A Message from the Rotarian: Marta

Today is Sunday, 11-15-09, 6:20 pm, in Loja. This is the first time since our departure, that we have asked our host families for time alone, together, as a Team. We wanted this time to update our Blog for all of you. We split the days so each one will write about different experiences. We are at one of the homes that has a wireless network. Four of us are typing away on 4 laptops, Rachael’s, the host family and one belonging to Rachael Howes, Rotary Youth Exchange student from Plymouth, Mass., She is staying in Loja for one year in one of the homes hosting us attending High School. I am using mine that I brought with me.

This has been a truly “Unbelievable” trip so far. I am so fortunate to be the Team Leader for such an amazing Team of Professionals. I knew that they were great Teachers and human beings, but the Professionalism, Teamwork and Dedication that each one has shown in this trip is amazing to me. They are here on a Mission, which is to represent their Profession, our District and find out how teachers work in their various environments and compare it to what they have at home. The moment we get to a school, they get to work, each contributing in their own way and style. They have been taking great notes at each school that they have visited, interviewing Principals and Teachers both on video and with pictures. They have shared lessons, bags of school supplies with materials for Teachers to use in their lessons and supplies to share with their children. You can truly see their love of the teaching profession.

As Team Leader, I have been taking the most pictures, as you can see in our picassa website, picasaweb.google.com/Ecuadorgse09. I have been moving around in all of the classrooms watching them in action, interpreting for the children and teachers and helping out whenever I can. I have been congratulated many, many times for bringing such a great Team of Professionals to Ecuador. They have been very, very impressed with the fact that they all speak Spanish so well. It had been a joy to me watching them communicate so easily with the Host families and with the Rotarians in the District. I have felt very comfortable leaving them with their families and see how the bonds grow as each day passes by. The farewell hugs in each city have been so meaningful to all of us and I know that we have all made friends for life. It is fun for me to see them at the Rotary meetings, sit amongst all the Rotarians and share their knowledge about Rotary, our District and why we are here in Ecuador for one month.

Our Team Power Point Presentation has been very well received. Rachael did an outstanding job putting it together. She is our “technical guru” on the trip. She has been loading all of our pictures and making sure that we all do our jobs well on the blog. Our big debut was at the La Puntilla Rotary Club meeting in Guayaquil. We shared the program during the meeting with the Canadian delegation from Ontario, who also had one. It was great and all participated. They have been exchanging banners from their sponsoring District Clubs. I have had huge success when I present our beautiful District 2010 Calendars, ( thank you Escondido Club for doing such a great job on the calendars) to the Club Presidents as gifts along with our District pins and banners. District 4400, does not have a District pin and they love ours.

We made our Presentation again to the Rotary Club of Cuenca Tomebamba. Hugo Klofstein, District GSE Chair, attended the meeting, as he was in Cuenca interviewing Teachers who applied to be part of their outgoing GSE Team coming to San Diego next year. As a matter of fact, we met 3 Teachers at the first Rotary school that visited in Guayaquil, that have applied to be part of the Team coming to San Diego. It is fun meeting candidates that might be visiting us in San Diego. Our last presentation was made to the Rotary Club of Loja. This was at the country weekend home in Vilcabamba of one of the members. They brought the projector, screen and we brought our laptops. We gave them our Presentation, shared District, Schools and family facts, and I presented them with District pin and banner. By the way, the weather has been really nice, very San Diego like. We have encountered very little rain on our trip.
So far, we have had an amazing trip and are off early tomorrow morning, at 6:00 am, for Quito. Our flight leaves at 8:20 am and the airport is 1 hour away. We will be writing soon and thank you again for this amazing opportunity.