Read the Summer 2012 issue - the University of Maine Alumni ...

“We were particularly pleased when
Laurel joined us. The Parker family, who
own and run Parker Lumber, are almost all
UMaine graduates. They’ve been our
friends since we moved here. Laurel was a
friend of Andrea’s and they were classmates
and in Girl Scouts together. It means
so much to us to have someone else who
knew Andrea join the effort,” Sylvia
comments.
Making progress against the odds
According to Sylvia, who handles the
communications, promotion and finances
for the Andrea Ritz Clinics in Paraguay,
they are grateful to the many people who
have lent a hand over the years. The
Andrea Ritz Clinics in Paraguay is an official
501(C)3 non-profit corporation that
accepts tax-deductible donations.
“We take no salaries. George pays his
own transportation down to Paraguay.
Every cent we raise goes into the effort.
now that I’m retired, I’ll have more time to
spend on getting the word out. We have
our own Facebook page at www.facebook.com/paraguayclinics
where I have
posted photos from all the trips, starting
with the first clinic in 1997. I have not been
down there since 1998. I feel that it is more
important that a doctor or medical professional
has the seat on the back of the ATV
or on the cart that I’d take up. I can do
more good here,” Sylvia emphasizes.
“This is a long-term process and we are
committed to it for the long haul,” George
states emphatically. “The villagers know it
and are responding. They appreciate that
we know they can’t make the gigantic leap
from the Stone Age to the 21st century in
only a few years. It will take decades. But
we have been able to put down a foundation
and put a few solid building blocks in
place. It’s something we intend to give the
rest of our lives to. And along the way
we’ve been picking up others, like the
doctors and like a shipping company from
new Jersey owned by Paraguayan expatriots.
The shippers are now able to ship
our medical supplies down to Paraguay in
their containers along with their other
goods.” George concludes.
“People support us because they know
that what might be a small contribution to
other organizations is more important to us.
To date, we have not gone after large grants
or other big-name support because of the
small scale and slow pace at which we
work, due in part, to our personal involvement.
It takes generations to foster progress
in a culturally appropriate and sensitive
manner. To do otherwise is to invite failure.
We cannot take a large team to Paraguay, as
many missions are able to in other parts of
the world. The infrastructure and extreme
poverty in the areas in which we work will
not support it. The logistics of travel,
moving construction equipment and materials
is very difficult. Rain quickly turns the
red clay roads to mud and makes them
dangerous or impassable.
“For example, it was a gargantuan effort
to move the two drilling rigs, borrowed
from the government, from the capital to
the villages where we drilled the new wells.
We currently have nine running water
systems in place with over 15 kilometers of
water line. Each year we lay a few more
kilometers of water line to bring safe water
to more families,” George concludes.
graduation. Abby is now the
sports travel coordinator for
Aussie Basketball Travelers
striving to bring the world’s
basketball community together.
Abby arranges for thousands of
Australian teens to travel to
different states to focus on their
competitive basketball skills as
well as create lasting, positive
friendships with their host
families.
Ryan Tewhey ’05 graduated with
dual majors in molecular and
cellular biology and bio chemistry.
After graduation, Ryan worked at
the Broad Institute of MIT and
Harvard researching genetic risk
factors for Type II diabetes. While
earning his Ph.D. in biology at the
University of California, San
Diego, Ryan has been exploring
the use of DnA sequencing to
understand what makes MRSA
(methicillin-resistant
Staphylococcus aureus) so deadly.
The MRSA microbe is a constant
threat in hospitals and nursing
homes and Ryan’s work on the
subject recently earned him a
place on the Forbes Magazine “30
under 30” list for science.
Kristen Sheppard ’07 is making
her mark with the Peace Corps in
Botswana. After graduation,
Kristen moved to new York City
and interned at the Highbridge
Woodycrest Center in the Bronx,
a mental health facility for people
who are HIV positive. She
subsequently worked at
Germaine Lawrence in Arlington,
MA, a residential treatment
center for girls ages 10 -18.
Combining these experiences
Kristen now works in a social
work office in Werda, Botswana,
where she educates teenagers
about HIV and its prevention.
Casey Johnson Bromberg ’02,
’04G was named one of the Top
10 people shaping Maine’s
economic future in 2010 by
Maine Biz magazine for her work
as development director for the
Kennebec Valley Community
Action Program (KVCAP). In
2011, she was appointed a
commissioner of the Maine
Commission for Community
Service. Casey now serves as the
project manager for the
Emergency Homeowner Loan
Program, a federally funded
program at KVCAP, which is
helping financially troubled
Mainers avoid foreclosure.
One person can make a difference.
SUMMER 2012 15