I am Liz Tarshis, a junior at Bridgewater State University in MA pursuing a degree in Sociology and Economics. I am also a 2010 graduate from Newtown High School. This summer I will be participating in a service trip to a mountainous community in Ecuador through the organization Me to We, sister organization of Free The Children.
"Me to We’s volunteer trips in Ecuador take place deep in indigenous communities of the country’s rugged mountains or in the lush Amazon region." During this Me to We Trip I will be participating in, "school-building or working on a Free the Children development project such as clean water project or alternative income program, teaching in the classroom, and playing with, interacting and meeting children and community members in rural communities."
Through this Me to We Trip I hope to expand and better my perception of the world. I hope to gain perspective through the eyes of the Ecuadorian community that I will be visiting and be able to translate this new insight into motivation and empowerment for bettering my own community, and the global community I am a part of. Growing up in a New England suburb and never leaving the east coast I have never been exposed to any different way of life. My perception of the world has been limited to that of an American teen living in a relatively comfortable life style compared to most of the world. It has been a dream of mine to be able to see first hand the life styles I've been learning about in my college courses, the people that do not have everything yet are still storngly connected to their communities. I hope spending the two weeks with this kind of community will solidify my ambition to work for social change and see how I can be effective in that work.
For this trip I have to raise $4000, including travel, shots, insurance and amenities. So I ask, if you are able to help me obtain my goal and make this dream a reality please donate by going to my fundraising website (copy this link into your browser) http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?registrationID=1694826&langPref=en-CA , or contact me for more information- etarshis@student.bridgew.edu
