Nursing Student Seeks Help For

Volunteer Mission In Ghana

By Kaaren Valenta

Michelle Robertson is a young woman with a mission.

The 22-year-old Newtown resident, a nursing major at Sacred Heart University, wants to go to Ghana as a Cross-Cultural Solutions volunteer for three weeks in May.

“Since I am a nursing major my placement in Ghana will focus on assisting with the medical needs of the community, most likely in a clinic setting,” she said. “I have the opportunity while I am there to assist a local obstetrician, which is a major incentive for me since I am planning on becoming a nurse midwife.”

Michelle did not always know that she wanted to be a midwife. During her teenage years, she floundered, trying to find herself.

“I left Newtown High School in my senior year. I think I just didn’t believe in myself. I let self-denial take over,” she said.

She took a sales job in a clothing store in the Danbury Mall but after a year was offered a management position. She took the high school GED (general equivalency degree) test and passed, then applied for admission to Sacred Heart University.

“I started part-time to prove myself, and became full-time last semester,” she said. “I have enough credits that I’m a junior, but still a sophomore in the nursing program. I’ll have a lot of extra credits when I graduate.”

While she enjoyed the retail business, she said she always harbored a desire to be an obstetrician.

“I had always, always, always wanted to be there for deliveries,” she said. “But I came to realize that I really wanted to be midwife. I used to want to be an obstetrician, but it is not the same relationship [with a patient] as with a midwife.”

“Having a baby is the most incredible experience a woman can go through,” she said. “It is the most intense and magical experience ever.

“And when it comes to nursing, it is not a career that you choose — it chooses you. There is no wondering for me know — I know,” she added.

She shows the same determination about the trip to Ghana, even though the time is short and she needs to raise $3,678 to pay for it.

“I think I’ll be worth so much more to my patients by experiencing this,” she said. “And I’ll be able to do a lot of good there.”

Based in New Rochelle, N.Y., Cross-Cultural Solutions is a nonprofit organization that operates 18 programs in 11 countries with more than 250 staff members in 15 offices worldwide. Founded in 1995, it has brought more than 7,000 volunteers to countries around the world for community development projects. The organization’s mission is to operate volunteer programs in partnership with community initiatives and to bring people together to work side by side, sharing perspectives and fostering cultural understanding.

Cross-Cultural Solutions operates in several towns in the Volta region of Ghana, the heart of the Ewe tribe. Besa Amenuvor, director of the Ghana program, is a native of the country who was educated in the United States and served as associate director of the US Peace Corps in Ghana.

In May 2003, Cross-Cultural Solutions was granted special consultative status to the United Nations Economic and Social Council. An independent, registered 501©(3) nonprofit organization, it is run entirely by volunteer contributions.

“The fee for my three-week program, including all meals, bottled water, housing, travel medical insurance, and in-country transportation totals $2,423 and does not include the $1,255 flight to Ghana,” Michelle said. “Cross-Cultural Solutions requires the money be paid 30 days before the trip to make sure everything will be ready for my stay, so I don’t have much time.”

All donations are tax deductible. Michelle asks that anyone who can help her should make a check out to Cross Cultural Solutions, but mail it to her at 62 Hanover Road, Newtown 06470. Donors can also make a secure credit card payment online at the Program Payments page on the website www.crossculturalsolutions.org, indicating that it is for Michelle Robertson’s May 22 trip.

“Anyone who has any questions about the volunteer program can call me at 270-7745 or call Cross Cultural Solutions at 800-380-4777,” Michelle said.

Michelle said she plans to share her experiences in Ghana with the Newtown community when she returns.

“I know this experience is bound to change my life forever,” she said.