On Friday December 12, the School of Nursing will be hosting a Wine Festival on the Sullivan Library Lawn from 5:00-7:00 p.m. Tickets to the festival are $75 and all proceeds will be used to assist seven nursing students who will be travelling to the Philippines in March 2015 to fulfill their senior clinical immersion.
Jadamae Agoo, one of the selected seniors, is uniquely invested in the upcoming immersion.
“Being of Filipino descent and having not been to the Philippines, I knew that it would be a great experience to see not only the nursing aspect but to also get to know more about the Filipino culture,” Agoo said.
Agoo and her peers are expected to pay half of the immersion expenses while the School of Nursing is working to fundraise the other half. The festival will feature wines donated by Southern Wines as well as Young’s Market who will be providing cards with helpful information about wine and food pairings. Sommelier wine expert, Leanne Foo will go into further detail about food pairing as well as wine in general. Hor d’oeuvres will be provided by Aramark and served by students.
“The students are going to do the serving,” explained Dean of Nursing Patricia Kiladis. “They’re going to be carrying the food around because we thought that would be a really nice way to get to meet people. Even though they’re gonna do some presentations we thought it would be nice for them to be able to mix with the guests and just talk to them.”
The opportunity to participate in this international immersion was earned through an application process at the beginning of the Fall 2014 semester. A thorough questionnaire, two letters of recommendation and a resume made up the application process. For senior Jacqueline Cano, the difficulty of applying was deeper than the paperwork.
“The most difficult part about the application process for me was fully committing to immerse myself in another culture for five weeks,” Cano said.
Under the direction of Dr. Edna Magpantay-Monroe, Cano and her peers have been able to prepare themselves for the Philippines immersion. Dr. Monroe has gone ahead of her students and is currently in the Philippines finalizing the details of the upcoming immersion to ensure a smooth experience. Partnered with Silliman University in the Philippines, students who participate in the immersion will have the opportunity to provide healthcare to the Filipino people.
“My parents have taught me the value of service to my fellow human being through all of their actions,” Cano said. “I have lived a blessed life and realize that many others have not had all of the same opportunities that I have had. I feel that it is my moral obligation to help others who are less fortunate than me.”