Bonnie Zipursky always knew that she would volunteer abroad one day, but she had no idea the effect it would have on her.
“I grew up with parents who always made travel a very big part of my life. And when we would go on family vacations it wasn’t only to sit by the pool all day, but to reach out to the community, spend a day at an orphanage, that sort of thing,” Zipursky said.
Bonnie Zipursky, who is volunteering at St. Joseph’s Home, a home for chronically-ill children based in a Cape Town suburb, poses with some of the children who receive care there.
“So I think travelling and volunteering has been something I always knew I would do.”
Zipursky’s mother, Fern Levitt, said that although her 21-year-old daughter was always compassionate, until she travelled to Africa eight months ago to volunteer, she wasn’t an activist.
“She was always more of a shy kid, so when she went off on her own… I was thrilled. Absolutely thrilled. I want my kids to be activist and to do something. They live privileged lives, living in this country,” Levitt said.
After deciding to take a year off from pursuing an English degree from Dalhousie University, Zipursky got in touch with Ve’ahavta, the Canadian Jewish humanitarian and relief committee, to seek volunteer opportunities in Africa.
She was put in touch with a man in Tanzania who used to do international consulting and has worked with Ve’ahavta in the past.
“He found a local orphanage that was desperate for volunteers, and so I planned my first seven weeks in Africa volunteering for them,” Zipursky said.
“It was also really important to me to do something with African wildlife, so I did some research online and found a wildlife sanctuary in Namibia where you get to live in the bush looking after orphaned and abused animals – everything from meerkats to lions – and I did that for four weeks.”
She said that her next opportunity was based in Cape Town, where she landed an internship working for a local magazine.
“When I arrived in Cape Town and started the internship, it just didn’t feel right. I missed the daily interactions with local people, especially children,” she said.
Soon after, Zipursky met someone who was volunteering at St. Joseph’s Home for Children, in a Cape Town suburb, a place for chronically ill children, many of whom come from low-income families or have lost their parents to AIDS.
“I realized that was what I really wanted to be doing.”
For the past four months, Zipursky has been working with children who range in age from a few months to 14 years. The children receive 24-hour medical and emotional care from nurses, staff and volunteers.
“When I first started, it was a huge adjustment to seeing kids so young and so vulnerable to these horrible diseases, knowing that they are here because their family is unable to look after them, or they don’t have a family at all,” she said.
“But by far the most difficult part is when there is nothing more St. Joseph’s can do for them because they’re not responding to treatment, and they are sent home to spend their last few weeks with family. I could never adjust to saying goodbye.”
Although there have been emotionally difficult times for her, the experience has given her a more positive outlook on life.
“They have taught me how to appreciate my own fortune, and although it sounds so cliche, made me realize the things in life that really matter,” she said.
When Zipursky was asked to think of ways to raise money for the home, which relies heavily on donations, she reached out to her mother for suggestions.
“She called me asking me what she could do in terms of raising money and I had no idea,” Levitt said.
“But I heard of another family who went to Africa and did a party at their home to raise funds before they left and I thought that was a fabulous idea.”
She decided to throw a party at her home and charge a $25 cover that would be donated to the home.
“We e-mailed everyone we knew… and I put together a silent auction. I got donations from friends and people in the neighbourhood for the silent auction.”
She said that one friend who owns a sailboat auctioned off a day on the boat, and another friend, an electrician, offered his services.
Levitt owns a horse and sold a riding lesson for $150, while her husband, Arnie Zipursky, who is a filmmaker, offered a dinner and movie night with him that sold for $250.
“The house was packed with well over 100 people. We raised $10,000 in one night,” she said. “And even people who couldn’t make it sent money. Our community was so happy to be part of it, so happy to give.”
Levitt, her husband and two daughters travelled to Africa on April 30 to visit Zipursky for four weeks, to tour, to volunteer as a family and to deliver the $10,000 cheque to the home.
“I am so overwhelmed by everyone’s unbelievable generosity,” Zipursky said.
“I never thought when my parents told me they were going to do it, that the amount would reach anywhere close to $10,000. It was so nice to hear how everyone was so willing to donate, and I am very excited for my parents to come and bring the donation to the home,” she said about a week before their arrival.
She said the money will go toward new playgrounds for the kids.
“There are 150 children, each separated into different wards [in the home], and St. Joseph’s wanted to build a playground for each ward, as well as including an indoor playground for children whose medication makes them sensitive to the sun.”
“It is a huge project, but now with this amazing donation from Toronto, it will be able to come into effect.”
Although she has plans to work in Toronto for the summer, she plans to return to Cape Town and is looking into the option of completing her English degree there.
But no amount of schooling would have provided Zipursky with the life lesson she learned while abroad.
“Above everything else, I have learned that there is no reason to be scared of the unknown,” she said. “Especially as a young woman, there are always so many reasons not to do something, and unless you actually go out and do it, you will never know what amazing experiences you are missing out on.”
