Some Ohio State students head to summer hot spots or begin summer jobs when Spring Quarter ends. Others take classes or sit behind a desk. But Alie Trudeau and her boyfriend Drew Bergen have bigger plans.
Photo Courtesy of Alie Trudeau
Alie Trudeau and her boyfriend Drew Bergen pose for a picture with the children of the orphanage they help run in Nimule, Sudan in July 2008. The couple will return to the
orphanage this summer and perform a variety of tasks, such as bandaging skinned knees, helping with schoolwork and performing general parental tasks.Along with Trudeau's brother, she and Bergen will take a 36-hour, $2,500 flight to a war zone to help care for 42 orphans.
They will leave in July and plan to stay until late August. Both served at the orphanage last year as well.
The orphanage was founded in 2005 by a friend of Trudeau who was filming a civil war documentary, along with two Sudanese men.
When Trudeau learned about the war in Darfur in 2003, she knew she had to do something, but she didn't know how to get involved.
"It's a modern day Holocaust over there," Trudeau said.
Along with war casualties, there are high death rates attributed to AIDS, malaria and starvation, Trudeau said.
Trudeau joined the nonprofit staff as a volunteer in 2005, fundraising and performing administrative functions when not in Sudan. They helped raise more than $10,000 last year.
While at the orphanage, the couple are parental figures to the children.
"These kids call us mom and dad because they lost their parents," Trudeau said. "It's so sad."
The couple does everything from reading bedtime stories to bandaging skinned knees and helping with homework.
Bergen, a junior in social work, said they will volunteer at the village's hospital again.
There are about 600 patients with only three doctors and 12 nurses, he said.
Trudeau said her work at the hospital was delivering six babies.
"It was an amazing experience that I will never forget," she said.
Bergen said his memories of working at the orphanage are priceless.
"Not only was it physically strenuous, but just the knowledge of the difficult lives of the orphans that we work with is heartbreaking," he said.
Volunteering in Sudan is far from risk-free. Most people do not realize how dangerous it is for volunteers, Trudeau said. The orphanage has an armed security guard at night to protect the children and volunteers from rebel groups.
"The village we stay in, Nimule, is on the only road that leads to Uganda, so the rebel groups are constantly passing through," she said.
Trudeau carries a lifelong souvenir from her first Sudan trip. She contracted malaria, a blood disease caused by parasites. It can be fatal if not treated properly.
"I was sleepwalking, hallucinating and had the highest fever I have ever had in my life," she said. "A lot of people don't know that malaria is the number one cause of the death in Africa," Trudeau said.
Trudeau and Bergen received countless shots and preventive medications before traveling to Sudan, but they both still got violently ill. Bergen said he had severe hallucinations caused by what he believed was a parasite.
Trudeau said she is well aware of the popularity of getting involved with African aid projects.
"Africa is trendy right now, so people love to talk about it," she said. "But the biggest mistake people make is not knowing what is really happening."
The young philanthropist advises people to thoroughly research any country of interest before volunteering.
Trudeau and Bergen, who are both award-winning artists, are selling photographs and paintings at the "Eyes for the Unseen" event Saturday. The free event will be held from 7 to 10 p.m. at the Wild Goose Creative art gallery, 2491 Summit Road, in Clintonville.
Bergen said all proceeds will benefit the Corner Stone Orphanage and help offset traveling costs.
Marc Feher can be reached at feher.13@osu.edu.
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