After graduation, senior Wesley Steeb will be flying to Africa, where she will be working as an administrative assistant to the director of a Ugandan orphanage.
Steeb is a history major and member of the honors program. She also directs the Hillsdale College GOAL programs.
The administrator of the orphanage plans to go on sabbatical in July, a month after Steeb’s arrival. Steeb will be his contact at the orphanage during his absence.
“I’ll be thrown in, and I’ll have to learn to swim very quickly,” Steeb said.
The final decision came after a long sequence of events, starting in high school.
“In 10th grade, I watch the ‘Invisible Children’ documentary. There was a scene of a child holding an AK-47. He was standing by a pool, and the reflection was of a child holding a ball,” Steeb said. “They had been robbed of their childhood.”
Later, Steeb was exploring the website of New Hope Uganda Ministries, when she noticed that there was an opening for an administrative assistant job.
“God told me that I had to change my plans,” Steeb said.
Steeb is currently in the fund-raising phase of her plans, raising money to cover things such as her airfare and living expenses.
“It’s an attainable number,” Steeb said. “I like to have all my ducks in a row, but this is really stressful, because it’s something I have no control over.”
Steeb said that after coming from Seattle to Hillsdale, this will be the next step in independence for her.
“I’ll be self-sufficient with a community of support,” Steeb said.
Director of Student Affairs Amanda Bigney commented on Steeb’s post-graduation plans.
“Through working with Wesley, I’ve seen how passionate she is for volunteering and helping others,” Bigney said. “I think this is a wonderful opportunity for her and was nearly as excited as she was when she told me she had got it.”
The orphanage, located in Kasana, Uganda, and run by New Hope Uganda Ministries, houses 124 children, who each live in family groups. These groups, headed up by a mother and a father, contain 20 children.
“There’s at least a semblance of a family structure,” Steeb said.
The job requires six months of training and acclimation, with a total commitment of two years. Steeb said that she will have the opportunity to visit home after training, as well as throughout her two-year commitment.
“God has been so helpful,” Steeb said. “There’s support coming from places I never expected.”
Steeb plans to move home after working overseas for a number of years, though she is not entirely certain of her future plans.
“I’m learning not to plan,” Steeb said.
Steeb will be recording the story of her job at the orphanage at her blog: wesleyjeansteeb.wordpress.com.
