Andy Taube

 My name is Andy Taube. I graduated from the University of Dayton in May 2008 with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology. In April of 2008, I committed to volunteer with the Marianist Volunteer Program in Karonga, Malawi for two years.

Together, we will be supporting the Marianists with three major programs. Chaminade is an all boys boarding high school that hosts about 350 boys. M.I.R.A.C.L.E. is a trade school for female and male youth between the ages of 17 and 27 who never completed their formal education. All of the students at M.I.R.A.C.L.E. have lost at least one parent, many of them to AIDS. And the Women's Empowerment Program (WEP) is a microcredit program that provides small loans to women of the surrounding area, working to bring them out of extreme poverty and empower them to have a stronger position in society.

My specific placement is as a teacher of Biology and Social Studies to first year students at Chaminade. If all that doesn't already sound like enough to fill my plate, I am researching Permaculture gardens. Permaculture is a way of designing gardens that utilizes the many aspects of a particular ecosystem in order to develop highly productive, self-sustaining, and environmentally friendly gardens. Permaculture is an extremely exciting movement that is emerging throughout the world. Google it, and check it out; it's really cool stuff!

Malawi is one of the poorest countries in the world with the eleventh lowest per capita Gross Domestic Product. With all of those challenges facing this country, I know that I am going to face many challenges as well. In those challenges, though, I know I will have so many opportunities to grow, and that is what excites me about this commitment. There is so much I can learn through this experience. My simple hope is that I can give something to the people who I know will be teaching me.

 

That is not the end of this story but just the beginning. Please go to Andy’s Blog and check out more information about his journey to Malawi. He will keep it updated as much as possible so you can share his story with him. http://andytaube.blogspot.com

This young man is an alumni of St. Julie Billiart's T.N.T., the Teens Need Togetherness Youth Organization. As an alumni of this group Andy has been a Planovation Retreat Planner for the last few years and as you read what he is going to be up to, you can see that the Holy Spirit continues to work in our young people. Please keep Andy in your prayers as he continues on his faith journey, reaching out to the people of Malawi.

We thank Sheila Pluchar, St Julie Youth Coordinator, for providing this information to us. Be sure to visit Andy's blog ... it promises to be very interesting.

Andy's African Adventures

Also see  ... 
 Marianist Volunteer Program
and
Teens Need Togetherness

Grandpa Don Plefka

A Witness to Life Ordinary People - Extraordinary Actions Many people, ordinary in every way, do extraordinary things. Very often, they themselves do not feel that their actions are anything but what is expected of them by God. They are an example to all of us, a witness to a way of life that is reachable to the rest of us ordinary people. These pages are their stories.
Andy Taube 07/05/08
The World of Grandpa Don www.plefka.net  Return to A Witness to Life main page
Free JavaScripts provided by The JavaScript Source