Internship update 7/31

This week was a busy one!  On Monday, we researched candidates for the election of IRCT Board of Directors, Regional Representatives, and Independent Experts.  Tuesday and Wednesday, I met with a client who needed photographs of a gunshot wound, retouched and printed four of the pictures so that they could be sent to her lawyer, and wrote a report to go with them.  We had a fantastically successful potluck lunch for Alexis' last full day at CST on Thursday, which was attended b about 18 people, including two clients.  Today I will be sitting in on file reviews so that I can learn about the filing and documentation process.

Cheers!

Mary

WOW the summer!

Well, may I say, it has been quite a summer! I have thoroughly enjoyed everyday while at CST and I am so thankful for all of the experiences. Through the ExxonMobil CSJP program, I was granted an awesome opportunity to work at a great place with great people. I am going to be extremely nostalgic when school starts again and I won't be at CST everyday. I am happy I was given the job of planning the annual June 26 UN Day as well as working with those around me on development. This week has been fun and a bit sad because a lot of us will be done with our summer at CST soon, but that's not to say our relationship with CST is over. =) Yesterday, we had an awesome potluck and it was literally like Thanksgiving and I felt very blessed. Also, it has been amazing to see all the great things going on with clients lately. Ashley and Brad have been a fantastic job finding homes and support for clients. I'm going to miss it here. I'll have to come back even when I'm done to see Mary. And everyone else. Haha. I'm going to miss everyone. Thanks for reading and the best of luck to all!

Signing out.

Tania

Mary's back to work...

I returned to my internship at Center for Survivors of Torture last Monday, July 13.  On Friday the 17th, I had to organize and edit the photos I had taken for a client whose case is going to court within the next two months.  As part of the process, I had to work on the program Apple iPhoto in order to reduce glare and picture saturation in order to make the pictures printable.  I tested both home printing on photo paper and professional printing, and the professional printing was significantly more visible.  The pictures that resulted had more depth of color and detail, and were decidedly worth the extra cost.  The following Monday, I wrote a report for the client's lawyer to go along with the pictures.

Post UN Day

Yay! UN Day ended up being awesome! Despite all of my panicking, we had a great crowd and there was more than enough food! I am happy it is over, but at the same time, I had a blast doing it and I would totally do it again. Now that all of that is over, Brad and I will be helping out with the upcoming October 26, Tenth Anniversary Dinner. I will aid in compiling the contact list for the event as well as continuing to work with advocacy. Sorry it's been so long since I've updated!

Tania

UN Day

Hey all, UN day went incredibly well! Clients from all around the world came out and celebrated the June 26th event. There were guest speakers and an award ceremony recognizing outstanding volunteers. In addition, there was excellent ethnic dishes cooked by the clients. Food, music, and good people....success!Now we have begun work on supporting the Torture Victims Relief Act and preparing for the October 26th event.

Brad

This Friday!

Ahhhh UN Day is this Friday! I'm doing last minute preparations this week. I'm pretty excited though! Mr. Lon Burnam from the Dallas Peace Center is coming out as well now! And I have food donated from all kinds of places. Invitations are out and now I am in the process of creating the programs! I'm looking forward to see how it goes,and I will be sure to give a report the week following!

Tania

Mary, June 9

I returned to Austin on Wednesday of last week to prepare for a mini summer class, and I will be away from CST Dallas until July 13.  Since I got here, I have been catching up on my required reading and have been searching for additional articles in professional journals that I have access to through the university.  Although it's good to be at home for a bit, it will be good to get back to CST and continue work up there!

"No Sabe, No Comprende!"

These are among the first words I heard when I picked up a client from Ethiopia last week. After talking to Dr. Balbona last week, I learned that it is relatively common for our clients to learn Spanish quicker than English, especially when they are living and working in an environment that is predominately Latino. Last week involved alot of driving! I became acquainted with several more clients and learned about their respective cultures and lives. Tania and I did some more donation hunting and through Tania's smooth talking, Target donated CST a $50 gift card...woohoo! On Friday a few of us went and saw Dr. Balbona present a speech on the topic of PTSD to DISD school teachers. Very very interesting. After the speech we went and ate some La Cubanita....which was my first experience with the amazing-ness of Cuban food!

A few weeks away!

Ahh there's only 3 weeks until UN Day! However, I did have the great opportunity to meet the new high school intern this morning, Maya. She will be a great help and I am looking forward to working with her! We're working on securing all food and entertainment by the end of this week, so the next two weeks will be details alone.

Aside from that, I've continued to work on collecting donations to renovate the inside of the house. Brad and I have been quite successful as Target donated and I think we will get some things donated by World Market. But that's all for now!

I'll update again by the end of the week!

Tania

Hola!

Last week was full of cleaning, donation hunting, and driving! Tania and I went to various businesses around Dallas requesting donations in the form of gift cards. These donations would ideally be used for renovating various aspects of the center. It was a learning experience to say the least! Other than that we cleaned up the kitchen a little bit and did some oddjobs around the place. However, the peak of my week was my time spent with a man from Ethiopia. We got him some new chairs for his apartment and a brand new guitar! As far as I know, tomorrow I am going to pick up, cook and eat some fish with a unique individual from Iraq.....can't wait!

Brad

May 29 update

I spent the majority of this week compiling a list of reference materials for my project.  When taking a break, I designed filters to use in future pictures and tested out ways to measure clients' scars.  On Friday, I took a client to Mary Ellen's office for his forensic evaluation.  I was able to sit in on their interview, which consisted of a detailed account of his torture, the reasons that he cannot return home, and his current medical condition.  While I already had pictures of his torture-related scars, I was also able to take pictures of some of his previous scars, which will be helpful to my studies and to his case.  I'm glad I got the opportunity to sit in on this evaluation; it was one of the things I most looked forward to this summer.  I hope to experience a few more, either with Alejandro or with Mary Ellen.

Almost June

Hi there,

This week went by a bit fast. Basically, I've been working on a lot of the preliminary details for the June 26th event. I sent out an invitation to Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson and I just found out that she is going to be in Washington D.C. on the day of the event. However, her office may send out a representative which would be fantastic!

Also, Brad and I went out to a few local businesses yesterday and I went out to a few today to request donations to renovate the center. We are attempting to create a warm, welcoming and multicultural environment for all clients and visitors.

My presentation happen to come together pretty well this week as well. I just need to foot it with the CST logo and add the sound.

That's about it for now! Some clients just walked in; I really enjoy interacting with each one I meet! Anyway, have a great weekend and week until next time!

Tania

First two weeks

Hi, my name is Mary.  I'm a senior at Texas State University, studying anthropology with a focus on forensics.  This summer I will be photographing clients' scars, both torture-related and from other accidents, in order to try to find patterns in scars that are indicative of specific torture techniques.  

In order to proceed with these studies, I have created a consent form that outlines the goals, methods, and confidentiality procedures of the research project.  Last Tuesday I was able to take photographs of two clients, and I am happy with the results I've had thus far.  As this is a fairly large project, steps have been taken to ensure that future interns, likely graduate students, will continue with the project when I am no longer here.  So far, the project has been extremely successful.  It has been fu getting to know everyone at CST and I'm looking forward to the experiences I will have over the rest of the summer.

First Post

Hello All! Tania here. I’m this summer’s Exxon Mobile Intern at CST. Next fall, I will be a junior at the University of Texas at Dallas working towards a public affairs degree with a minor in political science. This summer I have the pleasure of working with CST’s community relations department. Over the course of the last week and a half, I have been working on a power point presentation for Ashley, the network community relations coordinator. The power point will serve to move potential donors to support CST in working towards aiding in the lives of survivors of international torture. Currently, I am about half way through the presentation and I am focusing on creating a powerful message whereby people will be influenced by the presentation alone.
I was also put in charge of planning and organizing the majority of the June 26 United Nations Day in Support of Victims of Torture. I now have a long term plan and list in which I will set up an agenda for the event that consists of client involvement, music entertainment, food and speakers. Actually, this morning I sent out an invitation to Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson inviting her to speak at the event as she was the first in Texas to sign on as a co-sponsor for the Torture Victims Relief Act. As far as music, I wanted to incorporate an international feel for the event, thus I wanted the music, if at all possible to be performed by clients. We have a few here at CST that may be willing, however I contacted three other organizations that work with international refugees to see if a few of their musically inclined clients would be interested. I’m waiting about a week or so to see how that pans out before I pursue some more people.
I have only been here for a week now, but I have already enjoyed myself and I am extremely excited to see what the rest of the summer brings. Maya, the high school intern, will be here soon and I am eager to see what she brings to our special intern circle that currently consists of Brad, Mary, Brian and me.  Through my interaction with clients, I am reminded how little I am in comparison to the world, but small efforts can lead to great things. That’s why I am here at CST! Get back at you next week!
Tania

The First Week!

Welcome to our blog!! This is the first post of the summer! I think it would be appropriate to first introduce myself. My name is Brad Williams and I am interning at the Center for Survivors of Torture. In addition, I am studying international relations at the University of North Texas, teaching English as a second language, and I also clean pools. It’s a busy life, but I’m looking forward to my summer with CST. I believe I will learn as much about CST as I will about myself.
My first week here has been a busy one! I have been working on various online projects while interacting with the clients. On Tuesday I had the chance to get to know an individual from Iraq who has invited me over to cook fish with him in a few weeks…I can’t wait! He also showed me his apartment and kept me entertained with his exceptional sense of humor. Yesterday I helped a young blind man buy a small table for his apartment while teaching him basic English. My goal is to teach him enough English that will enable him to live more independently of the center. Next Tuesday and Thursday we will be looking at affordable keyboards. I have also participated in several meetings which are aimed at organizing events and getting to know the other staff members. Well, that pretty much sums up my first week working at the center…we are going to try and post every Thursday or Friday.

Brad