Center for Global Perspectives: You are still not in Kansas anymore

It is really strange sometimes when I remember that I am on the African continent thousands of miles from home. I have become so accustomed to my surroundings that the sights, sounds, and smells have become part of me. What I once saw as extremely different, what I used to be in awe of I now take in stride. Of course, this can be expected after a certain amount of time for most people, but I am also realizing that the more accustomed I become to life here in Ghana the longer it will take for me to get used to life in the U.S again.
A few months ago I could clearly picture the places I was familiar with back in the U.S. now these pictures have become somewhat cloudy, obscured by my day to day sights. It is strange indeed. I am realizing that I will need a good amount of time to kind of debrief myself and reintegrate myself into American life. It should be interesting, but there is still much time that must pass before I do this.
I am exactly where I need to be right now.

Holy Cross Service Corps

The Holy Cross Service Corps is one of the newest endeavors of Holy Cross College. HCSC is a post-graduate service program housed in the Center for International Programs. The concept for the year of voluntary service was born out of the enthusiasm exhibited by our students returning from their International Experience. So many of our students return saying the same thing, “I want to go back!” HCSC gives our graduates the incredible opportunity to return to the sites of their International Experience to help advance the mission of the Brothers of Holy Cross.

In July of 2007 the inaugural volunteer for the Holy Cross Service Corps left the United States for a year of service alongside the Brothers in Ghana, West Africa. The undertaking was a complete success and will spur the growth of this exciting new program to include our other International Experience sites. A great deal of work will be done throughout this year to continue to structure this program so that our graduates may continue the mission of Holy Cross which “sends us across borders of every sort.”

HCSC Mission Statement

The mission of the Holy Cross Service Corps is to provide volunteers, or Moreau Fellows, named after the founder of the Holy Cross Congregation Fr. Basil Moreau, with an opportunity to improve their personal relationships with Jesus Christ through service, simple-living, and prayer. The goal of HCSC is to establish a more intimate relationship between the professed brethren and the laity all the while advancing the mission of the Holy Cross brothers as educators in the faith.

The Ghana Global Immersion Experience

This is a 17 day experience in Ghana, a culture ancient yet ever-changing, poor yet developing. In that land are some of the most significant sites in the history of the world. For example, we visit the slave prisons that held millions of Africans when the coast of Ghana was the center of the slave trade, beginning in the 1500's. We spend time with church officials, like Ghana's only Cardinal, Peter Kodwo Turkson. And we spend much time at the retreat center where the Holy Cross Brothers share their life with us. Below are some pictures. Also, fyi, the emergency contact with us in Ghana:
Brother Paul Mensah, CSC
Telephone: 011-233-910-1624 or
011-233-42-91482
Mobile: 011-233-20-834-4631
His email is: pkmensahcsc@yahoo.com