By STUART KLATZ
"The lack of medical services for youngsters is a major reason why vision is such a problem in Bolivia," said Gilligan, who recently spent four months in the country as a volunteer at the Cree School for Education and Rehabilitation. "In more prosperous nations, children have access to treatment that preserves their sight."
Gilligan's knowledge of other countries has grown from her extensive travel. She has twice lived in Thailand, where she taught English to Buddhist monks. She has also volunteered in or visited Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Cambodia, Albania and Nepal. Gilligan is a retired peripatologist, a specialist who helps rehabilitate the blind.
The Cree School is in the Bolivian town of Cochabamba. Although hindered by the high altitude and the fact that the children at the school speak Spanish -- which she does not -- Gilligan used her expertise in the field to make suggestions on how to improve life for the visually impaired. Soon, streets signs featuring bigger print were lowered to the eye level of a youngster.
Gilligan's aspirations for the 80 blind children of the Cree School are lofty. She hopes to find sponsors for them, so they can receive proper health care and education. She intends to learn Spanish so she can return to Cochabamba with an improved ability to communicate. She even foresees interaction between Spanish-speaking people in Long Beach and her Bolivian students. Her most ambitious idea is a simple one: to get the residents of Long Beach involved in the lives of the Cree students.
"I believe that we can accomplish so much by making little connections," Gilligan said eagerly. "It would be such a learning experience for the people of Long Beach if they could become emotionally linked with these kids."
Although her travels to foreign lands make her life seem glamorous, there are also sacrifices. After four months in Bolivia, Gilligan was not even aware of the Columbia space shuttle disaster, and knew little about the war in Iraq. Her arms ached, a side effect of altitude sickness. She had endured a battle over taxes that had completely shut the country down in February. And, in landlocked Bolivia, Gilligan missed her beloved Atlantic Ocean.
As far as Gilligan is concerned, however, the rewards always outweigh the drawbacks. She talked emotionally about a birthday party held for her by residents of Cochabamba. A mariachi band was hired, and the blind children of the Cree School joined the festivities.
"It was the best birthday of my life!" Gilligan proclaimed.
With her determination and enthusiasm, Gilligan has made the thousands of miles between Cochabamba and Long Beach seem like a short distance indeed.
