globalgirl network

By Ellie Hagey


I have this childhood memory of seeing people dressed in heavy black coats and my mother saying they had come from “the old country.” I had no idea what they’d fled from. This was after World War II when many Europeans moved to Canada in search of a better life. Now with instant communication we have the world at our fingertips. We can no longer pretend we don’t know what is happening on the other side of the ocean. We are able to watch the impact of war and poverty even as it is occurs.


Parents Can Make a Difference

As mother of three adult children and grandmother to three (almost four) grandchildren, I am so aware of how different the world is from when I was a child. The challenge is how to raise our children to be globally aware and socially just. There are likely many ways to instill this. However, one of my favourite examples was hearing Maria Schriver talk of her mother, Eunice Kennedy Shriver, who constantly challenged her children to make a difference in the world. Eunice had pictures of children from Darfur hanging in their living room as a constant reminder that there were those less fortunate than them. She had one dinner a week consisting of only rice, so the children could experience what a typical meal was for so many others. Many times at dinner they were asked what they were doing to help others in their community. They were never allowed to be self-absorbed.


My own experience was less in-your-face, yet my mother lived out compassion in front of us. It was not unusual for me to go into the kitchen and find a homeless man eating hot soup my mother had served up. One of my favorite stories was how my mother sold her wedding dress to put shoes on the kids in her neighborhood who had none. She taught us by example.


Leading by Example

I feel strongly that parents, if at all possible, should take their children to a Third World country so they can see that their particular lifestyle is not the way everyone lives. As our three girls grew older we encouraged them to use their spring break vacation to go to Mexico and work in an orphanage or build a house for people who had lost theirs. Now my girls are grown and they are all very involved in projects that are making a difference in the world.


As my children grew up I was involved with people from various cultures. They saw me befriend the Muslim family across the street, teach English to a refugee family from Cambodia and collect household items for a family who had come from Bulgaria with only their suitcases. All these experiences showed my children that we value people regardless of faith or ethnicity.


Also, as parents, we need to realize that 20 percent of this world’s population consumes 86 percent of the world’s goods. We must take this seriously and consider: how do I live in front of my children in a way that is socially just? What and how we consume sends a big message to our children.


Creating a Legacy

I grew up hearing my father say how he had always wanted to go to Africa. Because of health issues he never could, but his daughter and granddaughters are living out his dream. I have now been to Africa with all three of my daughters. We have been changed by these trips and carry Africa in our hearts. Two of my daughters are involved with projects to make a difference in the lives of women in the Congo. I like to think that this is a legacy my father left us. Who knows what seeds he planted in my young heart when he spoke of Africa with a wistful look in his eyes? In the same way, I believe, as parents our deeds, our words and our conversations are planting seeds in the fertile ground of our children’s hearts.


About Ellie:
Ellie has worn many hats as nurse, childbirth educator and ESL Instructor, while her passion to make a difference in the world has led her to travel to Asia, Africa and Central America on humanitarian missions. She currently resides in Seattle with her husband, Doug.