MARINA JESSOP'S BIOGRAPHY - Rotary E-Club of Southwest USA

MARINA JESSOP’SBIOGRAPHYHi there Rotarians! My name is MarinaJessop. I am so thrilled to be a part ofthe GSE Team for Switzerland this year!Many thanks to Mel and Judy Taunt fortheir help and recommendations!!Just a little about myself; I am 34 yearsold and have lived the majority of my lifein Arizona. I am currently living in ShowLow, Arizona with my two wonderfulboys, Morgon (14), and Jackson (13). Ihave my own practice working as aMassage Therapist/Instructor, YogaInstructor, and an Iridologist. I am also astudent at the local community collegeworking toward a degree in Social Work.I stay busy with my work, studies andmy boys, and love every minute of it!All of my life, I have wanted to knowhow other people around the world livetheir lives. A few years ago I had thechance to go to South Africa with the Oprah Winfrey show, touring the country asa part of her book club for “Cry the Beloved Country”. The experience in SouthAfrica impacted me so much, that it inspired me to resume my education after Ireturned home. I want to specialize in helping organizations prevent childtrafficking. During the summer of 2008, I was awarded a scholarship throughNorthland Pioneer College to enroll in the University of Costa Rica’s month-longSpanish immersion program.I cannot tell you how grateful I am for this opportunity Rotary has to offer. I amlooking forward to learning more about Rotary, specifically your e-club, and all ofthe opportunities this experience will bring! Thank you so much!!

GROUP STUDY EXCHANGE ESSAYMarina JessopAny time a person travels abroad, they gain an experience that impacts them forthe rest of their lives. By stepping out of ones comfort zone, and being placed intoanother country, a person can be more open to learning and to possibilities. The impactit has can be life changing. I have always had a lifelong dream of seeing othercountries, and how other people live. The idea of being able to experience not only howother people live, but also seeing other businesses and how they are run in a foreigncountry is incredibly intriguing to me. For me, there is something to be learned andsomething to be gained by experiencing this.I have two career paths; I have been a self-employed Massage Therapist foralmost ten years. Along with my practice, I incorporate other healing modalities such asIridology, and Yoga. These aspects are all incorporated into my practice and used as aholistic tool. I plan on continuing my practice for a very long time. The second careerpath evolved about four years ago, when I won a contest through the Oprah show for alife changing trip to South Africa. The trip was based on the book “Cry the BelovedCountry”. There were three of us who won the trip out of thousands who wrote letters.The trip showed the economic, social, and some of the racial hardships South Africahas faced. It impacted me in such a way that I wanted to do more humanitarian work inmy life. I started going to school to get a degree in Social Work, and am currently inschool. The career path that I am pursuing would be along the lines of internationalsocial work, helping with humanitarian issues that the world faces today. My dream isto not only work for the U.S. but world wide if possible. I feel we are all connected, andlearning from other cultures and the way they operate would be so beneficial for thiscareer.

From the Group Study Exchange, I would hope to learn how other businessesare run in a foreign country and implement what I have learned into my current career,and the one that I am pursuing. Being in the service industry through massage, I wouldhope to learn how healing modalities are used in Switzerland. I have always known thatEuropean countries are big on holistic health practices. I would love to have theopportunity to see how they use them, what their treatments are like, and what they do.I would like to learn not only the massage aspects but other healing modalities as well,because I feel it is all incorporated into a holistic practice, which is what I try to do withmy practice. I would hope there would be new aspects introduced that I could integrateinto my practice for the long term.Even if the field is nonrelated, there is always something to be learned by seeinghow other businesses are managed; whether it is a financial aspect, marketing,managing, or scheduling. The intent of my career path is to help other people, by givingservice and doing humanitarian work. I would hope to incorporate what I learn from thisexperience into my profession. It would be a unique learning opportunity as well as ahuge honor for me to be chosen for the Group Study Exchange. Thank you for yourtime.