Father of the Year, Daughters, and the Bonds that Reading Together Builds

Michael Winerip has an article in today's New York Times that moved me deeply. It is about a father, Mr. Jim Brozina, who is a single parent, and a librarian. He has been raising his younger daughter, Kristen, since his wife left him years ago.

Starting with Kristen being in 4th grade, father and daughter have read to one another from books in what they (and their community) called The Streak. It began with a challenge of reading for 100 consecutive nights, then was extended to 1,000, continued until Kristen was 17, and she went to college.

In the Times article, Kristen is quoted as saying: It was just the two of us. The Streak was stability when everything else was unstable. It was something I knew would always be there.

People kept leaving me, but with The Streak, I knew that nothing would come before The Streak. In high school, I had friends who never talked to their parents. It never occurred to me not to. If someone takes care of you, you want to be with them.

What a wonderful daughter Mr. Brozina has raised! His legacy to her, since he does not have much money, is to give her 700 books that they have read over the years. He has given so much of himself -- his time, his consistency and reliability. He and his daughter have built an incredible bond.

Kristen will be graduating from Rowan University in New Jersey this spring and has been accepted into a Master's degree program at the University of Pennsylvania (but has to work to be able to pay for this program). The wife of one of my former doctoral students, Dr. Jia Wang, is a professor at Rowan's business school so I forwarded this terrific article to her and her husband, Dr. Zugang Liu, who is a professor at Penn State Hazleton. Of course, I will also share this article with my husband, once he wakes up.

Mr. Jim Brozina deserves, at the very least, a Father of the Year award! Best of luck to Kristen Brozina in her future, as well. Thanks to Michael Winerip for writing such a terrific article.

They are Back!

The Bement School 9th graders returned last night around 9PM from their service trip to the La Suiza orphanage in the Dominican Republic, only 2 hours or so late, after an unplanned delay at immigration at the JFK airport since one girl's passport and papers were being challenged. Given numerous stories from colleagues and friends about their misadventures at immigration at JFK, the parents of the travelers breathed a big sigh of relief, when we were finally notified that the student group of 20 and their teachers and coaches could proceed through!

When the 9th graders arrived back to Old Deerfield they were welcomed by parents and the excitement of all at the reunion was palpable. What the "Bementers" accomplished in less than a week is amazing -- they built bookshelves at the orphanage, painted what has now become a library and study area, and designed and painted a big mural. Most importantly, they played with the orphans (45 boys in all), carried the younger ones around, since they blossom with the attention, and organized games of basketball, soccer, and baseball. They played checkers with the children, shared books and toys with them, including hula hoops, climbed mango trees, and communicated with one another as only children can -- with hugs and laughter. They also accompanied the older ones to their school down the hill. The Bementers also helped the staff with dish washing and volunteered to do so since the orphanage is so short-staffed.

The fact that few of the 9th graders knew much, if any Spanish, did not matter!

As my daughter said, upon her return, "We had no TVs, no radios, no Internet, and no watches - time just stood still and it did not matter. It was so wonderful!" The food was delicious - pineapples, eggs, chicken, and rice -- the chickens ran freely there!" "We would help putting the little ones to bed and they even prayed for us." "Every night we collapsed to sleep in our large dormitory rooms, girls in one room and boys in another." "There was no hot water in the showers and sinks and we had fun brushing out teeth, sometimes outside." "Mom, you must do something about the traffic in the Dominican Republic, though, since there are no double yellow lines on the roads and the bus rides were interesting."

When my daughter entered our home late last night she ran up to the bathroom and said that she needed time to just stare and appreciate the bathroom amenities, and especially the shower stall.

One wonders whether $$$ sent to such an orphanage might result in physical improvements but, at the same time, the human contact and shared experiences among the students of the US and those at La Suiza may inspire dreams, which may be more fundamental and lasting. Clearly, a way in which to improve and sustain both the physical and educational infrastructure at the orphanage along with more face-to-face support and kindness plus enriching experiences would be ideal.

Such a trip that the Bement 9th graders experienced, with some associated possible risks, builds not only character, but also empathy, discipline, and appreciation. We hope that it is just the beginning of helping to construct an environment in which those who need it most can enjoy their childhoods, knowing that others care, and the process of growing up.