The Story of Scarisoara School In 2003 I traveled to the village of Scarisoara in the Apusemi Mountains in Romania where S.T.A.R Children Relief was going to remodel a much needed health clinic. My only stipulation was that the clinic would not be sold privately or used later for other purposes. However, the Mayor of the village could not give this assurance! I found myself in Romania with a return ticket five weeks later, a sizable amount of money and no project. I was disappointed and so was the Mayor. It did not take long for the Mayor to come up with a solution: How about remodeling the school instead! We went to see the school and immediately I said yes. The school in Scarisoara had no central heating system, no adequate windows and doors and the outhouse was a disgrace. I barely held my breath to get close enough to take a few pictures. It was horrible to think that children grades 1st through 8th would actually go inside. We started work right away with the promise that the project would be finished in five weeks. S.T.A.R. Children Relief was going to replace all the windows, install a new heating system, build a boiler room, and of course build indoor separate bathrooms for girls, boys and staff. We had agreed that the builder would get paid weekly for the work already done. Five weeks went by quickly, the school looked great and the inauguration was scheduled for the day before my departure. I was making the final inspection when the dignitaries were arriving and the media was setting up cameras. While inspecting the bathrooms I found out, to my surprise, that there was no running water. The bathrooms were useless and so was the new heating system. It had been raining and I was soaking wet. I was wet and mad. Everybody was waiting for me to say a few words and all I could think of was that I was wet and there was no running water. While I mumbled a few unintelligible words I remembered that I had not made the final payment. A bit relieved I accepted the diploma and the honorary citizenship and I went to the party the Mayor had arranged: food, drinks, and folk music in a cave! I thanked everyone, said my good byes and told the builder I would make the final payment when the bathrooms were functional and the heaters were working. Only the following spring did the villagers get together to dig, lay pipes and connect the school with water from the mountains. To make sure the outhouse will not be used again, I requested that it be demolished and cement be poured over the hole. Then, I returned to Scarisoara to make the final payment. To make peace, the builder donated several computers to the school and S.T.A.R. Children donated a playground. Happy Birthday ROMANIA from an honorary citizen!
Posted on: Tue, 02 Dec 2014 05:42:02 +0000
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