Not Just Another American Death.

Luke Beachnaw, a Sergeant in the US Army, from Lowell, Michigan, died in Afghanistan in a fire fight with Taliban insurgents. He graduated a year behind me at Lowell High. His sister, Jamie, graduated with me. Our high school was really big; I knew Jamie, but I didn't know Luke that well, if, really, at all. My younger cousin (more brother than cousin), Jeff, was in Luke's class, and knew him better than I did. 

That said: His death is not just a American military casualty in a far off in some mid-Asian "-stan" scary nation full of things like "Taliban insurgents," "terror cells," and "Al-Qaeda operatives". He was a home-grown, corn-fed, Midwestern-er with a family who loved him more than life. He came from the place where I grew up, the place that shaped me. The place that I go home to. 

I thought of Luke Beachnaw today, this guy that I didn't really know; I thought of him crouching in the arid Afghan desert, with scrubby shrubs all around him, sand crunching lightly under his military issue combat boots, wearing a light camo uniform bearing a light olive and black colored American flag on his arm. I thought of him preparing for a patrol or talking easily, maybe about baseball or football, with the men in his unit, watching the sun creep over the jagged peaks and rise as the day went on. The high-altitude mountain air was probably crisp and cold on the day he died. 

I thought of what it must have been like for him, and his fellow soldiers in the field with him that day, to have been surprised by enemy gunfire, to hear him go down with a thud, and to run to him and try, in vain, to save his life. Who was holding his hand when he died? Who was he thinking of? When was the moment that he knew he was going to die? Did the man who shot Luke Beachnaw look him in the eye in his gun sights before he pulled the trigger?

When his family was told that their brother, son, cousin, nephew, faithful friend was dead - did the Earth disappear beneath their feet and seem to swallow them whole?

His service to my country can be described in only one succinct word: brave.

Even though I didn't know Luke Beachnaw, I think I can understand him. The two pictures above were taken by the Grand Rapids local NBC news station as his casket was brought back to Lowell, our hometown. Welcome home, Sergeant. Rest in peace. 

Lucy Cavendish College/Hughes Hall Boat Club: Perpetual Aid Recipient

If Haiti doesn't strike your fancy for your charitable donations, check out my college rowing squad's website at: http://www.hughesrowing.com/

If you wish to make a charitable donation to the LCC/HHBC, contact me at: katelynbush07@gmail.com.

If you choose to donate to us rather than Haitian earthquake victims, you have made the wrong choice :).

We have a race this weekend, the Winter Head to Head Race on the River Cam put on the City of Cambridge Rowing Club. Go Lucy!

 

Haiti: Survivor or Perpetual Aid Recipient?

I just got word from my Mom, who turns 50 today (Happy Birthday, Mom!), that she is headed to Haiti next week to deliver medical aid with an Amway aid group from Grand Rapids. She is a nurse anesthetist, so she told me she is going to be delivering primarily local anesthetic for amputations while she is there. 

Wow. Go Mom. 

She is going to be bunking with other doctors and nurses from GR, and Amway is going to fly her and the other medical professionals going with her down in their corporate jet, which has already made numerous runs to Port-au-Prince delivering food aid, medical supplies, and other essentials for the Haitian people. 

We were discussing on the phone whether all of the aid pouring in to Haiti right now is going to help or hurt Haiti as a nation in the long run; obviously, she said, they need help right now. But what if we are giving so much help that they can't stand on their own two feet after all of the doctors pack up their equipment and technical prowess and get back to their practices other places in the world, she asked. I inquired as to whether or not she would be training Haitian nurses while she was there, and she said not as far as she knew; she said she was just there to clear the back log of people needing medical attention, especially now that Haiti has endured another intense aftershock yesterday. 

After acute medical and basic survival needs are dealt with in Haiti, when can they start helping themselves? How does this get addressed in Haiti's existing governmental institutions so that they are better equipped to deal with a disaster in the future? That remains to be seen.


The link below is to an incredible news story on CNN; an emergency physician reports that the body is incredibly resilient in the face of adversity, and a healthy individual can last almost two weeks without food or water. Unfathomable.  

http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/americas/01/20/haiti.earthquake.survivors/index.html?hpt=C1

Happy Birthday, Cambridge!

Yesterday - I went to the final bit of Cambridge's celebration of their 800 year history. There was a light show, which was projected on to the King's College, which was incredibly impressive. I took a couple of night shots of Cambridge just because it takes on a eerie beauty at night. Above and below are shots between Clare College and King's.  

Below is the light show projected on to King's College Chapel. 

Below is a tree between King's and Clare - the college lit up the grounds for the celebration as well as the buildings. 

Cambridge could do the worst photographer justice. 

Haiti: Where Do They Go From Here?

I was looking at some pictures from Haiti today, and there is only one word to describe what has happened there: devastating. The only thing that can be gained from such a tragedy, especially an earthquake, is to know that Haiti can maybe start from a "clean slate". 

How the world will cope with helping a country that cannot help themselves in the long term, though, has yet to be seen. Hopefully, Haiti can take the form of a phoenix and rise from the ashes. 

More on this later after some more research. 

Life in Cambridge - Michaelmas Term 2009

I thought that for my first post, I would tack on some of my favorite photos from last term. The photo above was taken by my rowing team captain in a head to head sprint race in November. My team is in the boat on the right in the picture - this is just before the official sent us off. My crew ended up 4th in the top bracket of Novice college crews in Cambridge, which numbered in the mid 30s. 

The shots above and below are from another race, the Fairbairns Cup, in late November. Our first boat came in 7th out of 50 some crews, and our second boat came in the middle of the pack, beating out other college's first boats. It was absolutely freezing that day.

The picture below is from celebrating Guy Fawkes Day in Cambridge in November. The fireworks were spectacular!

The last shot is from Emily Dolan (now Dunckle :)'s wedding in Detroit in October. I was so glad that I got to fly back from London to help her celebrate her wedding. 

So far, life in Cambridge has proven to be quite an adventure. I am sure this term will be no different.

 

Welcome to 2010!

Hey Everyone!

So, in the spirit of starting new things in 2010, I decided to start a blog to keep everyone at home updated on the happenings in Cambridge, and as an outlet to discuss current goings-on in the world.

I love politics, so I will try to put interesting news articles up for discussion and conversation.

Look forward to reading about rowing (GO TEAM!!!), climate change, Cambridge classes, and news and world highlights. I hope this can become a medium through which I can keep in touch with friends and family, and talk about what is going in the news in the U.S. and abroad.

Cheers!