Hospitalero News-April 2010 - American Pilgrims on the Camino

<strong>Hospitalero</strong>s
Voluntarios
Class of <strong>2010</strong>
FLORIDA
• RICK BALDWIN
• NANCY BRANDT
• LYNN CASMIER-PAZ
• JASON GROGAN
• FLORENCE LICATA
• MARIA JOSÉ MILLAN
DELGADO
• JENNIPHER MILLS
CALIFORNIA
• EMILIO ESCUDERO
• ROBERT HOLM
• ANN HOWLEY
NEW YORK
• BILL EDWARDS
• JACK PODSIADLO
CONNECTICUT
• ANNETTE DRZALA
GEORGIA
• SHERRY HINES
LOUISIANA
• WANDA ALEXANDER
MAINE
• DAVID GRISWOLD
MINNESOTA
• MARGARET TRENKMANN
MISSOURI
• BONITA SAMUELSON
VERMONT
• JANE DEWEY
VIRGINIA
• MIKE VIILO
WASHINGTON
• PETER BUCKLEY
<strong>American</strong> <strong>Pilgrims</strong>
<strong>Hospitalero</strong> <strong>News</strong>
Volume 2, Issue 1 <strong>April</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
!Hola, <strong>Hospitalero</strong>s Voluntarios!
This year has begun with lots of good energy in our hospitalero world. The recent cursillo
which was held in Orlando, Florida was a resounding success with participants coming from all
over the United States. The Federación in Logroño sent us updated training guidelines which
now bring us all, Spanish and North <strong>American</strong>s, into greater accord regarding the philosophy and
expectations of volunteers. After this most recent course we now have 20 newly trained
volunteers.
Already some of the new hospitaleros have requested and received postings to albergues on
the Camino Francés and the Via de la Plata. In addition, many volunteers from past years’
courses are planning to work on the Camino this year. To date a total of 20 volunteers from
<strong>American</strong> <strong>Pilgrims</strong> have received
postings from the Federación in
Logroño. If any of you will be
walking the Way this year, there’s a
good chance you will run into one
or another of them. Check the
listing on page 3 for details.
This is exciting progress!
However, there is still a need for
more volunteers. If you have
thought you’d like to go over
again, or volunteer for your first
time, the Holy Year of <strong>2010</strong> needs
you! Get in touch with either
Daniel or Lin for information
about contacting the Federación.
<strong>American</strong> <strong>Pilgrims</strong> now has
three new hospitalero trainers:
Kathy Kennerly, from Dallas,
Texas, and Francisco and
Jeanette Chacon from Santa
Barbara, California. All three
assisted in the training in Orlando and were a big part of the success of that course. With their
help we can offer more trainings throughout the year in various parts of the country. Our goal is
to make trainings more available to pilgrims throughout the country. Already, there is a course
planned for San Francisco on July 23-25, followed by a general pilgrim get-together at the
conclusion of the training on the July 25 th . Come if you can! For more information on this
course please get in touch with Lin Galea at hospitaleros@americanpilgrims.com.
Many of you have unfortunately discovered that one of the current topics of concern on the
Camino is the presence of bedbugs in albergues. In order to improve our training courses and to
better prepare our volunteers, I’ve been researching the topic, including consulting the Harvard
! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Continued on Page 2
Congratulations, <strong>American</strong>
<strong>Pilgrims</strong><strong>Hospitalero</strong>s Voluntarios
Class of <strong>2010</strong> ~ Winter Park, FL

Message from Coordinator|Continued from Page 1
School of Public Health and the University of Minnesota’s
Department of Entomology. What I’ve discovered is that
these little critters hide themselves well, they come out at
night, and if they get into your clothes or sleeping bag, they
can become unwanted hitchhikers to the next albergue.
Their bites cause itching and inflammation, but it’s almost
unheard of for them to transmit disease. ! !
Unfortunately, remedies are few and prevention is
difficult. The most effective remedy is dry heat. Bedbugs
don’t like heat. They die easily in superheated
environments, so a good washer/dryer combo comes in
handy. It’s recommended that pilgrims have a separate set
of sleeping clothes, say a t-shirt and pair of boxer shorts. If
they do find that they have bedbug bites, they can take their
sleeping bag and sleeping clothes and run them through a
clothes dryer at it’s hottest cycle for 20 minutes.
An alternative to this is to place suspected contaminated
items packed lightly in a black plastic bag, secure well, and
place the bag in the hot sun for a few hours. Rotate the bag
once in a while so the entire contents will heat up equally.
Since access to clothes washers or dryers may be limited,
especially in small towns, hospitaleros may want to keep a
supply of black plastic bags on hand specifically for this
purpose.
<strong>Hospitalero</strong>s volunteering in albergues should also
practice daily vigilance with regard to washing bedding,
linens and areas near beds. If you are planning to volunteer,
or if you are simply interested in knowing more about these
critters, I will happily send you more detailed information.
Contact me at hospitaleros@americanpilgrims.com.
On a more upbeat note, one of the successes of the
Annual Gathering this year was a luncheon held for veteran
hospitaleros. There were 25 members in attendance, some
of whom have volunteered three and even four times. It was
great fun sharing our stories. Only another volunteer really
knows what it’s like. We want to continue this tradition for
veterans at future Annual Gatherings.
Later on the same afternoon several veterans helped put
on a workshop to discuss the hospitalero experience. It was
well attended and proved to be a success. Next year’s
Gathering organizing committee is already considering a
repeat of this program.
While in Orlando several of our hospitalero family were
interviewed on camera by Xacobeo America, the North
<strong>American</strong> arm of the Galician government’s Camino
support
organization. These
interviews were
done as part of an
advertising
program aimed at
furthering interest
in the Camino,
particularly the
Camino in
Galicia. The
Northern Route,
the Via de la
Plata, and the
English Route
are some of the
areas that the Xacobeo hopes to
introduce to future pilgrims.
Margaret Brown & Kathy Kennerly
show hospitalero trainees how to
make brownies for a crowd.
All in all, it looks to be an exciting year for <strong>American</strong>
<strong>Pilgrims</strong>’ hospitalero training program. We are gaining a
greater presence on the Camino, we’ll be offering more
training courses this year, we are growing as a group, and
most importantly, we are giving back to the Camino which
has given us so much.
Daniel DeKay
<strong>Hospitalero</strong> Training Coordinator
Looking for Angels for the Camino
Just as we encounter angels on the Camino when we most need them, we are looking for angels with terrific funding ideas.
<strong>American</strong> <strong>Pilgrims</strong> is in the process of increasing the number of hospitalero trainings and bringing them to local communities.
More training sessions require more travel for the trainers, plus materials, food and lodging for the trainees.
We are actively researching sources for funding, but we have no monopoly on good ideas. If you know of a business,
foundation or individual donor who might be willing to fund additional hospitalero trainings, we want to hear from you.
Funders have their priority areas, and a funding request needs to be presented in terms that fit those priorities. <strong>Hospitalero</strong>s
make contributions beyond loving and helping the pilgrims. By their presence on the camino, they serve as ambassadors of
peace and good will. They also help communities where albergues are located by encouraging tourism and sustainable economic
development. Each of these goals might fit the funding priorities of a particular donor or foundation.
We want to provide more opportunities for <strong>American</strong> <strong>Pilgrims</strong> to serve as hospitaleros. With your help, we can match our
needs with the goals of a potential funder. If you have any ideas, please contact hospitaleros@americanpilgrims.com.
<strong>American</strong> <strong>Pilgrims</strong> <strong>Hospitalero</strong> <strong>News</strong> 2

<strong>Hospitalero</strong> Lunch
<strong>2010</strong> Gathering
For the first time the board of <strong>American</strong> <strong>Pilgrims</strong>
invited hospitaleros to a special “thank you” lunch on
Friday, March 19 during the Annual Gathering at the
beautiful San Pedro Center near Winter Park, Florida.
About 25 hospitaleros and trainers met together to
enjoy fish and chips as well as sharing and fellowship. We
began with introductions, each of us telling our names,
where we were from, and where we have served as
hospitaleros. It was wonderful to see old friends and
meet new ones.
We especially enjoyed seeing Francisco and Jeanette
Chacon who met on the Camino in 2008 and were
married this past winter. They trained with us in Santa
Fe, volunteered in Grañon last summer, and are now
serving as hospitalero trainers.
It was great to see Kathy Kennerly again, whom my
husband Richard and I met in July 2009 at Domus Dei
albergue in Foncebadon as we were walking in the
pouring rain to our own hospitalero posting in El Acebo.
Kathy took us in, where we dried o! and talked together
over a pot of lentil stew and a bottle of wine.
As new hospitaleros we learned so much from Kathy
during that brief meeting while we
were waiting for the rain to stop. We
entered as strangers and parted as
friends, which is the magic of the
Camino! Now Kathy is also a trainer
of hospitaleros!
At the end of this special lunch,
Tom Friesen presented all of us with
muñequitos, the little dolls with
outstretched arms that identify us as
hospitaleros in Spain. No doubt we
will all wear them with pride and with
the anticipation of our next posting as hospitaleros
voluntarios, and our next opportunity to gather again!
! ! Jane Carter
! ! Seattle, WA
<strong>2010</strong> Volunteer Postings
So far, at least 20 <strong>American</strong> <strong>Pilgrims</strong> have signed up to volunteer as hospitaleros this Holy Year on the
Camino Francés and Via de la Plata. Please wish our hospitaleros “Buena Suerte” as they embark on their
postings, and let us know if your name should be added to the list.
<strong>April</strong> 1-15 Nájera JANE & JOHN LEPOUVOIR
May 1-15 Rabanal del Camino MARTHA CRITES
May 1-15 Rabanal del Camino JAMES LIMARDI
May 15-31 El Burgo Ranero JENNIPHER MILLS
June 1-15 Rabanal del Camino RICHARD BALDWIN
June 1-15 Ponferrada KATHY KENNERLY
June 1-15 Ponferrada ANN HOWLEY
June 15-30 Viana CHRISTINE KILE
June 14-30 Logroño JENNIPHER MILLS
July 1-15 Estella JANE & RICHARD CARTER
July 1-15 Bercianos CHERYL GRASMOEN
July 1-15 Bercianos ELVIRA NELSON
July 1-15 Rabanal del Camino ROSEANN & GENE MCCULLOUGH
AUGUST 25- SEPT 9 MIRAZ CRYSTAL MUÑOZ!!
July 15-30 Santo Domingo SHERRY HINES
September 1-15 Foncebadón RENNIE ARCHIBALD
September 15-30 Zamora MARTHA LÓPEZ
September 15-30 Zamora LIN GALEA
<strong>American</strong> <strong>Pilgrims</strong> <strong>Hospitalero</strong> <strong>News</strong>
3

Ode to a Bed Bug
on the Camino de Santiago
By Chris Slater
Asheville, NC
(With apologies to Robert Louis Stevenson)
Little bed bug, chinche too,
How I wish that I were you!
You have pilgrim blood for food,
Variety for every mood,
Delivered free to your front door
You couldn’t really ask for more.
Spanish, German, French and Swiss,
What a recipe for bliss!
Irish, Australian and Dutch ~
Careful you don’t drink too much.
Belgian, Scandinavian ~
They try to hide from you in vain.
But English blood, you should beware,
There may be streaks of blue in there.
<strong>American</strong> is suspect too ~
Their fatty diet is bad for you.
By day you hide in crevice deep,
A perfect place in which to sleep.
But when night falls and lights are out,
You emerge to wave your snout.
It’s time for you to make a start ~
Menú de noche or a la carte.
So choose your dish, no need for haste
To satisfy your latest taste.
Bellies, thighs, and buttocks too,
Whatever comes into your view.
No vampire had it quite so good
As you, when savouring your food.
I’m sure when you begin to suck,
You cannot quite believe your luck.
And when red juice begins to flow,
I wonder, do you really know
What agonies of legs and feet
Have brought to you this splendid treat?
Then, if you tire of the décor
Just take a stroll across the floor.
Many a back pack there will do
To hitch a ride to pastures new.
Your ancestors were nourished, too,
For centuries they learned to do
The things you specialize in well
From Roncesvalles to Compostelle.
Your place in history’s assured
As you feed on the pilgrim horde.
Little bed bug, chinche too,
How I wish that I were you!
Debooted, but
never defeeted!
<strong>American</strong> <strong>Pilgrims</strong> <strong>Hospitalero</strong> <strong>News</strong>
4

Notes from Sahagún ~ 2008
I arrived in
Sahagún on
Sunday
afternoon,
September 14.
It took less
than 15
minutes to
walk from the train station at one end of town to the
Benedictine convent at the other end of town where I
am currently working as the volunteer hospitalera.
And working is operative word! I find that I am equal
parts concierge, counselor and cleaning lady. After filling
me in on my duties, my predecessor took o! around
7:00 p.m., leaving me with a heavy set of keys and a long
list of things to do. With only five pilgrims staying the
night, I went to bed relatively unconcerned."""
Monday was a di!erent story! The day started badly
when I overslept by an hour. My first job of the day is to
set out a simple breakfast for the pilgrims at 7:15 a.m.,
but I didn´t awake until 7:30 # and they were too kind to
knock on my door. I jumped out of bed, put on the
co!ee, and quickly had bread, butter, jam and cocoa on
the table.
I soon had all the pilgrims on their way, except for
one German woman who was ill with stomach flu and
tendonitis, so I told her to stay in bed and rest. I
commenced my cleaning, but soon the doorbell rang.
There in the
entry was a tall,
handsome
german fellow.
He said we was a
priest and asked
if he could come
in and rest
awhile. He had
been sick to his
stomach all night
and was feeling
awful. I put him
to bed in another
room, and
brought tea and
dry toast to my two
patients. Soon
another young
german with stomach flu arrived, so I put him in the
bunk next to the priest. By now it´s only 11:00 a.m. and
already three of my 14 beds are filled!
As I went about my duties, the doorbell rang o! and
on. Some pilgrims passing by asked to have their pilgrim
credenciales stamped, while others asked when I would be
opening for business. I started admitting pilgrims at
12:30 and by 2:00 p.m., I was completo, i.e., completely full.
<strong>American</strong> <strong>Pilgrims</strong> <strong>Hospitalero</strong> <strong>News</strong>
Madres Benedictinas de Sahagú"
Covering a city block, their buildings house a convent,
chapel, museum and 14#bed refugio
The three patients slept most of the day and I also
had another pilgrim with some pretty serious blisters on
both feet. The better part of the afternoon was spent
directing my patients to the local medical center, and
providing information about where/when to catch the bus
to the next town. We all turned in shortly after 10:00
p.m.. This time, I made sure my alarm was working
properly before falling into a restless sleep.
I was up at 6:00 a.m. on Tuesday, and began serving
breakfast at 6:30. After many thank yous, hugs and
!Buen Caminos!, my charges had all departed before 8:00
a.m. I set to cleaning and
worked straight through until
11:00 a.m! There was so much
to do. We have bunks for 14
distributed in three
bedrooms, each with it´s own
"en suite" bathroom. Since
the house was full the night
before, everything warranted
a thorough cleaning.""
My principal contact with
the Benedictines nuns is Sor
$sister% Consuelo. She is
about 80, very spry and up to
the minute. She came by to
see how I was getting on and
Mayuko Kawasaki
to retrieve the donations left by Assistant Hospitalera
the pilgrims in the donation
boxes. Sor Consuelo was quite pleased to find a grand
total of 55& in the two donation boxes. "Last night's
pilgrims comported themselves very
well" she said in Spanish. Even though
that's less than 4& per person, I felt
rather proud of myself, since Sor
Consuelo seemed to think it was a good
haul.
By noon on Tuesday, after working all
morning, I was feeling tired and
discouraged. But only two pilgrims
showed up that afternoon, so it turned
out to a quiet and relaxing day. One of
these was Mayuoko, a young Japanese
woman su!ering from tendonitis. I sent
her to the local medical center and she
returned with a doctor’s note
recommending three days rest. After
reading the note, Sor Consuelo
determined that Mayuko should stay with
us three nights instead of the usual one.
Naturally, I have put her to work as my assistant
hospitalera, and she is tending the doorbell until I
return to open the refuge at 12:30."
So all is well, the weather is beautiful and I am happy
again. We´ll see what this afternoon brings. Stay tuned!
! ! ! Martha López
! ! ! Sacramento, CA
5

Confraternity of St. James
of South Africa
Inaugurates <strong>Hospitalero</strong>
Training
Roque. One was an “In#Take” session where the
hospitaleros had to register pilgrims at their albergue.
We set up three tables with registration book, stamp
The first hospitaleros training courses in South
Africa, approved by the Spanish Federation’s
<strong>Hospitalero</strong>s Voluntarios $HOSVOL% were facilitated by
Sylvia Nilsen based on a training manual compiled by
Canadian Company of <strong>Pilgrims</strong>’ Rebekah Scott, Tom
Friesen and Mary Virtue.
Last year Sylvia, a regional convenor for the
Confraternity of St. James of South Africa $and ex#
<strong>American</strong> <strong>Pilgrims</strong> member% helped test an experimental
online hospitaleros training course by completing seven
online assignments prepared by Rebekah and Tom. It
was hoped that the online course would receive the
approval of the Spanish Federation for use by
confraternities in other countries but the concept was
vetoed by HOSVOL.
In July 2009 Sylvia volunteered as hospitalera at the
San Roque albergue in Corcubion. Many South African
pilgrims expressed a wish to
volunteer as hospitaleros but,
with the online course being
disallowed, the only alternatives
were to
travel to Spain to attend the
HOSVOL training courses or
bring a
trainer to
South
Africa at
great cost.
“I contacted
Rebekah
South African hospitaleros create an “albergue” for
and Tom about
role play and training purposes.
using the
assignments from the online course to train pilgrims in
South Africa” said Sylvia. “After numerous emails
between the Canadians and Ana Barreda the
coordinator of HOSVOL, a written training manual was
approved and sent to South Africa.”
The first two training courses, held over consecutive
week#ends, were attended by 21 pilgrims. “I included a
few new activities based on what I had learned at San
Newly commissioned hospitaleros
surround facilitator Sylvia Nilsen,
middle row, third $om le%
and a donation box. The ‘pilgrims’ were each given a
‘credencial’ in a di!erent language. One was in
Vietnamese which totally confused the poor hospitalera!
I even used a copy of my 2005 <strong>American</strong> <strong>Pilgrims</strong>
credencial” said Sylvia.
“Two of our hospitaleras will volunteer to
serve on
the Camino Frances in August and
September. Another
two, a husband and wife team, intend
serving on the Via de la Plata next year. One
of our members intends re#locating to the
Galician coast next year and plans to start a
self#sustainable small holding together with a
pilgrim albergue.”
South Africa is represented on the
Camino Frances at Vilacha $near Portomarin%
where Gordon Bell from Cape Town
welcomes pilgrims to “Casa Banderas.”
Sylvia Nilsen
Durban, South Africa
For more information visit:
Confraternity of St.James of South Africa
or contact Sylvia Nilsen:
sillydoll@gmail.com
www.amawalker.blogspot.com
<strong>American</strong> <strong>Pilgrims</strong> <strong>Hospitalero</strong> <strong>News</strong> 6

Bulletin Board
Stay in touch!
Please send us stories and photos about your
hospitalero experiences this year. Submission
deadline for our next issue is November 1, <strong>2010</strong>.
Please send your submissions to:
hospnews@americanpilgrims.com
You can also help us update our files. We want
to make sure we have your correct contact
information as well as an accurate record of
<strong>American</strong> <strong>Pilgrims</strong> volunteer experience. Bring
us up to date on any volunteer assignments and
future plans. Send your updates to:
Lin Galea
1070 Green Street
San Francisco, CA 94133
Fax: 414-673-7198
Email: hospnews@americanpilgrims.com
Regional <strong>Hospitalero</strong>
Training
In addition to the hospitalero
training offered in conjunction
with the annual Gathering,
<strong>American</strong> <strong>Pilgrims</strong> is planning to
offer at least one other training
session each year. For example,
planning is currently underway
for a July <strong>2010</strong> training session
in San Francisco.
We can to come to any state or
region where there is sufficient
interest. If you would like to
recommend a training session
near you, please contact:
hospitaleros@americanpilgrims.com
We look forward to hearing from
you!
<strong>News</strong>letter Contact Info
Daniel DeKay
<strong>Hospitalero</strong> Training Coordinator
hospitaleros@americanpilgrims.com
Lin Galea & Martha López
<strong>News</strong>letter Coordinators
hospnews@americanpilgrims.com
<strong>American</strong> <strong>Pilgrims</strong> on the Camino
www.americanpilgrims.com
(Check the bulletin board under
Forums for postings from fellow
hospitaleros.)
<strong>Hospitalero</strong> Tips
Looking for more information on how to spot and
deal with bed bugs while working in an albergue?
This website offers excellant hints and suggestions
for prevention and treatment: www.bedbuginfo.com.
*****************************
We would love to hear your quick tips for a well run
albergue. These could include easy recipes for a
crowd, what to bring from home, how you dealt with
an unforeseen problem, etc. Please send us your
ideas, suggestions or links to informative websites.
Send your submissions to:
hospnews@americanpilgrims.com
We will publish your tips and suggestions in
upcoming newsletters.
<strong>American</strong> <strong>Pilgrims</strong> <strong>Hospitalero</strong> <strong>News</strong> 7