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Ryan Rose just wanted to help. So off to Jamaica he went for a week of volunteer work with five other Siena College students and two campus ministers. But as so often happens, he found the rewards outweighed his contribution.

"I really wanted to do a service trip and to help those less fortunate than we are," said Ryan, 21, a Catskill native and junior at the Franciscan college in Loudonville. 
"But I probably accomplished more for myself than for the people down there."

The trip, Jan. 7-14, was organized by the chaplain's office with help from Siena's Franciscan Center for Service and Advo-cacy and its Office of Inter-national Programs. Michelle Stefanik, the associate campus minister, and Rev. Matthew Doyle, OFM, traveled with the students. Sister Grace Yap, OSF, coordinated the trip from the Office of Franciscan Ministries in Jamaica. 

Spruced up 
The students worked in the village of Ferry, seven miles from Kingston, and helped paint, clean and move beds in a newly-constructed medical clinic. The squad also planted bougainvillea shrubs and other plants along some streets in the village and picked up trash. The human side counted more, Ms. Stefanik explained. 

"The people embraced us with open arms," she said. "Within five minutes each student had six kids holding their hands and taking piggy-back rides."

She characterized the village as "extremely poor." It lacks running water and most people go barefoot. When the volunteers held a modest party for residents, "the fight for sandwiches and ice cream got pretty intense." 

Willing to able
While employment is scarce, many men work on sugar cane and coconut plantations while women often sell fruit or candy from small carts on the street. 

The Franciscans in Kingston helped one woman build a shed and buy a freezer, and now she runs a shop selling jerk chicken, a Jamaican specialty.

"Sister Grace empowers people to take ownership," Ms. Stefanik said. "She uses volunteers to inspire and prod them along. As our work went on, some people would come up and say, 'Can I have that paintbrush?' The [Siena] students were willing to turn it over to the people living there."

The trip had special meaning for Jessica Jowrey, 19, a sophomore whose parents are both from Jamaica. "It was an opportunity to give back and see the land that my parents are from," she said. 

Connections
An Episcopalian who has always attended Catholic schools, Jessica had previously served on various service and advocacy projects. But in Jamaica, she said, "I never felt so connected to a place I had never been to before."

Ideally, the trip will not end in the airport, Ms. Stefanik said. "Every night we would meet to reflect on, 'Now what can I do? What are the choices I should make in my lifestyle?'"

These discussions will continue at Siena, said Ryan. "I learned that even with major differences between people, there's a common bond in being human."[[In-content Ad]]

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