise!  But to me it signifies a locale full of life and activity.

Of my many, many interesting first-day encounters yesterday, I must say that one of the most memorable has been the ceaseless lobbying of nearly every single Brazilian - men and women alike - in trying to convince me which Brazilian "futebol" team to cheer for.  Sao Paulo and Corinthians are the two front-runners, with alternating acquaintances prodding me to identify as either a "Sao Paulino" or a "Corinthiano" ("Cor-in-CHI-an-o").  I will also note that in validating for the correct term for this, my host slips in a note that Corinthians are the best.  I have remained unaffiliated for the moment, but I'm starting to recognize that one cannot stand on the fence forever!  (for the Brazilians out there, I'm leaning Cornithians...)

We are off to the "prefeitura" (city government) for our fist activity of the day.  More to come!

-MM
       

Bad Blogging Start?

(Ok, I know that I haven't even finished my personal blog post (Ola Amigos) yet, and now I'm leaving this one with more place holders, but it's almost 2 O'clock in the morning, and I'm trying to finish our presentation.  Give a guy a break, will ya?  I will say for now, that it was an AMAZING first day.  Details to follow.  For now, I'll tease you with the photos and let you guess the adventure.  Tchau!)

Ola, I´m back.  So here´s the skinny:  We´re in a town of 600,000 people called Sorocaba.  These pictures tell the story of the beginning.  We got the whole voltage/plug thing figured out for the most part because they have multi region plugs.  Skol is one of two beers that I see all over the place.  We were greeted at the airport by two of the greatest ladies on planet earth, Andrea and Delma.  You´ll see them pop up in pictures in future posts.  When we got to the hotel, we took a quick tour of downtown Sorocaba including a visit to a church.  I think it was Catholic because they were saying the Lords Prayer (you know, the one that starts, ´´Our Father who art in heaven...´´).  Some of us took a quick nap and some of us took longer naps (not calling out anyone who might have been still sleeping while we were supposed to be meeting with the Rotary District Governor. :-)  After dinner, we got some help from Andrea and Virigiana with our Portuguese grammer and then it was off to the mall where Melissa´s host has a fruit juice shop in the cafeteria.

                                                 

                                    

For our first full day in town, we visited a newspaper/radio station that is a foundation for a hospital and school.  I was hoping to see what happened when I shouted ´´ Stop the presses!´´ but they weren´t running at the time we were there.  In the afternoon, we were greeted warmly by the students at the school which the foundation supports.  This was my first emotional moment on the trip as it was clear how many people were doing what they had to, to make us not only feel welcome, but special.

Colors!

Breakfast

Colors are what comes to mind when I think of Sorocaba - our first city of the trip. Clocking in around 600,000 inhabitants, Sorocaba is a beautiful and colorful city with many beautiful and colorful people. The welcome we've received so far has set the bar high for all future host cities!
From the fruits at breakfast to the buildings in the shopping district, colors are everywhere.

My name is...

I'll be saying, "O meu nome e..." ("My name is") quite a lot over the next few weeks.  But I learned today that in Brazil, names help tell a lot more about a person than our simple Karen-Hebert-version.  Here I would be Karen Anne Hegerich West Hebert.  Now that's saying something!  It recalls my aunt, my mother's family (German), my father's family (Welsh) and my husband's father's family (French).  Any for those of you lucky enough to really know the cast of characters represented you'll know quite a lot about the crazy and wonderful influences in my life. 

So I might be saying "Karen Hebert" but now I'll be thinking "Karen Anne Hegerich West Hebert".  Nice to have the whole family along on the trip!

Goodbye and Bom Dia!

We've said our goodbyes and hellos.  We've met Andrea and Delma, GSE Chair and Co-chair and have settled into our hotel for a well-planned relaxing first day.  We drove immediately to Sorocaba.

 

Willing Fools

While in Brazil our team will be making presentations to local Rotary Clubs.  Our goal is to share a bit about ourselves and a bit about where we come from.

We'll be making these presentations in Portuguese.  Learning a new language is a lot of work. After hours and hours and hours of studying it is still very likely one will not be understood nor understand.  We might be taken seriously when trying to be light-hearted--or vice versa.  We will feel foolish at times.

This stretching is part of the fun and brings its own rewards.  Learning language is also a metaphor for building cross-cultural relationships.  Our language errors and accents reveal how we say things in English.  How we see the world and respond to it reveals our past experiences. 

We will bring our own language to Brazil - literally and figuratively.  But we will also do our best to learn and speak our hosts' language - literally and figuratively.  We'll make all kinds of mistakes.  But we are willing fools.

Team Member Denise-Boa Noite!

As I write this, I am becoming more excited to be visiting the beautiful country of Brazil. This is definitely a once in a lifetime opportunity. I am also learning that it is quite a challenge for a married, working mother of 3 teenagers to plan to be away for 4 weeks. This week has been quite interesting.

I first learned about Rotary’s Group Study Exchange Program the summer of 2012 when they were planning the exchange with a district in Australia. I applied and was an alternate for the trip. It was a very eye-opening experience just being part of the group as they prepared for the trip. Tom Marshall contacted me in October of 2013 to make me aware of the final GSE to Brazil. Although I had never thought about reapplying, it did peak my interest. After discussions with my family and work, I decided to try again. There were couple of hurdles to overcome, but I was thrilled to learn I had been chosen for this unique adventure.

I am a nurse, a mother, and a wife and live in a small town in central Wisconsin. Michael is my husband of 18 years. We have 3 children. One son and 2 daughters. Zachary-16, Molly-14, and Jaden-12. Our children are very active and involved in multiple activities. Much of our time is spent at their sporting events-basketball, volleyball, football, softball, track, and golf. As a family, we enjoy fishing, camping, and traveling within the United States. My husband and children also enjoy snowmobiling and hunting. Each summer, we take a 1-2 week family trip. We have seen many of the states over the years, but have not traveled to another country.

As a nurse, I work in a small hospital that is limited to 25 beds. It is a large organization that includes many items that a small hospital normally does not have. Memorial Health Center includes a dialysis unit, 5 clinics, a nursing and rehab unit, and two assisted living complexes. I am currently the nursing director for the Obstetrics unit (The Family Center), but have worked in the Emergency Department in the past. We deliver just over 200 babies a year. The Family Center has won National awards for our excellent patient cares. One unique item that we offer is Water births.

It is still very hard to believe this is about to happen in just a few short days. I am very thankful to everyone who is helping to make this adventure possible for me. From my husband and children, my co-workers, Rotary, and all of the people of Rotary district 4620 for their hospitality in hosting us. I am excited to take in any and all experiences while I am visiting Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Obrigado, Denise

Where in the World Is the GSE Team Going?

We have our itineraries for our time in Brazil! It looks like we’ll be bouncing around the State of São Paulo to various cities: Sorocaba for the first week, then São Paulo city, Santa Casa, Tatui, Ipero, Ourinhos, São Pedro do Turvo, Santa Cruz do Rio Pardo, Águas de Santa Bárbara, Cerqueira César, and the final week will be in Avaré, where we’ll also be attending the district conference for our host Distrito 4620.

Our route close up...

And our route in the larger picture!

During that time we have meals, vocational visits, Rotary club meetings, city tours, and a lot of time to spend with our host families, doing who-knows-what!

Wheels up in three days and counting…

The Little Things

If you thought the language and cultural differences made traveling difficult, what about the different electrical sockets?  Am I right?  Lucky for us, our team is comprised of smart people that take these details into account.  No problem!

What about trying to call us?  I can't speak for the rest of the team, but I'm hoping that nobody needs to be calling me during the month abroad. :-) Of course, if you're calling just to send a message of well-wishes, here is a website that will come in handy.

http://www.howtocallabroad.com/results.php?callfrom=united_states&callto=brazil

Ola Amigos - An introduction to Mike

My name is Mike and I'm in Brazil. Let me take a moment to tell you how i got here. I first learned about Rotary and the GSE experience 2.5 years ago. Our current district governor (Rob Stroud) had some videos edited for a Rotary project that he did. My ex worked on the video while interning at a video production company. I quickly learned about the work thag Rotary does as she was a GSE team member to India. While always loving to travel and naturally having a background of peace-keeping and goodwill maintenance, I was eager to get involved. I was fortunate back then to be able to host an Indian GSE team member at my house and loved that so much that I wanted to take a turn. Two years went by and i heard that this is the last year that GSE. Will be in existance. I couldn't resist.

Here is a shot of me introducing the local premiere of One Day on Earth, a documentary film that I participated in, which used footage shot from every country in the world on 10.10.10.

Team Member Mark - Boa noite!

Happy to say hello to everyone, and I hope you enjoy the chance to follow along.  I'm particularly excited in this age of instant digital information that everyone on both sides of the equator will be able to follow along in real time - or as close to that as we can manage to keep up with our posting!

As a quick intro, I currently live in the heart of Madison, just a stone's throw from the Capitol.  I work at Epic Systems Corporation (commonly just "Epic") out in Verona on the outskirts of the Madison "metro" area.  I don't mind the daily commute as it gives me a chance to both warm up to the day and wind down from it.  I also get the best of both worlds - calm, rolling countryside perfect for an evening jog on the Military Ridge state trail, but also the excitement of downtown.  Weeknights at the coffee shops, Saturday mornings at the Dane County Farmers' Market, and evenings out on the town with friends are all part of the plan.  In all my spare time, of course :)

I grew up in Willmar, Minnesota, a town of about 18,000 just about two hours west of Minneapolis.  I migrated from there to St. Olaf College in Northfield, MN where I studied physics initially, but ultimately graduated with a major in economics and finance.  I also completed a concentration in middle east studies, the result of a rather interesting semester abroad.  For those who do not know, St. Olaf is well-known (to the extent that can be said about a small liberal arts school in the Midwest!) for its many study abroad programs.  I participated in the "Term in the Middle East" program during the fall semester of 2004.  I and 11 other students traveled with a St. Olaf professor and his wife to Istanbul, Turkey; Marrakech, Morocco; Cairo, Egypt; and Athens, Greece.  Needless to say, it was the adventure of a lifetime.  But it was not my first introduction to life outside the United States...

This brings me to my history with Rotary International.  My father was a long-time Rotarian during my youth.  In fact, he was a such an enthusiastic member of our local club, he would often lend his musical skills in the form of piano accompaniment to the classic Rotary songs.  My parents also hosted a number of Youth Exchange students while I and by brother and sister grew up.  Finland, Germany, Norway, Korea, France, Finland again, and probably a couple I can't recall today.  Anyway, my brother paved the way with a year in Norway as an exchange student.  I followed this up with my own youth exchange year - also to Norway - and my sister rounded out the family with a year in France.

I have been blessed to experience a wealth of places, peoples, and cultures.  But I cannot overstate my excitement to see and experience Brazil!  As I've mentioned this trip to individuals at work and around Madison, I've been surprised to hear that Brazil is not so little-known as you might expect.  Many friends had stories to tell and recommendations to make.  We will be blessed indeed if our experience is half as interesting and rewarding as these folks would lead me to belive it will be, and I have no doubt the GSE program will live up to that billing.

Thanks in advance to our wonderful host clubs and host families.  Thanks to the many Rotarians who have helped us prepare and made this trip possible.  And thanks to all of you for following along!

-Mark

(a picture of me and some others at a Habitat for Humanity build day in Madison this spring)

GSE Team Member Melissa - Oi!

It's been a few years since I've traveled outside of the country, and I'm surprised to be feeling so nervous about it! There was a time when it was unnerving to not have been outside the country for longer than a year, but my life has changed a lot since those days; I have a husband, a house, and a menagerie of furry family members that I'm leaving behind. I've become a complacent creature of habit! So, let's put an end to that, shall we?

I stumbled upon the GSE program by sheer luck. I was looking at the Rotary District 6250's website for scholarship opportunities for my upcoming studies, and clicked the "Like" button to like them on Facebook. On their page, a photo of a Brazil coastline caught my eye, and I read about the search for candidates for the GSE program. Less than an hour later I was on the phone with Tom and a couple weeks after that, I was interviewing! It's funny how life ties things together in ways you don't expect.

As Karen notes in her intro, we've had a few months to get to know each other. I can't imagine a better mix of people to be traveling with. We all have different personalities and strengths, but all share a love of experiencing new cultures and going beyond our comfort zones. I'm looking forward to experiencing Brazil from their perspectives in addition to my own.

For some background, I'm currently working in the administration office of a public school district (Oregon School District), where I'm the assistant to the Director of Instruction. We've made some amazing gains in how the district's curriculum is organized and planned, and we've been able to share it with the public, too! My personal interest is in the area of mental health, and I'll be taking courses on counseling starting this summer after my return from Brazil. I'm hoping to use my understanding of the Brazilian culture and their approaches to caring for the members of their society to better understand how we can help people from other cultures who live here in the U.S.

I'm also a huge fan of flora and fauna, and my biggest hope is that I get to explore some of Brazil's parks and observe all creatures great and small in their natural habitat. My cameras are ready to go! (Yes, I'm taking two, just in case!)

I'm thankful for being on this last GSE trip, and hope that Rotary finds a new program that will be as well-coordinated and enriching as this one has been so far and will continue to be. Without the program, I don't believe I would have ever been able to make this amazing trip.

Obrigada, Rotary!
Melissa

Gregory will be holding down the fort in my absence

A Dream Come True

My Brazilian visa arrived today.  It's attached to page 12 of my passport--the page upon which Martin Luther King, Jr. is quoted, "We have a great dream."  Fitting.

Over the years my husband, Dick, and I have hosted many GSE team members.  We love it as I know do many of my fellow Rotarians.  The opportunity to form international bonds of friendship and caring is wonderful.  I admire Rotary for this investment in world peace and understanding and have always felt very lucky to host.

I'd hoped someday, AFTER retirement, to apply to lead a team.  I mentioned this to District Governor Rob Stroud last August and he informed me that if I didn't apply within weeks the dream would never be realized.  Rotary planned to replace GSE with an alternative vocational exchange.

It feels like just yesterday since Rob and I had that conversation.  But lots has happened since.  Our team participants were chosen, we met once a month to learn about one another and Brazil, and have begun our countdown to departure in earnest.

We have a great team.  It's quite obvious that each is willing to put the team's best before their own.  I think you'll find this group to be great ambassadors for Rotary and their respective communities and sponsoring clubs.

Before we leave, each team member plans to post and tell you a bit about themselves.  While I hesitate to make this post too long, here are a few quick things about me.

• I am not retired!  I am, however, well-supported by my loving husband and great colleagues who will care for my clients while I'm gone.
• I have two grown stepchildren, Anthony (UWEC Chemistry student) and Rachel (full time mom in Vancouver, WA).
• I've been a Rotarian since 1988 and have chaired numerous committees and served in all club offices.  I'm a member of the Rotary Club of Chippewa Falls but spent many years as a member of the Eau Claire Noon Rotary Club.

Karen

Brazilian dinner master-minded and executed by Melissa.  Team from left to right: Karen Hebert, Denise Carstensen, Melissa Bleiler, Bill Pritchard (Alternate Team Leader and Great Guy), Mark Morris, and Mike Haven.

Our first Two "Victims" And a Word of Thanks

Today was our last meeting with the group before departure.  I think it's a good sign that we had 4 hours set aside and only used 3 of them.  Our visas are on their way back.  The electronics are inventoried.  The presentation is honed to a "T".  Without giving away all of our tricks ahead of time, I present to you Tom and Bill, our first two victims.  Tom and Bill are good sports and faithful supporters. 

We got our group uniforms doled out and did a little show and tell with with our host gifts.  In 13 short days, we'll be on our way to life-changing Rotary exchange to Brazil!  The last detail to iron out was that we need to meet at the airport at 2:00.  Our work projects are put on hold, our families are prepared to make their own dinners, and our dogs are eager for a month with the babysitters.  To all of the people that helped to make this possible, we say:

The Team Coming Here

Meet the Brazil team!

The team from Brazil that will be in our district while we're in theirs! We hope their experiences in Wisconsin are as unique and exciting as the ones we'll have in São Paulo.

Team Member Gladston, Team Member Carlos, Team Member Patricia, Team Leader Willy, Team Member Ana Carolina, Chair Andréa, Governor Werneck, Future Governor Wellington and Past Governor Luiz.