TEAM INDIA 2007!
Welcome to our very own space! Please feel free to post, or to e mail me with updates about your info or other web issues, kmomberger@cox.net.
ITINERARY TBA
SEND IN BIOS AND PHOTOS ASAP! (I did mine first...look what a geek I am, yours couldn't be worse, it looks like I work in the back room of a sofa factory removing the makeup of the actresses with a trowell!)
We will be staying at CEO Center http://www.saiacs.org/CEOCentreWelcome.htm. We will meet here at 6:00PM Sunday Sept 16th for our first group meeting. Mysore http://www.karnataka.com/tourism/mysore/ is one of our R&R destinations. Check out some images from Mysore:
Hi Team, I am very excited to be taking this trip with all of you. This will be my 14th Global Village Build. Last fall I was in Pondicherry and fell in love with India. The people are warm, friendly and always willing to help. I am a huge fan of spicy food and this is the best. (Don't worry if you do not like spicy food.)
I live in northeastern Indiana with my husband and two very spoiled cats. I currently work in the radiology department at the local hospital. My hobbies include traveling, hiking and reading. I have recently decided to teach myself how to play acoustic guitar. If my cats could talk they would probably tell you this is only a slight relief from my singing, and I need more practice at both. In addition to Habitat for Humanity I also volunteer for Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. I have completed 3 marathons and 2 half marathons to raise money. My marathon days are over but I still help with some fund raising projects.
See you all in Bangalore!
Angelle Brooks
Currently, I'm a graduate student in Materials Engineering at Iowa State University, but by the time we meet, I hope to have my degree in hand. I enjoy outdoor activities and sports - rock climbing and baseball are two of my favorites. I grew up in Lincoln Nebraska and currently live in Peoria IL but I don't know where I'll be come September/October. I have a brother and a sister, both in college, and therefore, living all over, while my parents are in Lincoln. I'm looking forward to this trip and to meeting all of you.
Fiona Hsu , 29, is a proud resident of foggy San Francisco, California. She is passionate about affordable housing, particularly in California, and currently works for Union Bank of California as an affordable housing investor. She received her graduate and undergraduate degrees from the University of California, Berkeley. She is on the board of Spark, a nonprofit organization she helped found that is geared towards raising awareness around and funds to support global women's issues. She also sits on the Young Leadership Circle of Habitat for Humanity-San Francisco. She is currently trying to fulfill her new year's resolutions of learning how to salsa and to play tennis. This will be her 2nd GV trip; her first trip to Veracruz, Mexico in Jan 2006 was a wonderful and memorable experience.
Hi team. I'm from Dallas, lived here for about 4 years now. Born and raised in a small Texas town but I don't really feel "Texan" - never learned to ride a horse. As an IT software consultant for the last 9 years, I've been lucky to travel often with work, lived in Paris for 4.5 years and worked in Dubai and India.
I fell in love with India, traveled a lot while there and look forward to going back. This trip will be the beginning of a my long-awaited one year "career break". In addition to India, I'll travel to SE Asia, Nepal, China, Mongolia and where ever else my path leads. I missed this type of big adventure after college and I'm thrilled to finally get to live it.
I love cooking, running, cycling, photography and anything outdoors. I don't have a television but if I did I'd probably watch alot of HGTV - I'm a designer at heart and love a good hands-on project. I just bought my first motorcycle, which has been amazing fun and will likely be the toy I miss the most.
I'm pretty new to world of NGOs, volunteer organizations and service projects so I look forward to learning a lot, having a great time and meeting everyone!
Hi everyone, my name is Greg Leung. I'm a 30 year-old accountant from Toronto, Canada and am participating in my second Habitat trip. My other experience with Habitat took me to Valle de Santiago, Mexico in 2004. I am looking to contribute something positive to the world while at the same time expanding my horizons. I find as North Americans we often get overly caught up in consumerism and forget the things that truly matter!
As an aside, I am considering flying into New Delhi a few days early and either taking a train or hiring a car to Agra to see the Taj Mahal. If anyone is interested in joining me, please drop me an email at gleung@soberman.com. I look forward to meeting you all!
Colleen McSweeney
I live in Manhattan Beach, California, which is a charming coastal town about ten minutes from LAX. I love books, (recent favs: A THOUSAND SPLENDID SUNS and EAT, PRAY, LOVE), movies, theatre, and all kinds of music, from show tunes to classical to classic rock. I am a photographer and teach art twice a month to inner city second graders, which is a blast.
My proudest accomplishments are my two daughters, Kate and Sarah. I have been fortunate to be a full time Mom for the past decade, with the exception of the occasional freelance production or photography assignment. The girls keep me honest and humble. We laugh a lot. My husband, Jamie is an animation director-producer at Disney. We have a big standard poodle who believes she’s human and a sweet cat who knows that she’s a cat.
I had the honor of meeting Jimmy Carter several years ago when I was a producer at ABC –TV in Los Angeles. He impressed me with his wisdom, kindness and his commitment to HFH. I sent donations to the organization, when I could, but always wanted to contribute actual sweat equity to a project. The opportunity for our team to help create a home for a deserving family from first brick to finished house is an exciting challenge.
I can’t wait to experience India.
Looking forward to meeting everyone in Bangalore……(how cool is that?!)
I was born and raised in Phoenix, Arizona. I escaped at age 18 despite repeated attempts at indoctrination on the part of the Mesa Public Schools system. College in Tucson.
Next, I foolishly moved to Tuscaloosa, Alabama, where from 1996 to 1998 I taught undergraduates at the University of Alabama “Introduction to Gender, Race and Class Studies” while attaining my first MA and writing a 250+ page Master’s Thesis that, despite publication, no one except my mother would ever actually read.
Then I moved to New York to attend Columbia Law School, widely known as one of the strongest remaining bastions of class-based elitism in the nation. Nevertheless (and perhaps in part due to my near total absence) I graduated in 2001 and reportedly retained my humanity. From 2001 to 2002 I was the Staff Attorney for New York’s Partnership for the Homeless and also a lyricist and the first soprano for New York-based theatrical comedy troupe Bob Ross Juice Box. During that year I also began the PhD program in medical anthropology at the City University of New York.
In 2002 I was admitted to the bar of the State of New York after a disturbing delay in the character and fitness committee just in time to return to Phoenix. In 2003 I was admitted to the Arizona bar and joined the Law Office of the Maricopa County Public Defender. In 2005, due to failing mental health caused by the mismanagement of the office, I became a solo practitioner. Today my practice is 100 % indigent criminal defense; all of my cases are court-appointed, pro bono, or sliding scale.
Ryan Pedlow
I was born and raised in Brandon, Manitoba, Canada, a rural community witha population of 40,000 just 60 miles north of the U.S. border, with my Mom, my Dad, and my younger sister. In the summers I worked many jobs including farming, construction work, pizza deliverer, and my favorite, as a baseball umpire. For grade 11, I was an exchange student living in Tasmania, Australia.
I went to college at Queen’s University in Kingston Canada. Followingcollege I moved to New York City and have lived here for the past 9 years. I started working at Goldman Sachs as a financial analyst, and for the past 7 years I have worked at the Ziff Family investment firm. After completing six years each member of our company is given an additional four weeks ofvacation time (a sabbatical), which gave me the opportunity for theBangalore trip. Following the Bangalore trip, if my softball team wins thestate championship in August, we will play in Phoenix the first week of October, if not I will have to find a plan B!
In addition to softball, I actively play tennis and am a snowboarder. Other hobbies and interests include reading, traveling and my dog Dakota. Rhodesian Ridgeback mix.
Cristy Phillips
I was born, grew up, and educated in Upstate New York. In the late 70's I moved to California in search of new scenery, better weather, and to begin a career in biotechnology. Here I also married Hanna. We’ve been together for 25 years. Three years ago I retired to spend more time with family and friends, to give back to society, and to travel and explore. I’m actively involved with a number of organizations including Habitat for Humanity, the Sierra Club and Earthwatch Institute. My interests include reading, horseback riding, backpacking (completed the Pacific Crest Trail this year), kayaking, and travel. Hanna and I reside in the San Francisco Bay Area and are frequent visitors to the Mendocino Coast in California. This will be my second GV trip.
James and Erna Yackel
This is an interesting phenomenon: hole in the wall/mom and pop computer training centers.
Bangalore is a vibrant city, famous for its numerous pubs and its nightlife. No sidewalks rolling up here.
And plenty of nightclubs, it seems:
In fact, some parts of the city seem to be planning to be a Las Vegas-type place for business to thrive despite the obvious poverty.
Commerce does, however, continue to thrive in the city, and we will see many examples of this.
From such a wildlife park:
And streetside:
Also streetside:
And the lush flora allows for garland vendors such as this one:
But don't be fooled. No amount of IBM presence can change the fact that, like the rest of India, Bangalore is a mix of old and new, and very rich and very poor.
Capitol building with man sleeping on the grass; he is very difficult to see him, I had to person you were draining her? Juliet's Mom?
Typical traffic jam:
It's a very interesting look at the dichotomy between being "India's Silicon Valley" and still having so many troublesome poor people.
Mr. Mahesh Lobo
National Director - Volunteer Programs
Habitat for Humanity India
No.54/A,3rd Cross,
Kavery Layout,
Thavarekere Main Road,
Bangalore - 560079
Tel: +91 - 80 - 41114884
Ms. Nirmala Rani
Manager- Volunteer Programs
'Habitat Resource Centre - Bangalore'
Habitat for Humanity India
No.54/A,3rd Cross,
Kavery Layout,
Thavarekere Main Road,
Bangalore - 560079
Tel: +91 - 80 - 41114884
Mobile: +91-9449814148
1 comment:
Hi,
I am your host coordinator - Nirmala. It was great to know each one of you through your bios. Thanks to Jeri for sharing it with me. I am just back to office after hosting 300 volunteers for 25 days. I look forward to meet you all at Bangalore with the same excitement as you.
With best regards,
Nirmala
Post a Comment