USU Spanish club worked for smiles, hope in Mexican town
By taking on a project in Sonora, Mexico, the Spanish Club at Utah State University defines the true meaning of service.
“We’re just a group of students – we’re interested in the Latin community, the language and Spanish-speaking cultures,” said Spanish Club president Scott Larsen, a sophomore majoring in Spanish and pre-med studies. “We get together and talk and participate in activities involved with those things.”
Larsen said Jamie McEvoy, a student at USU, found out about the program from National Public Radio. The project, which was sponsored by the Save the Children foundation, was to build better homes for a community in Mexico.
“She [McEvoy] came and talked to us about it as a club and asked us if we wanted to go with her,” Larsen said.
The club decided they wanted to, so each member pitched in $200 of their own money, as well as money donated from the community (which include about 25 sponsors), he said.
Tim Cannon, a junior majoring in Spanish and business, said, “We had raffles and we had a table in the [Taggart Student Center].”
Larsen said 23 students from USU along with Maria de Jesus Cordova, a professor in the Spanish department, went to Mexico during the week of Feb. 18. They put in more than 2,000 hours of work.
The students were able to finish some projects which had already been started, he said.
“All of us got to apply the skills that we’re learning at Utah State,” Larsen said.
Matt Godfrey, a sophomore majoring in English, said, “You’re not just learning … you’re applying what you’ve learned, applying those talents that you have, those individual traits that you’ve been blessed with.”
Larsen said, “We helped make about 500 adobe bricks, which are hard to make, which we realized when we got down there.”
They also helped to plaster the walls of four houses.
“They use a form of straw-bale construction on their houses,” he said.
Adam Christensen, an undeclared freshman, said, “I was really surprised how well everything actually worked out.”
During the preparation leading up to the project in Mexico, he said it seemed that things were semi-chaotic.
“[It] didn’t look like things were coming together, but when we got down there and actually got working with the people it was amazing,” he said.
Larsen said, “We also helped the elementary schools down there.”
They were able to teach the children about discrimination and how everyone is equal, he said.
Godfrey said, “The best part was the little kids; seeing the smiles.”
Christensen said, “I didn’t speak Spanish so all my interactions were – you might say – on a less-depth level. I couldn’t just sit down and talk to people – [and say] ‘Tell me about your life.’
“My experience was all visual, what I saw, and mostly I just played with the kids. They would scream Spanish words at me – I just kept playing with them,” he said.
“I didn’t really connect with adults down there because you couldn’t really pick them up and throw them around and make them laugh, but you could do that with the kids, and those were the special moments for me,” Christensen said.
Larsen said, “We visited the university [down there].”
Cannon said, “I think that more than what we did – we also were, in a way, kind of a bunch of ambassadors going down from Utah State and from the United States.”
They were able to talk to the college students, have interesting conversations about what the world was going to be like, he said.
They talked to the students in Mexico about “what they had to look forward to [in the] future. What our plans were, what their plans were,” he said.
It would be great to have every Spring Break, or every vacation to be spent living and working with people; experiencing their culture, Cannon said.
Larsen said, “Everyone got along great, there was no complaining.”
Christensen said, “I think that goes hand-in-hand with service.”
The work is a lot more worthwhile when there is no bias, where no one thinks about themselves, he said.
“Everything becomes worth it,” Godfrey said. “Service is needed in the world.”
Larsen said the Spanish Club is planning to return to Mexico in 2003. They are hoping to be able to work on two projects so more students have the opportunity to go, he said.
Larsen said the club is grateful to their sponsors and the Multicultural Affairs Office for helping them with their bank account and funding.
Anyone who has a love for Spanish countries and people and is willing to put forth a lot of work and effort is invited to join them, he said. Those interested in helping the club or becoming a sponsor, can contact Larsen at ususpanishclub@hotmail.com.