Volunteer Mary Ann McGrath Swaim Helps AmeriCorps at Earth Fest

We had a special volunteer helping our Literacy AmeriCorps (LAC) group help the public library at Earth Fest last weekend who has been well-known with at least two of us with LAC for a long, long time. She is Mary Ann McGrath Swaim. She is the former Irish dance teacher for the Coordinator of Literacy AmeriCorps Sarah Fischer, and she is my sister. (Mary Ann also taught Irish ceili dancing to Shannan Cvitanovic of the YES /YMCA Educational Services -- which is in the main library downtown. There used to be regular ceilis or dances at O'Flaherty's Irish Pub in the Quarter years ago; I used to play Irish music for them often.) Mary Ann came to help us with her son Billy Swaim (in the blue shirt) and his wife Tara (red and white blouse) and their two daughters, Claire and Sarah (with the pink cast on her arm). They had a great time helping AmeriCorps at Earth Fest.

Mary Ann has helped Literacy AmeriCorps, unbeknownst to most people, behind the scenes over the past two years by helping me immensely, together with my other sister Marci and her husband Chris Smith, and thereby making this very blog possible. Our thanks go forth once again!

If the name Swaim sounds familiar, it is because you may have read about Mary Ann's husband, Frederick "Louisiana " Swaim, The "Socrates of Loyola University" on this very blog during our "Remember Katrina" series at http://www.svdpalc.blogspot.com/2008/09/remember-katrina-fred-swaim-socrates-of.html

Fred was a professor of Admiralty Law at the Loyola Law School for about 30 years before he passed away after the onslaught of Hurricane Katrina just a matter of weeks after Mary Ann's (and my) mother, Isabella McGrath, also died following Katrina. For our family, like for so many others in this city of New Orleans, Katrina can never be forgotten. But one way to honor the memories of the dead is to help make our city a better place for the living and for the younger generation. We can do this in large ways or small, and a very good way to help is by volunteering at Earth Fest and supporting Literacy AmeriCorps. Mary Ann has done both.

-- Adrian

Literacy AmeriCorps Helps the Library At Earth Fest

Literacy AmeriCorps helped out at the NOPL library booth again this year handing out library information and information about the various free literacy programs offered by Literacy AmeriCorps and our work with the Literacy Alliance of Greater New Orleans.

In the photos are member Laura Klein and her friend and volunteer Andrew, members Lauren Pigeon and Bradley Narcisse, and Robert Taylor. Other members present were Kelly Medere and yours truly, Adrian, who is always behind the camera.

The penguin was the symbol at Earth Fest for the Library. The green creature is a Wetlands Watcher Alligator (not a dinosaur as one of our non-New Orleanian Literacy AmeriCorps members thought).

It was a beautiful day for a wonderful event. Thanks to all who came and helped!

--Adrian

Literacy AmeriCorps Goes to Earth Fest: Jefferson Parish Environmental Dept.

On Saturday and Sunday, March 21 and 22, several of our Literacy AmeriCorps members helped out at the booth for the New Orleans Public Library at Earth Fest at the Audubon Zoo. We handed out literature about the library, our literacy programs, and about the Literacy Alliance of Greater New Orleans.

Also at the fest I visited with the representative from the Jefferson Parish Environmental Department, Mr. Jason Smith. He was kind enough to take the time to describe to me the various works which the Environmental Dept. does to help prevent coastal erosion including the use of the famous Christmas trees. These donated trees are placed in holding pens which act as a barrier to protect the coast yet also allow in helpful sediment. Many volunteers help in this program. A model of this Christmas tree device was on display. Our thanks to Jason for giving us many maps and literature about the project and about other aspects of the environment which we can use in our Literacy AmeriCorps program. It is possible that Literacy AmeriCorps could partner with Jefferson Parish Environmental on a project in the future.

-- Adrian

Dr. Petrice Sams-Abiodun Visits SVDP-ALC

(In 1st photo, L - R, Adrian McGrath, Ruby Sterling, Dr. Petrice, Jennie Gorden, Eliria Knox, Linda Nelson.)

The director of the Lindy Boggs National Center for Community Literacy, Dr. Petrice Sams-Abiodun, PhD made a special visit to our school on Thursday to meet with the student members of our International Women's Day group.

The students were really excited about her coming, and they -- with the help of Sr. Kathleen and Sr. Lory -- really made it a great event by getting everything ready for the visit.

Dr. Sams-Abiodun -- who just likes to be called Petrice-- made a wonderfully warm and friendly speech to the students. Then on a more serious note, she spoke about the importance of adult education for both women and men and how this can help alleviate many of the social ills we face today in New Orleans such as poverty and crime. Then the four students from our International Women's Day group (two were unavoidably absent) presented their topics on Sacagawea, Women Pioneers, Joan of Arc, and Women's Education in Afghanistan.

Following this we had some refreshments and cakes which were supplied by Jennie and Sr. Kathleen.

It was a great day, and Petrice is hoping to meet again soon with the students ... but this time at her office at Loyola University at the Boggs Center.

We are all looking forward to that!

See more about the Lindy Boggs National Center for Community Literacy at http://www.boggslit.org/ and read about the other two related organizations also at the Boggs Center, the Literacy Alliance of Greater New Orleans and Literacy AmeriCorps, at www.literacygno.org.

--Adrian

McMurdo Station, Antarctica

Our penpal from Antarctica, John Miller, USAP, has sent us some photos from his new station in Antarctica. When we last saw John, after his brief visit back to the USA, he was at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station. But now he is re-located to the McMurdo Station on the Ross Ice Shelf in Antarctica. It is actually on Ross Island, but the island is surrounded by ice. In the photos you will see John at the sign at McMurdo. Also, you will see a photo of a lone penguin molting (getting his feathers). All the other penguins left for the Antarctic winter, I was told. This lone one was a bit late, but he is leaving too. I'm not sure where they are going; we will have to ask John in our next email exchange. McMurdo is different from South Pole in many ways. McMurdo is a bit warmer but more windy and at a much lower altitude. It is easier to breath at McMudro, and there are more USAP members there and more buildings. But the South Pole is... well... the South Pole, the most remote and exotic place on Earth. But we are looking forward to learning about life at McMurdo.

Below are a few comments directly from John Miller in his latest correspondence with us:

Mcmurdo Station is ... located at sea level so it is much easier to breath here. Pole elevation is 9343 ft, and with the low barometric pressure caused by the extremely low humidity, the equivalent altitude is anywhere from 10,500 to 12,000 feet. Also a reason for the warmer temperatures (in a manner of speaking) here as well.
The cold here is exasperated by wind that blows pretty much 24/7. Typical wind speed is around 20-30 mph, with gusts that have been know to reach well over 100 mph. I believe the top wind speed recorded was around 150 mph. Those of you in New Orleans know all about that.
And the wind can really make working outside miserable. Not only do you have snow blowing around, there is also a fine/gritty volcanic dust that gets into everything, especially your eyes and mouth. At the pole you have snow; and more snow; and even more snow....
Did I mention the snow at the Pole?
Honestly, if I had a choice, I would rather work in -75 and little or no wind, than in -10 with 30 mph wind.
Most of the wild life that is here in the summer has departed for the winter, including our lone penguin that was molting at the time. Penguins cannot swim while molting so they pretty much just sit in one place for the duration. I'm glad this guy left when he did, otherwise he would not have been able to feed because of the lack of open water.
Even the Weddell seals have left the area, along with the Antarctic Skua, and Turn. Only thing here is us dummies. And we won't see another plane until the end of August.

St. Patrick's Day -- Lake Isle of Innisfree

(Here's a nice poem from 1893 for us all to reflect upon for St. Patrick's Day, March 17th, 2009. It is the same one I put up last year when our blog was just getting started. Hasn't the blog grown!! The photo is of W.B. Yeats from Wikipedia Commons. Adrian)

Lake Isle of Innisfree

By William Butler Yates

I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree,

And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made;

Nine bean-rows will I have there, a hive for the honey bee,

And live alone in the bee-loud glade.

And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow

Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings;

There midnight's all a glimmer, and noon a purple glow;

And evenings full of the linnet's wings.

I will arise and go now, for always night and day

I hear the lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore;

While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements gray,

I hear it in the deep heart's core.

International Women's Day at St Vincent de Paul - ALC

Ruby Sterling did an outstanding job opening our International Women's Day (IWD) event with a re-enactment of a speech made by Sojourner Truth, a Civil Rights activist from the 19th Century. Ruby learned the speech and made her own costume and gave a magnificant presentation. Later in the day Ruby spoke about women pioneers. What a great day it was, and I was happy to be the moderator for the event.

-- Adrian

IWD: Speakers Billy Edwards and Sr. Kathleen

Billy Edwards of Tau House is a volunteer tutor at our school. He spoke on the topic of how language usage can be prejudicial against women, how certain words and phrases in our lexicon are inherently sexist and how we must recognize and overcome this. Sr. Kathleen Bahlinger, CSJ spoke of the life of Katherine Drexel who was the founder of Xavier University.

-- Adrian

IWD: The Audience and the Speakers

We had a good size crowd at our IWD event last Thursday, and we had a number of speakers. Here are a few photos. (You won't see any photos of me because I was taking the pictures!)

--Adrian

IWD: Jennie - Sacagawea

Jennie Gorden spoke about the life of Sacagawea, a Shoshone Indian woman who was a guide for the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Jennie did a lot of research and writing on this topic and made a great presentation about an important yet little known person in our history. Without the help of Sacagawea, it is doubtful that the expedition would have succeeded as well. Lewis and Clark were sent by President Thomas Jefferson to explore the vast Louisiana Territory which America had just acquired from France. Sacagawea became a hero in the women's suffrage movement and a role-model. Statues were eventually built to her. Jennie and Dwana helped create IWD at SVDP-ALC and deserve special recognition. (Note: On Jennie's artwork -- which she displayed at her presentation- are several photos, L-R, top down: Statue of Sacagawea, Sacagawea and her baby, Lewis and Clark Expidition on the river, Sacagawea Monument in S. Dakota, and her grave stone in Wyoming.)

--Adrian

Below is Jennie's speech in her own words:

Sacagawea
By Jennie Gorden

Welcome Everyone
My name is Jennie Gorden, I am a student at St Vincent de Paul-Adult Learning Center. Today my topic will be on a Shoshone Indian name Sacagawea who was born in Lemhi County, Idaho in 1788.

I was reading my language book and found the word Sacagawea..I was interested in learning more about her background and life.
Sacagawea was a Shoshone Indian woman who was born in 1788 in the city of Salmon in Lemhi County,Idaho.She was an Indian who was captured and sold to another tribe at the age of twelve. At the age of thirteen Sacagawea became the wife of a french trapper name Char-bon-no.Shortly after becoming his wife Sacagawea became pregnant with her first child then she join the Lewis and Clark Expedition.

Sacagawea and her husband was asked to attend the expedition westward around 1804-1806.Sacagawea help Lewis and Clark obtain supplies and horses from other tribes. After learning of Sacagawea knowledge Lewis and Clark asked her to join because of her ability to speak different languages.
She was able to translate from and Indian language for the Lewis and Clark Expedition.

After joining the Expedition in November 1805, she became a valuable member who was traveling the Columbia River where they settle for the winter .The expedition voted to stay near the river what is known as the Astoria, Oregon

Sacagawea escorted the Expedition with her son Jean Baptiste on her back though the trip..Shortly Char-bon-no and Sacagawea entrusted they son to Clark care.
Later in 1810, Sacagawea gave birth to a baby girl named Lizette. In 1811,the fur dealer wrote saying that Sacagawea had become very ill and wished to revisit her Native County, again. In his journal he wrote that Sacagawea died in 1813, of a fever at the age of 25. .
In 1813, Char-bon-no, sign custody of his son over to Clark. The adoption was made final on August 11, 1813. Both of Sacagawea’s children were adopted by Clark.

Here is what I learned: I learned that Sacagawea was a Hero, Interpreter and a Peace Symbol for the Lewis and Clark Expedition that travel the Columbia River.

Sacagawea means Bird Woman and Sacajawea means Boat Launcher. International Women’s Day was the starting point of a century for women.. The story of ordinary women in 1920. The history of International Women’s Day was marked by women’s groups from around the world.
Sacagawea was a role model for those Women’s Rights Groups.

IWD: Dwana - Women's Suffrage (Right to Vote)

Dwana Taylor had a very fascinating discussion of the women's suffrage movement and the 19th Amendment. This was about the struggle for women to gain the right to vote in the USA. She also discussed a related suffrage movement in Britain with Emmeline Pankhurst. Dwana told us about how women activists were arrested, jailed, and forced-fed when on hunger strikes. It was an outstanding educational opportunity on an important subject. (Dwana and Jennie helped organize our IWD event at SVDP-ALC, and deserve our special recognition!)

-- Adrian

IWD: Ruby - Women Pioneers

Ruby Sterling had a magnificant presentation discussing several women who led the way for women's rights in the history of the USA including Sojourner Truth and Harriet Tubman. Ruby actually had two presentations today. She appeared at the start of the program "in character" as Sojourner Truth, making a speech, and even wearing a costume. Later Ruby spoke about the women pioneers. Great job, Ruby !!

-- Adrian






Here is Ruby's article in her own words:

Women Pioneers
By Ruby Sterling


In celebration of International Women’s Day I am honored to present Sojouner Truth, Mary Ellen Pleasant, Bridget “Biddy” Mason, and Harriet Ross Tubman. These women seemed to have had much in common as they prepared the way for us to follow. Yet, each stands on their own merit and determination, but one thing is for certain is that each were a driven force that could not be extinguished no matter the odds with a deep rooted love for all mankind.

Sojouner Truth

Her given name was Isabella ‘Bamfree’ Hardenbergh born in Ulster County, New York about 1797 lived until 1883. Honesty, hard work, and prayer were engraved in her character. Her faith led her to become a preacher. She decided to change her name to Sojouner which means ‘to travel’ and Truth because to her this is what God’s gospel is. People came from miles around, different cities and states just to hear her message of hope. She worked along with abolitionist Frederick Douglas and Elizabeth Stanton. Even President Abraham Lincoln invited her to the White House. He presented a special book to her, even autographed it for her. It became one of her proudest moments in her time. She devoted the rest of her life to fighting for women’s rights.


Mary Ellen Pleasant

She states that she was born on August 19,1814 in Philadelphia. She describes her mother as a free woman of color and her father as a wealthy planter. She adopted the Quakers faith and practices in the belief that all men are equal and that slavery must end. She fought for the rights of slaves to be free. She gave much of her wealth to the Underground Railroad and other abolitionist groups. She was gifted in accounting: she was taught to read and write. She was mulatto and told to never revile her race when she worked for an old Quaker merchant, Grandma Hussey’s General Store in Nantucket, Mass. In later years she did, however, reveal her race.

Bridget “Biddy” Mason

Born a slave in Hancock County, Miss. on Aug. 15, 1818 lived until 1891. Her parents not known, but records indicate that she was of mixed blood, black and three kind of Indian- Choctaw, Seminole, and Geegi. After a long jouney from Miss. to Utah in a wagon train caravan, she had many duties in addition to taking care of her children. Then she had to take another journey from Utah to California. While in California she filed a petition to Judge Benjamin Hayes that resulted in freedom papers for her and thirteen other slaves of Smith’s. This law suit set a precedent regarding the legal rights of black settlers in the American West. Biddy Mason became a nurse and midwife for Dr. John S. Griffen serving members of the Los Angeles, San Bernardio, San Diego, and Santa Barbara communities. She saved her wages of $2.50 a day to purchase her homestead at Spring Street. Ms. Mason was a founding member of the First African Methodist Episcopal Church of 1872.



Harriet Ross Tubman

Born in Bucktown, Maryland, in 1820 lived until 1913. Her mother was Harriet Green and father was Benjamin Ross. She was one of eleven children. It’s believed she was second to the youngest child. After escaping from slavery she wanted to help others obtain their freedom as well, so she decided to become a ‘conductor’ for the Underground Railroad. She became known to the people as “Moses”. It’s estimated that she led 300 slaves to freedom. She served in the Union Army in the Civil War as a scout, nurse, cook, and spy. She was never paid for service. She went on to work with Frederick Douglass and Susan B. Anthony, renown abolitionists. Even President Lincoln gave recognition to her efforts of helping her people get their freedom.
These pioneers have inspired in me to have courage to never quit and to press toward my goals: to respect others, and to honor myself.

IWD: Sr. Silvia - Mother Teresa

Sr. Silvia Rodriguez gave an inspiring speech about the life of Mother Teresa of Calcutta. Sr. Silvia is an ESL student (of English) at SVDP-ALC, but she is also a nurse and a Catholic nun with the Sisiters of the Servants of Mary. She took great interest researching and discussing the life of the famous Nobel Prize winner, Mother Teresa, who devoted her life to helping the "poorest of the poor."

--Adrian

IWD: Linda -Joan of Arc

Linda Nelson discussed the life of Joan of Arc and her connections to both France and New Orleans. Joan of Arc was a saint from France and came from the city of Orleans. New Orleans, as a result, also holds her in high esteem. Linda spoke of Joan's accomplishments and told us about the statue of Joan in Paris, France and in the French Quarter in New Orleans and of a Catholic Church named for Joan in the Riverbend on Burthe Street.

-- Adrian