Saying Goodbye

Out in the beautiful Galapagos Islands

The past four months have flown by and all of the sudden I am in the last week of my internship in Ecuador. Even though I am excited to return home to spend the holidays with my family, and the fact that I am living 25 miles away from an erupting volcano can be a little unsettling, it will be hard to say goodbye to Riobamba.

Volcano Tungurahua

A few weeks ago, I was having a conversation with some local friends about what I was going to do when I got home. I started talking about how I needed to look for a job and jokingly mentioned that I might have to go back to my first job of washing dishes in a resaurant. My smile and slight laughter was met by a serious question. When they asked me how much I made at that job, I told them it was six dollars an hour. One friend then responded that she made two dollars and fifty cents an hour. This was just another reminder of how fortunate and lucky I really am. I have had several other reminders over the past four months, whether visiting a family of 8 living in a small adobe house or seeing small children working out in the fields with their parents. I have seen and experienced several things that have had a huge impact on my life and I hope will continue to impact my life in the future.

Drew getting some soccer time in

In my last interview before starting my internship my boss, Caleb, made sure to tell me of the difficulties of an internship. One thing that stuck with me the most was that I may not see major changes during my internship, but that afterward I would be able to look back to see all of the things I had accomplished, and that I would also be able to look in the future and see what will be accomplished through my work. Now as I am at the end of my internship I can look and be proud of what I accomplished. I can think back on the 10k race I helped organize, the sponsors I talked to, the people I signed up, and all the work the staff put in with no prior knowledge of how to organize a race. I can also look back at the mini expedition with Kyäni, which will lead to a school being built in one of the poorest places I have ever seen. However, when I look back I will mostly think of the simple day-to-day work I did such as: the simple health and nutrition classes, the rocks I moved while kids laughed at me; and the overall warmth of the people with whom I worked.

An Ecuadorian Thanksgiving

Ever since I first went to Latin America in 2005, I have had the desire to help out in anyway that I can. A big reason why I decided to do an internship with Ascend was to get more experience in that field. This internship has not only meant the opportunity to help people who truly need it, but also the chance to continue a career in an area that I am passionate about. As I return home I have hopefully gained the experience necessary to find a job where I can continue to make a difference for those in need.

With kids outside a school

Four months is a pretty short time, and it sure went by fast. But as I return home, I will do so knowing how much I gained from this experience. I am grateful for all the different areas I gained experiences in; things I never would have thought I could do. I want to thanks all the members of the Ascend staff in Ecuador and in Salt Lake City for all always offering their support and help when I needed it, especially to my fellow intern Drew, for all that he taught me. I want to thank my family and friends for all their support during this experience. Most importantly I want to thank the people of the communities where I have worked for the past four months.

McLean Smithson

Intern with Ascend Alliance

The Journey

Here is a quick look at our two hour commute to the communities where we work. There are some quick looks at the towns we pass, the roads we drive on, the communities when we arrive, and a few other things we see along the way.

Hope you enjoy,

McLean Smithson and Andrew Reeve

Ascend Alliance Interns

Riobamba, Ecuador

http://www.ascendalliance.org