Page 8 THE VILLADOM TIMES I • April 10. 2013 Midland Park Alyssa Rittinger of Midland Park spent two months last summer in a small medical clinic in rural Kenya. Rittinger, a nursing student at William Paterson University, needed to raise money and reached out to family and friends to support her efforts. “I had gone on a few mission trips, but I wanted something more long-term,” she said. “I learned about an organization called Africa Inland Mission from people at church. I applied, went through the interview process, and it all worked out. God clearly wanted me to go.” Rittinger and three other young American women from across the country teamed up to work in the small clinic which was staffed with only a nurse, a lab technician, and a cashier. The nurse was in charge of the clinic, and they treated cases of malaria, typhoid, and upper respiratory infections. Children came for immunizations, and pregnant women came for health monitoring. The community they worked with was Masai, a very large tribe in Borough woman pays visit to rural Kenya Kenya. Rittinger and the three other American women worked from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. serving sometimes 25 to 30 people a day, while other days were slower with only a few people coming to the clinic. “I tried to learn as much as I could about the culture and put aside what we know and believe to be right in our American culture. Our way isn’t necessarily better, just different. It really opened up my eyes and gave me a new perspective,” said Rittinger, who is a part-time nursing assistant at Ramapo Ridge Psychiatric Hospital at Christian Health Care Center in Wyckoff. “I love that Christian Health Care Center strives to be the hands of Christ to everyone they serve. I feel that my trip to Kenya was an extension of this same mission.” Rittinger could not say enough about the people in Kenya. She said, “They left such an impact in my heart and in my life. They are such great people: loving, gracious, welcoming, and grateful. Alyssa Rittinger with Masai women in Kenya. At a recent meeting of the Midland Park mayor and council, Council President Nancy Peet recommended the formation of a Citizens Advisory Committee for Public Safety, a suggestion she said had come from a Joint Insurance Fund safety training session she had attended. The proposed committee would join all segments of the (continued on page 37) Peet recommends safety committee