Bowdoin College Students Visit Mano en Mano for Weekend Service Trip

By: Mariya Ilyas, Bowdoin Class of 2013 and Trip Volunteer.

Most college students spend their weekends catching up on sleep, doing homework, or hanging out with friends. Last weekend, however, six Bowdoin students did none of that; instead, they volunteered with Mano en Mano.

“I participated in the trip in order to see what a weekend service trip was like, and because I wanted to learn more about migrant education,” said Danielle Orchant ’14.

Bowdoin alum and Mano en Mano Executive Director Ian Yaffe ’09 had been in touch with Janice Jaffe of the Bowdoin College’s McKeen Center for the Common Good and later had conversations with seniors Sam Collins and Elsie Thomson about Bowdoin’s involvement with Mano en Mano.

“After meeting with Sam and Elsie earlier this fall, I brought their ideas to my staff and we came up with a plan that would mutually benefit Mano en Mano, the Bowdoin students, and most importantly, our constituency,” said Yaffe.

The trip was organized by Thomson, who organizes all weekend trips through the McKeen Center.

“The goals of the Weekend Service Trip program are to provide students with opportunities to get off campus and learn about a new community while doing service,” said Thomson.

Even though Collins could not attend, Thomson was accompanied by Orchant, Rachel Turkel ’11, Mariya Ilyas ’13, Sandra Martinez ’13, and Somya Mawrie ’14.

“I participated in the trip because as a Latina in the middle of Maine I wanted to learn more about my own people and how and why they were here in Maine,” said Martinez.

When the Bowdoin students arrived to Milbridge on Friday night, they learned about Mano and Mano’s mission and history over dinner with Yaffe and his colleague Ana Blagojevic at the 44 Degree North Restaurant.

The next morning, the eager students rolled up their sleeves and got to work. They first cleaned and reorganized all the bookshelves in the community center. After a quick lunch break, they planned reading activities for the community kids and their families.

“We got the chance to spend time with local community members and work with them to plan a story hour event for small children that they can hopefully do again in the future,” said Thomson.

“The most rewarding part was definitely spending time with the kids – some of them were so ecstatic and excited to read,” said Turkel. “With the stress of homework and classes, it was great to be around the energy and optimism of little kids.”

Students acted out “A Little Red Hen,” read aloud “What a Tantrum!” and conducted other individual activities and games with the kids.

See below for a slideshow of photos from their visit:

“I thought this was a particularly great trip for the Weekend Service Trip program because I think few students at Bowdoin are aware of Milbridge, Mano en Mano, or even the presence of migrant workers in Maine,” said Thomson.

Yaffe and the students, alike, are looking forward to a greater collaboration between Mano and Mano and Bowdoin College. Already, Mano en Mano has received in-kind donations from the College, sent staff to receive professional development from Bowdoin faculty, and sent staff to guest lecture with the Education Department.

“I’m especially proud as an alumnus to be establishing partnerships between Mano en Mano and numerous students and staff,” said Yaffe. “Bowdoin inspired a lot of my beliefs about the Common Good so it’s a real honor to be connecting back with the College in a way that furthers our mission, helps our constituency, and provides opportunities for students to see a different side of Maine and make a lasting difference.”

Yaffe has done just that: made a real difference. For Yaffe, the most rewarding part of his job is “being able to see immediate results by working directly with clients while knowing that we’re making a long-term difference by tackling the very issues that make our organization so necessary,” he said.

Future service trips are definitely a possibility.

“It really made me want to get further involved and possibly join forces with [Bowdoin’s] Latin American Student Organization (LASO) to organize more trips and make a stronger bond with Mano en Mano,” said Martinez.

“I would definitely be interested in doing a trip like this again, and would love to help build some sort of relationship between Bowdoin and Mano en Mano,” said Orchant.

Yaffe added, “I’m looking forward to future service projects as well as the opportunity to connect the tremendous academic resources of the College with many of the problems our nonprofit and community face today.”