Have you ever eaten stroopwaffles (a Dutch treat served with coffee or tea)? Have you ever played Dutch Bingo (the “do you know so-and-so?” game that Dutch people play when they meet someone from a Dutch area)? Do you know what the acronym T.U.L.I.P. helps people remember? (the five points of Calvinist theology)? These are the pieces of culture that I might share with you if I were talking about my ethnic and religious heritage.
As the Sattinger Intern at the Chicago Center for Jewish Genetic Disorders (the Center) for the 2007-2008 academic year, I had hundreds of opportunities to gain rich insight into similar aspects of Jewish culture. In fact, I tasted charoset at Passover, learned that instead of Dutch Bingo Jews play Jewish Geography and now I can tell you what JCFS and JVS stand for. My internship at the Center, which led to my graduation in May 2008 from Loyola University Chicago with a master of social work degree (MSW), was an opportunity to both experience Jewish culture and lead a state-wide educational health initiative.
A Dutch American learns a thing or two about Jewish culture
Learning about Jewish culture and religion and engaging in discussions comparing my own Reformed Protestant traditions and Dutch heritage made my internship at the Center extremely exciting and rewarding. These discussions not only allow me to more competently help Jewish clients in the future, but they also allowed me an opportunity to become more self-aware about my own spiritual and ethnic identity.
My first conversations at the Center were a little awkward because they revealed my ignorance about basic Jewish culture—such as the fact that Jews can have blonde hair, that there is a Hebrew calendar that Jews follow for religious holidays, and the reality that Chanukah is not the biggest holiday of the Jewish year. My visit to a synagogue and conversations about that experience revealed that some of the issues facing Judaism are very similar to those in Christianity—such as the role of women, the integration of modern ways of worshipping, and interfaith marriage.
Other values in Jewish culture such as sharing dinner on the Sabbath, focusing on the importance of knowledge and education, and the serious work ethic remind me of my own Dutch Protestant heritage, which focuses on the importance of private Christian education, examining and knowing theology and spiritual texts, and the rigorous Dutch work ethic. These are just a few examples of the many ways that engaging in Jewish culture during my time at the Center added an incredible richness to my internship experience.
The Center helps Illinois Celebrate DNA Day 2008
My time at the Center was primarily spent preparing and securing funds for Illinois’ celebration of DNA Day 2008, which occurred on April 25. DNA Day, funded by the Illinois Department of Public Health, was a collaboration of the Center and the UIC Midwest Latino Health Research, Training, and Policy Center. I was thrilled to have an opportunity to be the Center’s point person for a large project and to learn the ins and outs of planning a statewide health education initiative.
My creative nature was put to good use on this project as we thought “outside the box” about how we could help people throughout Illinois learn more about genetics. We decided to create a DNA Day telephone hotline which allowed anyone in the state of Illinois to call on DNA Day and talk to a genetic counselor for free.
To get the word out about the hotline and the DNA Day webpage, which the UIC Latino Center created, we sent educational posters, flyers and stickers about family health history to teachers, county health departments, hospitals, community colleges, libraries and other professional networks. We encouraged these professionals to be creative and come up with their own ways of celebrating DNA Day and educating people about family health history. We also sent out a press release about DNA Day to spread the news about this event through media outlets throughout the state. To record your own family health history visit: http://www.hhs.gov/familyhistory/.
Through this project I had the opportunity to collaborate with and learn from a variety of professionals including the Center staff, designers, media relations experts, genetics counselors, information technology specialists, and grant writers. I plan to work as a clinical social worker in the upcoming years within the health sector, and down the road, hope to work as an administrator in a nonprofit organization. The skills and knowledge that I learned from the DNA Day project in the areas of fund-raising, planning, and evaluation will be extremely valuable as I venture toward management in the nonprofit sector some day.
I am very thankful to Larry Sherman, who funds a stipend for the Sattinger Intern each year. Sherman supports Master of Social Work students in memory of his uncle Bernard Sattinger, who was a social worker with the Veterans Administration after World War II. Thank you, Mr. Sherman, and the staff at the Center and the Jewish Federation, for providing me with an invaluable cultural learning opportunity and allowing me to educate people throughout Illinois about the importance of knowing their family health history.
Lindsay Wieland Capel was raised in Grand Rapids, Mich., and achieved a bachelor of social work degree from Calvin College. Before pursuing an MSW, Lindsay worked with adults with developmental disabilities and mental illness as a case manager. She currently resides in Chicago.
