Bob Thelen, was a Peace Corps volunteer who wanted to use his "privileged upbringing" to help other people. "In these times, it's important we work to develop a good image," he said. "We have to do good work. If we don't like what's happening in foreign aid, we can seek out nongovernmental organizations."
Montanans help less fortunate around the world
By JOAN HAINES, Chronicle Staff Writer
Montanans who have improved the lives of citizens in developing nations told an audience Wednesday night how they'd made a difference.
Many heroes are helping to improve health care abroad, said Robin Houston of Bozeman, a doctor who works to provide technical assistance to the Ministry of Health in Nepal, among other projects.
He told the story of a Nepalese volunteer health worker who distributed Vitamin A capsules to several villages while carrying her two-week old baby.
But Houston said there is a dark side to health care abroad. "I'm dismayed diseases persist when we know how to treat them," Houston told a group of 40 people in the Bozeman Public Library community room.
He was one of five panelists who talked on "Montanans in the World: International Aid and Development Issues."
The United States has provided a good deal of foreign aid, especially after the 9/11 attack on this country.
"Why are we disliked?" Houston asked. "Poorer countries aren't stupid. They realize money is given for political reasons. Many countries feel the United States has become less concerned, that the country is not giving in the true spirit of helping."
Another panelist, Bob Thelen, was a Peace Corps volunteer who wanted to use his "privileged upbringing" to help other people, he said.
Half the population of the world benefits from development work, said Thelen, a construction engineer who graduated from Montana State University. He has worked for CARE in Cambodia and Australia and for OXFAM in East Timor.
"In these times, it's important we work to develop a good image," he said. "We have to do good work. If we don't like what's happening in foreign aid, we can seek out nongovernmental organizations."
U.S. health workers have helped eradicate diseases in countries abroad, such as polio, smallpox and malaria, said Charles Hash, an agricultural economist in international development, now retired.
"(Worldwide) polio eradication will come about in our lifetime," Hash predicted.
Some projects have good motives, but don't turn out well, he said. For example, international aid money went into building a portable bridge in Ethiopia to help locals travel from village to village. But the Ethiopian army later crossed the bridge to destroy a village.
Hash worked in Bolivia for several years helping farmers make a living growing crops other than coca, the raw material for making cocaine.
Panelist Elissa Mittman of Billings talked about her unique specialty. She was an immigration lawyer who specialized in political asylum when she worked for the U.S. Department of Justice's Newark, N.J., political asylum office.
"I've had the privilege of removing people from harm, people who have experienced threats to (their) lives, who cannot return home," Mittman said.
The panel discussion was sponsored by the Montana Center for International Visitors.
