'It broke my heart,' student says of poverty she pledges to fight
KITCHENER - It was a moment that changed Jen Hustwitt's life.
She was standing on a beach in poverty-stricken Nicaragua, playing with local children and chatting with her North American peers about the life-altering trip that brought them there.
A small boy, perhaps five years old, was following her every move. When she looked down at him, he pulled a small package from the pocket of his torn and dirty shorts.
Inside, lay a small chicken bone, stripped bare of all but a few scraps of meat.
"Familia," the boy said, smiling.
It took a few moments before Hustwitt realized the boy was proudly showing her something very valuable -- dinner for his family.
"I'll never forget that," she said recently from her Waterloo home. "It broke my heart."
The inspiration for Hustwitt's two- week trip through Nicaragua last summer began years earlier when the Waterloo Collegiate Institute student discovered her passion for world issues and public service.
"I need to do what I can to help others," said the 18-year-old.
In 2000, she took over a Breakfast for Kids program at Cedarbrae Public School when teachers were temporarily working to rule.
"That's when I first realized I care, both locally and internationally," she said.
Hustwitt kept on caring when she implemented and lobbied for a region- wide No Sweat Shop policy that ensures school clothing is not manufactured under poor labour conditions in Third World countries.
Now nearing the end of her high school career, Hustwitt's resumŽ is more than impressive.
She's been active in student council, served as a student trustee for the Waterloo Region District School Board, volunteered tirelessly and raised money for less fortunate children. She also plays just about every school sport available and maintains an average of over 90 per cent.
Although her parents are very supportive of Hustwitt's accomplishments and goals, they don't push her. A satisfying high school experience includes much more than just attending classes, said Hustwitt.
That's why she jumped at the opportunity to raise money for needy children in developing countries last year after hearing about the Toronto-based organization, Free the Children.
It didn't take long for Hustwitt to organize her own committee at Waterloo Collegiate.
Hustwitt and committee partner Paul Cescon organized one fundraising event after another. Dance-a-thons, movie nights and straight donations were so successful that the school's Free the Children project collected $20,000 in just six months -- twice its original goal.
"We were ecstatic," said Hustwitt.
Students decided to put the money toward building a high school in Nicaragua as part of the international Free the Children youth charity. Hustwitt and Cescon raised more money so they could visit the future school site.
But excitement turned to shock when Hustwitt found herself travelling through Nicaragua along muddy trails, sitting in the bed of a pick-up truck. The poverty, she says, is unbelievable.
"It's unjust and unfair that we have so much and they have so little," she said.
Telephones, running water and reliable shelter were luxuries left behind in Canada.
For most of the trip, Hustwitt travelled with a group of students from across North America. They took shelter in primitive churches and teacher training centers, and spent a lot of time getting to know local children.
In some areas, families scavenged in dumpsters to find food for the day. Children often held empty perfume bottles to their noses to mask the smell of garbage.
"It really shakes you up," said Hustwitt. "It changes you."
When most of the students had flown back home, she trekked a little further into a small village called Mulukuku -- where the much-needed school would be built.
Hustwitt says she can't compare the village to any place she's ever seen in Canada.
"It's like night and day . . . It's extremely poor."
The new school will help, but Hustwitt knows much more needs to be done.
"They're the same kind of people as us, but they don't have the chance to discover their interests and passions . . . It's frustrating," she said.
When she came back to Canada, the disconcerted teen found it difficult to adjust to her normal lifestyle.
"You really see how much we have that we don't need," she said. Dieting, for example, is a concept people in Nicaragua wouldn't even understand because "they've never known excess."
Although her high school days are coming to an end, Hustwitt doesn't plan on slowing down. She wants to run another fast at Waterloo Collegiate to raise money for school supplies in Mulukuku before she graduates in May.
In the fall, the ambitious student hopes to go to Princeton University in New Jersey to study international relations.
"I really have a heart for international issues," said Hustwitt. "My dream would be to work for the United Nations."
bcarter@therecord.com