Dear Friends of Pathways to Children,
As 2021 comes to a close, I find myself reflecting on how much has happened since January 2020 when Pathways was last able to travel to India, Ethiopia, and Colombia to carry on the work of Pathways in the impoverished communities we support. Though Covid-19 curtailed our international travel, we continue to support our programs and partners from afar. We made much progress on construction of two classroom additions in Ethiopia before the violence and civic strife broke out in the area which then brought construction to a halt.
The pandemic has elevated the importance of the profession of public health and made it even more clear to us the importance of our collaboration with the University of Minnesota School of Public Health. Elizabeth Larson reflected on the experience we support in Kolkata in an article published in the University of MN Alumni magazine (summer 2020): “… public health efforts are critical to keeping people across our interconnected world safe. And we have learned to our dismay, that public health calamities in one area of the globe can soon become everyone’s problem.”
In late 2020, I established an endowment at the University of Minnesota in honor of my late husband Ralph. The endowment provides graduate students with community embedded global health field experiences which they could not receive except for sponsorship through this fund. Students tell us that the growth they incur through these global experiences is equal to spending years doing classroom work.
A student recently commented to board member Beth Virnig: “I’m incredibly thankful for having the opportunity to learn and gain experience abroad, particularly among a low income, marginalized population of West Bengal, India. In addition to learning from individuals different than myself, I gained experience identifying an organizational need, working with a team to teach and implement change, and learning where I could improve my own practice. The Public Health Kolkata experience would be a critical learning and growing opportunity for any budding public health student interested in working on a global, national, or local level. I’m grateful for the financial support that allowed me to take advantage of the experience and honored to have met and serve with Grace and Ralph Strangis.”
Through this endowment and additional funding Pathways raises, the public health program at the Jan Seva facility in Kolkata, India has assisted an entire poverty-stricken community with training on hygiene, nutrition, domestic violence, as well as other public health topics. Through these efforts, Jan Seva has become a public health training center for the surrounding community.
I am pleased to announce that over the next few years, we will continue to expand and improve Jan Seva’s public health program while at the same time developing similar public health programs in Africa, Thailand, and Mexico. Your support of Pathways in the past has been integral in allowing Pathways to improve the lives of children all over the globe. Please consider continuing on this journey with us as we expand the public health programs and training of public health students whether it be contributing to the Ralph Strangis Pathways to Children memorial endowment fund at the University of Minnesota Donate to the University of Minnesota (umn.edu) or to Pathways directly.
Pathways Board of Directors wants to personally thank you for your loyal support.
With gratitude and love,
Grace Strangis, Founder and Executive Director of Pathways to Children
Board of Directors, Gopal Khanna, Peter Laird, Sara Lederman, Dr. Beth Virnig and Bob York