Dr. Dagmar Schmidt Etkin, 53, an environmental research consultant, shows a newly snapped photo to a child in a small village in southern India. “My son had volunteered for the Shanti Bhavan school in 2006, which teaches dalit children, or untouchables, in order to help them get out of poverty and become community leaders. He went back again last year, so I decided to go for a month and see it for myself and do some volunteer work. Each day, we started at 5 a.m. and went until at least 10 at night. I’d take the kids on nature walks, and then I taught classes — chemistry, environmental sciences. The picture is from when I went to see the villages where some of the children come from. They live in fairly nice circumstances at school, but all of them come from very impoverished backgrounds, and it was helpful for me to be able to put everything in context. I really made a connection with the children and staff at the school. I feel like they’re part of my family now. Besides being a chance to be with my son, it was, personally, a wonderful experience.” As told to Austin Considine.Sharing A Photograph
Dr. Dagmar Schmidt Etkin, 53, an environmental research consultant, shows a newly snapped photo to a child in a small village in southern India. “My son had volunteered for the Shanti Bhavan school in 2006, which teaches dalit children, or untouchables, in order to help them get out of poverty and become community leaders. He went back again last year, so I decided to go for a month and see it for myself and do some volunteer work. Each day, we started at 5 a.m. and went until at least 10 at night. I’d take the kids on nature walks, and then I taught classes — chemistry, environmental sciences. The picture is from when I went to see the villages where some of the children come from. They live in fairly nice circumstances at school, but all of them come from very impoverished backgrounds, and it was helpful for me to be able to put everything in context. I really made a connection with the children and staff at the school. I feel like they’re part of my family now. Besides being a chance to be with my son, it was, personally, a wonderful experience.” As told to Austin Considine.