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Chicago (ELCA)-MR — At age 22, Andrea Metcalfe, Augustana Lutheran Church, West St. Paul, Minn., discovered what it means to "slow down in life." It took an experience in the United Kingdom last year to learn that "sitting down and having tea" with an older adult is just as important and productive as anything else in life.
In 2002 Metcalfe served as a volunteer at the Ryelands Methodist Home for the Aged in London. As part of the "Young Adults in Global Mission" program of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), Metcalfe traveled to the United Kingdom to learn about giving, receiving and "accompaniment."
Young Adults in Global Mission is a one-year international service opportunity for ELCA members ages 19-30. Young people serve as volunteers and work in a supervised setting. Travel, housing, medical insurance and allowance are provided, and volunteers are required to raise a minimum of $3,000 for program support.
This age offers "one of the only times in life where you can drop everything and live somewhere else. We have the opportunity to do stuff that is not in the travel guide," Metcalfe said.
For the 2003-2004 service term, which began in mid-August, 32 young adults are volunteering in Argentina, Egypt, Germany, Hungary, Kenya, Thailand and the United Kingdom. Service in each area is designed to build leadership skills, spiritual growth, global awareness and understanding.
To prepare for service, young people take part in an orientation session to learn about what it means to be in mission. "We gather in small groups and get to know one another. We also meet with mission personnel and missiologists of the church to learn about the ELCA's accompaniment model and the changing roles of missionaries," Metcalfe said. After orientation volunteers depart directly to their country of service, she said.
The ELCA's Division for Global Mission employs an "accompaniment" model for mission overseas. In accompaniment, churches "walk together in service in God's mission, each church having primary responsibility for its area."
Metcalfe's work at the Ryelands Methodist Home for the Aged varied from day to day. "Ryelands is a residential home for elderly people who cannot live independently and do not require nursing care. Residents have a diverse range of mental and physical abilities," she said. "My work included visiting those who had not had a visitor in a while, taking residents grocery shopping and escorting them to the hospital. I also sat with residents when they passed away. That was very difficult."
"Life in the [United States] is fast-paced, and it's also fast-paced in the U.K. But life in an old-persons' home is not. In our day-to-day lives, we wouldn't consider sitting down and having tea with someone to be all that productive. But it is, especially with someone who hasn't had a visitor in a long time. Spending time with that person is just as important as anything else," Metcalfe said.
"The relationships I've made with people at Ryelands will last far longer than relationships made on any vacation," she said. "I have a greater appreciation for the trials some people face in their day-to-day living."
Today Metcalfe serves as recruitment assistant for young adults, Division for Global Mission, a one-year contract position. Her responsibilities include meeting with students attending the ELCA's 28 colleges and universities, as well as with students involved in Lutheran campus ministry programs at state colleges and universities. Young adults make up 30 percent of all ELCA missionaries, she said.
"I share my story and experiences with others because they had a big impact on me," said Metcalfe, who advocates, encourages and recruits students to participate in the Young Adults in Global Mission program and one- to two-year teaching ministries in other international programs of the ELCA.
Metcalfe keeps in touch with young adults currently serving overseas. They are required to write letters about their work and experiences to family and friends.
Alana Hansen is spending most of her time at a center for babies, children and teenagers. "I would say my job has more of a potential to be fun than anything else. 'El Sembrador' (The Sower) is a great place with a ton of great programs," she wrote.
A "highlight from my first 10 days [in Argentina] has been visiting La Plaza de Mayo. La Plaza de Mayo is where people go to protest, because the plaza is right in front of La Casa Rosada, sort of like the White House. People here know they will be heard," wrote Hansen.
"I have wanted to visit La Plaza ever since I learned about the women who are called 'The Mothers of La Plaza de Mayo.' They are a group of mothers whose children were taken in the 'Dirty War' of Argentina. When children began to disappear, their mothers went to the Casa Rosada demanding to know where their children were being held. The officials denied it and told the mothers to leave, to go walk. So, every Thursday since that day, women have been walking around the Plaza de Mayo from 3:30 to 4:00 p.m. They want the government to know that these mothers and the rest of Argentina will never forget what happened," wrote Hansen.
"It has been a busy month of learning and adjusting here in Cairo," wrote Renee Banas. "The weather is hot, about 100 degrees during the day. It wouldn't be so bad if one could wear shorts and tank tops. It's proper for women to cover their knees and shoulders at all times."
"Knowing English is a very desirable [commodity] for Egyptians, so the Ramses College for Girls puts a lot of stress on students to learn English. The administrators are very excited to have a native English speaker working with them. It makes me feel like I have a useful purpose here," Banas wrote.
Rob Nelson, who is also serving as an English teacher at the Ramses College for Girls, said attending worship at an Egyptian Christian church has been a highlight.
"It was a powerful reminder of the unity we have as Christians, despite cultural and language differences. The pastor introduced us [to the congregation] and welcomed us in English. After the service, we were welcomed by most of the congregation," Nelson wrote. He said many children in the church are studying English in school, "and they wanted to talk to us in English. This congregation can serve as an example to many American congregations on being welcoming to guests. Despite not knowing Arabic, I felt at home there."
Nelson also shared that his experience with Egyptians has "been very positive. Most are very friendly. I talked to an Egyptian actor, who made only one request of me. He wanted me to tell people in the United States how Egyptians really are and how Egypt really is. People here are generally very concerned with being a good host to guests. This is true in their homes, and in general as a nation towards visitors from other countries such as the United States."
"Thailand is a beautiful country and Chiang Mai is a lovely city. We took a tour up north Chiang Mai, almost to the border with Myanmar," wrote Laura Koepke.
"The people we visited are refugees from the fighting in Myanmar and, because of that status, they are not allowed to hold land. They live off tourism. They sell crafts to tourists and use that money to lease land they can farm and use. To me, it seems like an inherently unstable system, so it's tempting to want to stay away from buying the crafts, not to be just a 'tourist' and to avoid propagating this system. At this time, the tourist money is really the only source of income for the Badong people, and so I did buy a couple of things in hopes that it might do some kind of good," Koepke said. "It's just a difficult subject to address and think about, and I'm not sure any of us really know how to feel about it right now."
"I'll always be a foreigner [here], but I'm trying to be more than just a tourist," Koepke wrote. "I'm happy to start learning the language, so I can feel that I'm trying to integrate myself into the Thai culture as well as I can," she said.
The Young Adults in Global Mission program began in 1999. Now in cooperation with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), the program embraces young adults as "present church leaders." The ELCA and the Presbyterian Church have shared a full-communion relationship since 1997.
Applications for the 2004-2005 service term are due March 2004. In April of that year, Lutherans and Presbyterians will host a "discernment event" where prospective young adults are interviewed. Those accepted will undergo orientation in August and begin service immediately thereafter.