Retiree Volunteer Rediscovers Ancestral Roots Through Service in Sicily

Seeking purpose through service, and more than a bit curious about her Italian heritage, first-time volunteer Susanne DiBianca joined Global Volutneers in Castelvetrano, Sicily to give back, and get back to her roots. Her service adventure in Sicily allowed her to explore the homeland of her ancestors, experience their culture, and practice basic Italian with young students. Read on to learn how she put it all together.

After retirement, Susanne DiBianca started to feel the urge to volunteer so she could contribute to the world meaningfully. As her research led her to Global Volunteers, she found our programs fit the type of volunteering she wanted to do while also enabling her to travel. As a retired teacher and principal, she spent much of her life and career dedicated to supporting children. Reading about Global Volunteers’ Italy Service Program, she was excited by the opportunity to work with children again in such an essential capacity. As an American with Italian heritage (and having just started to learn the language) the timing and destination seemed right.

Susanne arrived ready to teach conversational English for two weeks to elementary school students at a variety of grade levels. Though she said she was nervous to return to school, especially since she’d just begun to speak the language, she found the warm welcome from the teachers and administrators filled her with confidence. By the second week of teaching, she had found her groove, and began to recognize the faces of the smiling children in her classroom.

*Just like in the U.S., one of the best ways to bond with Italian teenage students is to discuss pop culture.*

As she became more comfortable in the classroom, she began to think about her grandparents – all who were born in Italy. She said exploring a smaller town in Sicily helped her forge a new connection to her familial roots. On her walk to school one morning, she reflected on the journey her grandparents made from Italy to America. She knew her grandfather immigrated to America because he felt the opportunities he would have in the U.S. would be greater than he would experience in Italy.

“I clearly saw the connection of his adolescence and the great value that Global Volunteers gives in small towns like Castelvetrano,” she projected, “where so many people are working together to provide the young boys and girls and men and women valuable resources – including the English language and exposure to foreigners.” This realization helped her to connect the story of her grandfather’s adolescence in Italy to the story of the children she was teaching each day. In a small town like Castelvetrano,she said, “The resources volunteers provide to the community are a pathway to success for the children. The service we provide helps the youth expand their choices well beyond what was available to the generations before them.”

“The service we provide helps the youth expand their choices well beyond what was available to the generations before them.”
-Susanne DiBianca, Sicily Volunteer

Susanne credits Global Volunteers and the community in Castelvetrano for deepening the connection to her personal history over two weeks. She found that when she travels with her partner or friends, the experience is different. While they may strive to learn about the culture and history while experiencing the beauty of a new city, through traveling with Global Volunteers, she found she got that and so much more.

“This experience differs greatly from other travel I have done, because it comes with a responsibility to the mission. When I travel with my husband or friends, the goal is to learn about other cultures, the history of the area and to see the beauty of a particular place. With Global Volunteers, those things still exist, but living and working among the local people for a particular cause creates a greater importance.”

Global Volunteers’ ongoing partnerships advanced the relationships she built in Castelvetrano. Through her work with students and other volunteers, Susanne met her goal to create deeper, more meaningful connections than on a standard tourist trip.

*Infusing an English conversation with movement is a great way to keep students engaged in the lesson.*

“When I travel with my husband or friends, the goal is to learn about other cultures, the history of the area and to see the beauty of a particular place. With Global Volunteers, those things still exist, but living and working among the locals for a particular cause creates a greater importance”
-Susanne DiBianca, Sicily Volunteer

What characteristics served her – and her teammates – best in their service with Global Volunteers? She replied, “flexibility, bravery, humility, and friendliness” are the top skills needed to volunteer. Susanne also noted that while she may have started her journey solo, she never felt alone during her service program. In fact, she said the only time she felt alone was arriving at the airport and sitting at the gate. Throughout the week, the relationships she built with her teammates, her team leader, and the students and teachers at the elementary school made her feel like she was surrounded by friends throughout the entirety of her service program.

Susanne’s experience in Sicily proved to be one that was completely unique to her. By traveling a similar path that her grandparents’ had, she found new connections to her heritage. When returning to a classroom, she got to revive her skills in education. Through her acts of service, she experienced the joy of bonding with a community. In her own words, “As is so often true with volunteer work, you receive equally, if not more than, what you give. What I received through my experience in Castelvetrano will remain with me always.”