BY JACQUELINE SMALL

In print | Published February 4, 2010 — Updated February 24, 2010 22:59

Correction appended

After interning with the Chinese NGO Joy in Action, Bettina Tam ’10 wanted to bring her work with people recovering from Hansen’s disease, the condition formerly known as leprosy, back to Swarthmore.

“My goal was to continue to help eliminate discrimination against people with physical and mental handicaps,” she said.

That goal now forms the backbone of the mission statement of Global Neighbors, a student-run service group that was founded by Tam in 2008 and that was recently awarded a grant from the Project Pericles Fund.

Global Neighbors focuses its efforts on two projects: people affected by Hansen’s disease in China and volunteering with Children and Adult Disability and Educational Services, which is located a mile from campus in Swarthmore Borough. CADES, according to Tam, is a local center for people with physical and mental disabilities that not only provides schooling for children but also serves as a gathering space for adults.

Project Pericles, founded in 1999 by philanthropist Eugene M. Lang ’38, is an umbrella not-for-profit organization with 22 chapters at colleges and universities across the country. The Swarthmore chapter of Project Pericles was established in 2005 by Lang and the college’s Board of Managers. Swarthmore’s Project Pericles Fund is managed by the Eugene Lang Center for Civic and Social Responsibility, and is meant “to provide funding for social and civic action projects of substantial scope that are designed and implemented by groups of Swarthmore students,” according to its website.

Global Neighbors intends to use a portion of the money granted by the fund to send two volunteers to work with JIA. There will be an open application process, and knowledge of Chinese is not required. Members of JIA, not members of Global Neighbors, will evaluate the applicants. Application forms should be available within the next week.

Global Neighbors also hopes to be able to sponsor an internship opportunity in China through the Asian Studies program, but that would likely require fluency in Chinese.

Although Global Neighbors was initially founded to work only with JIA, the limitation of two volunteers at a time made the group add another project — volunteering at CADES. Members of the group already visit CADES weekly.

Regina Collins, a classroom teacher at the school, said, “Sometimes volunteers just sit there and look at the kids, but the Swarthmore students are always eager to help. They really engage with the kids.”

Global Neighbors plans to use the grant money for the large-scale project of working with children to create a mural mosaic on the school’s campus. The group is looking for volunteers from outside the organization to aid in this effort.

They will continue bringing people from CADES to the college for field trips to McCabe library, the List Gallery and Sharples. In addition, they will host a show in the Kitao gallery featuring the artwork of the children.

Paul Zecher, the school’s art teacher, said, “It is unbelievably exciting to have finally made a connection with the college after 30 years of teaching here.” He said that the children have been delighted by their field trips to campus, especially by their visits to the List Gallery.

Bill Benson, the executive director of CADES, also believes the children love interacting with the Global Neighbors volunteers. “They see the Swarthmore kids as sort of friends, not as staff, or therapists, but as friends, and I just think that’s great … they have so much spirit and verve. They’re an exceptional group of young people,” Benson said.

The group also plans to sponsor Global Neighbors Week, which will feature a talent show on the CADES campus, the Kitao show, a Parlour Party, movie showings and panel discussions.

Zecher was particularly excited about the Kitao show, and said it was “phenomenal” to see the students’ work in the gallery. “Having the college only a mile away is a wonderful resource,” he said.

Disclosure note: Linda Hou ’13 is Assistant News Editor for The Phoenix. She played no role in the production of this article.

Correction: February 24, 2010

Correction: The article originally used the phrase “victims of Hansen’s disease,” while the more accepted and common term today is actually “people affected by Hansen’s disease.”

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