Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, November 20, 1996
Bryan Wright spends six weeks in Bosnia
Bryan Wright
(Editor's note: The following ar
ticle on Bryan Wright appeared
in the Oct. 18, 1996 issue of the
Gonzaga Bulletin, the student
newspaper for Gonzaga Univer
sity, Spokane, WA.
Wright is the son of Dean
Wright and the grandson of Mr.
and Mrs. Albert Wright, Hepp
ner.)
By Erin Tillery, staff writer
When Bryan Wright arrived
at the Croatian refugee camp
that would be his home for the
next six weeks, he felt like a ton
of bricks had been thrust upon
his shoulders.
The buildings were in disar
ray. They were full of bullet
holes and had plaster peeling
off the sides. In the back were
two artillery cannons, which
served as a jungle gym on
which kids loved to play.
His bedroom, which he
shared with five other student
volunteers from around the
world, wasn't much different.
What had been formerly used
as a storage room was clut
tered. Behind his pillow' was an
ant colony, and there w'as a
definite problem with roaches.
The outer condition of the
camp was much like that of the
people living there. They
showed signs of war, but con
tinued to stand strong.
" I wasn't expecting the Hil
ton, but I wasn't expecting this
eith er," Wright quoted his
friend.
The Gonzaga University
sophomore did expect to gain
information about the condi
tions in Bosnia.
Wright, who transfered to
GU this fall, spent six weeks in
Varazdian, Croatia last summer
because he didn't feel he had
enought information to make a
judgement on the situation.
Like most Americans, he con
sidered himself "ignorant of
w ar." Before his trip to Nor
thern Croatia, Wright had not
been aware that people were in
death camps or being slaught
ered.
"It was because I lived so far
aw ay," he said.
Wright explained that ignor
ance of situations like the one
in Bosnia are dangerous be
cause they breed atrocity.
He did not want to be ig
norant any longer, so he made
the trip to Varazdian.
Despite the hardships he fac
ed during his stay in Croatia,
Wright views his experiences
there as a turning point in his
life.
"Seeing the aftermath of war
changes a person's perspective
forever," he said.
Wright spent five of his six
weeks in Croatia working at the
Youth Integration House in
Varazdian. The function of the
program was to bring refugee
teams into the house and in
tegrate the mostly Bosnian
Muslim youth who lived in the
camps with local Croatian
youths. His job was to organize
activies such as English and
Spanish lessons, music lessons,
cultural sharing events and
sports.
Wright said that playing
sports with the youths in the
camp was comical because the
rules of volleyball and Ameri
can football were so foreign to
them.
The program also included
one-on-one discussions with
each refugee.
Two young men who parti
cularly interested Wright were
friends Himzo and Adnan.
Himzo, a 21-year-old former
Bosnian soldier, appeared
flagrantly angry with everyone.
He was angry not only with his
enemies, but with his own peo
ple as well.
Wright asked him if he had
ever killed anybody. Himzo
said that he had, and that it
was not a big deal.
"The value of life for them...
it's nothing," he commented.
However, he said the people
have had no choice in this at
titude. He cataloged their suf-
ferings-how their fathers had
been murdered, their mothers,
sisters and daughters raped,
their cities desecrated and their
culture and hope destroyed.
"People don't understand
the massiveness of what occur
red ," Wright said.
Adnan, on the other hand,
was willing to forgive the past.
Though he would not forget
what the Serbian government
had done, he did not blame the
Serbian people for the war.
Unlike Himzo, Adnan was will-
ing to move on with his life. He
felt the only way to do this was
to accept defeat and move on
to peace in the future.
Wright also spent one week
in Sarajevo, w hich he describ
ed as an emotional roller coast
er. The entire 12-hour bus ride
from Zagreb to Sarajevo was a
culmination for Wright of all
the death that had occurred
during the war. Seeing every
single city, town and house
completely destroyed brought
people on the bus to tears.
Despite the circumstances,
Wright said he felt safe in Sara
jevo. Everywhere he went
there was a soldier, a tank or a
brigade. There was also an 11
p.m. curfew which increased
safety.
A highlight of Wright's trip
to Sarajevo was seeing Secre
tary of State Warren Christo
pher passing through. Wright
introduced himself and ex
plained what he was doing.
Christopher told him to keep
up the good work.
Through the work that he
did, Wright was able to eva
luate his own culture. He learn
ed about the United States'
faults and how it could im
prove.
Wright pointed out that our
work ethic, compared to theirs,
is like "night and d ay."
In the United States, people
feel the need to work for the
material goods that will make
them happy. In Croatia, the
people will work for the things
they need but will never sacri
fice their families, culture or
nation.
In Croatia they have a saying
about America-it is a great place
to make money, but is a horri
ble place to live.
The best things about going
to Croatia for Wright were be-
ing able to help, the personal
growth he experienced, and his
new-found ability to evaluate
his own country. He also add
ed as a minor point that he was
able to gain international ex
perience.
Wright learned an invaluable
amount about the causes and
effects of the war simply by
talking to the youth.
"T he world was my class
room and the people were my
teachers," he said. "There w'as
no way I could fail that class."
Now that Wright is back at
home, he is focusing his atten
tion on organizing a way for
other students to have the same
opportunity he was provided
by the University of Denver.
Through an organization call
ed Global Action Program
(G A P), he hopes to find
enough funding to send 10
Gonzaga students to Croatia
for four weeks next summer,
including free air fare and
$300-5400 for extra expenses.
Gonzaga Volunteer Services
will be sponsoring this project.
Though Wright's world was
turned upside dowm by wit
nessing the aftermath of war,
he said he would do it all again.
He described the experience as
vital, and encouraged students
of all majors to consider mak
ing the trip themselves.
Wright is reminded daily of
his experiences. Sitting in the
COG (the Gonzaga cafeteria),
it dawned on him how over
whelmed and thankful the peo
ple in the refugee camp would
be with the quality, variety and
abundance of food. Though he
complains about COG food
sometimes, he sees it as a reali
ty check.
"G od is making me have
these reminders," he says.
"God is telling me, Remember
where you've been.' "
Bowlins League
Thursday Nite Mixers
week of November 7
W
L
Lancer Lanes
23
9
Wright's Century
16
16
14
R & W
18
17
Skagg s Auto Clinic
High games: Phyllis Piper 186.
John Breidenbach 185.
High series: John Breidenbach
543, Dianna Hoeft 517.
Splits converted: Rene Devin 4-5,
Marvin Steinbruck 5-10.
11
St. Patrick's Senior Center
Bulletin Board
There were 86 people present for the senior meal Nov. 13 and
three meals were home delivered. Members of the Catholic
Church served. Ralph Struthers won the free meal ticket.
The menu for the birthday dinner, Wednesday, Nov. 27 will
be cheese sandwiches, soup, coleslaw with pineapple, vegetable
tray, cupcakes and ice cream. Members of the Baptist Church
will serve.
The Senior Center Board met following the meal. Pete Schwar-
zin was elected chairman and Rose Marie Buschke, treasurer,
to replace Helen Crawford and Howard Gilliam, whose terms
of office are ending at the end of December. Howard retired early.
Both Helen and Howard put in many years of devoted service
on the board.
Daisy Collins and Maxine Gray started a new quilt Wednes
day afternoon.
One table of cards was in play Friday afternoon. Ten seniors
watched the John Wayne movie, "H ond o" Sunday evening.
About 50 people enjoyed the guitar recital Sunday afternoon.
The students of Carl Oakes are doing well. The audience sang
along on several Christmas songs. The seniors look forward to
the next recital in the spring.
The senior bus was filled for the trip to the Columbia Basin
Electric Co-op meeting and dinner in Fossil Thursday evening.
The small bus was also filled for the trip from lone to Fossil. Many
of the local people received door prizes.
Dates to remember: Tuesday and Thursday exercise, 10 a.m.;
Wednesday blood pressure clinic, 11 a m., senior meal, 12 noon;
Friday cards, 2 p.m.; Sunday movie, 7 p.m.
Dime A Dozen
W
L
24
Penland House
8
D-Don’s
23
9
Pin Dodgers
20
12
BM's
14
18
Bunn Horseshoeing
10
22
Our Gang
4
28
High games: John Breidenbach
218, Peggy Michel 174.
High series: John Breidenbach
510, Dianna Hoeft 496.
Blue Mountain
W
17
L
11
Beecher’s
Who Knows
I 6 V 2 IIV 2
Willow Lanes
1 5 V 2 12V2
13V 2 14V 2
Misfits
Team 2
11V2 I 6 V 2
Young Guns
10 10
High games: Bob Hubbard 194,
Rick Pettyjohn 187
High series: Bob Hubbard 503,
John Breidenbach 479.
Koffee Kup Keglers
week of Nov. 14
S h are Thanksgiving
w ith fam ily a cro ss
th e m iles by
sending a
Thanksgiving
Bouquet.
A time for farailv and flowers
. " - -'V -
AFS "Autumn's Bounty'" Bouquet' 1
AFS 24-B
Look fo r Country R ose B ouquets
a n d B ud V ases at the lo n e Market,
starting T h u rsd a y, Nov. 14.
Silk W reath Swags and
P o in se ttia s are in.
Don't Miss Our Christmas
OPEN HOUSE
9 a.m. 6 p.m. Saturday Nov. 23
R e fr e s h m e n ts
-
Treasure H u n t - Door Prizes
M i m w j 'j t k « |
Ó eìtm y.
t fon#
'■¿nw/a/w
V^Country Rose
676-9426
233 N Mam
Heppner
>'» W e D e liv e r
A s k ¿ ¡¡¡¿ ¡r u b
LES SCHWAB'S WINTER CHECKLIST
✓ TRACTION TIRES ✓ SNOW FLEX«
✓ SNOW WHEELS ✓ CHAINS
✓ BATTERIES
✓ STUDS
LES SCHWAB]
UGHT TRUCK TRACTION
PASSENGER
CHAIN RETURN
PROGRAM
SIERRA CABLE LINK
TIRE CHAINS
T h« M o rro w C o u n ty M u u u m
Thanksgiving
-
W
L
The BJ's
26
10
M.C.G.G.
23
13
No Pin Hitters
23
13
The Dregs
19
17
The Alley Cats
15
21
High series: Linda Schultz 481.
High game: Bunnie Lindsay 180
Splits converted: Linda Schultz 4-5-7.
The 1996 School Visit Program
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7 30PM
HEPPNER HIGH SCHOOL CAFETERIA
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Performance funded by the Morrow County Unified Recreation District
f tim k il fn I
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