I found Albion College in a run-down orphanage in Ludus, Romania.
It was a one hour drive on narrow, two lane roads that wound through small roadside villages to reach the town of Ludus. We traveled by Maxi Taxi, or small bus,as a group to visit one of the worst orphanages in the country of Romania. Simply called "Ludus", this orphanage had a reputation for being a terrible place for any child to have grown up and non-profit agencies fought the government for many years to have the place shut down. We were allowed no cameras, had to show our passports to get in, and our mere presence was cause for commotion. In fact, the first time we had tried to visit the children there we were forced to leave without making any contact at all. This time, as we made the drive from Targu Mures, where we were staying, to Ludus, we were hopeful that we would have the chance to play with some of the children living within Ludus' walls that so desperately needed the love and attention we were there to provide. As we pulled into town and drove down a narrow street we saw the gates and long tree-lined driveway that lead to the three story building that was Ludus orphanage. Our Taxi driver let us out at the end and we were left to walk up the pathway to the orphanage staff and children that awaited us. It was an eerie walk, one I remember as if it were yesterday, as we looked around and realized how dire the situation was for the children who resided here. There was a distinct unpleasant odor that filled our noses as we walked together on the cracked, uneven pavement. We glanced around to see merely 1 swing set and play area that had been so poorly taken care of you wondered how it remained standing. The weeds were overgrown to such an extent that many of them reached above the windows of the surrounding buildings. We reached the entrance and formed a line to show our passports to the administrator who was unhappily awaiting our arrival. It was then that I saw her: a young teen stepping out of the orphanages main doors among a few other curious children who eyed us oddly as we stepped into their world. I noticed nothing else about this girl except the gold t-shirt she wore with purple lettering that read "Albion College Basketball". I immediately stepped out of line and walked up to her. In my broken Romanian I said "Where did you get that shirt?". Her response "from a boy who come here". A boy. From Albion College. Was here. HERE. In this very orphanage. In this very city. of Romania. And he had given her a shirt, probably because it was all that he had to give, to leave with her, as a memory and token of his visit. My heart jumped out of my chest and I had never been so proud of the small nineteen-hundred-fifty student population that was, and is, Albion College. I found Albion College that day, found what it means to be a part of a place that gives you the education and experience to impact the world.
I read
THIS article today about Albion College helping out in Haiti. The picture you will see with the article is of a woman, in an Albion College t-shirt, holding a small child in what is probably some sort of relief shelter for survivors of the devastation in Haiti. This article reminded me of my encounter with Albion College in Romania and made me even more proud of my Alma Mater. It makes me proud to know that even the tiniest of schools can have a presence in helping people in need all across the globe.
And because all posts deserve a picture, the picture below is from my Freshman year at Albion taken of my good friend Aimee and I at a swim meet where we both competed for the Albion College Britons.
I left my own Albion College t-shirt with an orphan in Romania. I hope another student sees it one day and feels the same pride that I felt that day standing on the steps of
Ludus, one of the worst orphanages in Romania, to be connected to Albion College as it reaches out to help the world.
