Update on Death of Kirsten Elisabeth Wolcott, SDA Missionary on Yap

Last Thursday, the Habele Blog reported on the tragic death of Kirsten Elisabeth Wolcott, a Seventh-day Adventist student missionary in Micronesia.

Wolcott, a 20 year-old college student from Southern Adventist University (SAU), was serving as a teacher at the SDA school which several Outer Island children attend through Habele tuition scholarships.

Early accounts indicated that Kirsten Elisabeth Wolcott "had reportedly gone jogging by herself before morning classes and did not return."

Now, new details are beginning to slowly emerge from Yap, one of four States in the Federated States of Micronesa (FSM).

A Sabbath Blog is reporting that "According to the [SA] University, the FBI has made an arrest in connection to the murder."

Sources on Yap also indicate the deceased was found on the dirt road between Tom's store and SDA school by her students, whom the principal sent out to look for her in the morning. Kirsten, and avid runner, was often seen jogging and people on the small island knew her well because of this.

In 1983, the US and FSM governments entered into a status of Free Association. The ongoing agreement provides Micronesia with significant financial assistance in exchange for US defense rights in the region. It also allows for open and reciprocal travel rights for both countries' citizens, as well as access for Micronesian nationals to US social services and entitlements.

Under these terms, the Seventh-day Adventists, and other Christian missionaries, have expanded their presence in the islands, primarily through the construction of parochial K-12 schools.

It remains unclear how this agreement governs US law enforcement's involvement in domestic Micronesian crimes.

The Micronesian Seminar, an FSM based research and community development organization, has established an online forum for discussion of the incident here.

Habele's facebook page also has many comments and wall postings about the tragic death.

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Habele Students at Saint Mary's School, Yap, Micronesia

 Maia  from Woleai attends Saint Mary's School on Yap.

"Habele" is an all-volunteer, US-based charity, promoting educational access and accomplishment in Micronesia.

The main focus of Habele's work is providing low-income Outer Island students with scholarships to attend private K-12 schools in the Federated States of Micronesia's (FSM) four state capitals.

Maia Leta Lesarof, a second grade student at Saint Mary's School on Yap Proper, is one of the 17 students who earned a Habele tuition scholarship for the 2009-10 school year. Her home is Woleai, an isolated and underdeveloped coral atoll due west of Ifaluk and southeast of Ulithi. She is attending the school along with three other Outer Island students who received full tuition support from Habele.

Her sponsor on Yap Proper, Marcellino Yang, recently wrote to Habele asking if we might consider also sponsoring Maia's sister, Myla Faith Lemaipiye:

If you are interested in helping to send Myla to join her sister Maia at Saint Mary's then please consider donating to Habele. If you do, you may be eligible for a tax deduction, in accordance with Habele's IRS granted tax exemption status.

You can also read about Habele scholars attending Saramen Chuuk and Berea High Schools in Chuuk and those enrolled at the SDA School on Yap.

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Missionary Murdered in Yap, Micronesia (Kirsten Elisabeth Wolcott)

Multiple media outlets are reporting that Kirsten Elisabeth Wolcott, a Seventh-day Adventist student missionary, has been murdered on the island of Yap, in the central Pacific island nation of Micronesia.

The Adventist News Network (ANN) cites unnamed SDA church leaders who explained, "Kirsten, a native of Virginia, had reportedly gone jogging by herself before morning classes and did not return."

Miss Wolcott, 20, was a 2007 graduate of Richmond Academy. She had taken a year off of school at Southern Adventist University in Collegedale, Tennessee. Kirsten was participating in the Adventist Volunteer Service program, and was one of 780+ student missionaries serving worldwide in that group.

Yap is one of four states in the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), an island nation in the central Pacific with close historical and economic ties to the United States. The FSM was established in 1979 after five decades of direct US-control through a region-wide United Nation overseen Trust Territory.

In 1983, the US and FSM governments entered into a status of Free Association. The ongoing agreement provides Micronesia with significant financial assistance in exchange for US defense rights in the region. It also allows for open and reciprocal travel rights for both countries' citizens, as well as access for Micronesian nationals to US social services and entitlements.

Under these terms, the Seventh-day Adventists, and other Christian missionaries, have expanded their presence in the islands, primarily through the construction of parochial K-12 schools.

The Yap SDA School opened in 1987 as an elementary school and subsequently expanded to a kindergarten through 12th-grade school.  The school is run mostly by Adventist college students volunteering as teachers. About 10 student missionaries are now serving there. The church also has a school on the Micronesian capital of Pohnpei. Both schools are widely seen as among the best in the developing island nation.

Habele, a charity serving Outer Island students across Micronesia, has been partnering with the SDA School on Yap since 2007. The US- based nonprofit works with school leaders to identify low-income Outer Island student whose families are unable to afford the modest $550 a year tuition fees. Habele issued six full tuition scholarships to students attending the Yap SDA School this 2009-10 academic year.

The last know death of a Christian Missionary killed by local islanders in Micronesia occurred in 1731. Father Contova and a group of Spanish solders were murdered on the Atoll of Ulithi, 100 miles east of Yap. Another six Spanish Jesuits died in Micronesia during World War Two, presumably at the hands of the occupying Japanese.

The US State Department had advised American travelers of crime in the neighboring state of Chuuk -long seen as more violent than other areas of Oceania- but has not issued personal alerts for visitors to Yap State.

Yap and its Outer Islands have a reputation for non-confrontationalism and traditional consensus-based dispute resolution. Nationwide, Micronesia has an incarceration rate of only 89 prisoners per 100,000 citizens.

Photo: Annaliza Laitilpiy, a 2nd grade student from the Atoll of Woleai, stands outside the SDA School on Yap. 

UPDATE: Informal reports from Yap indicate that a suspect is now in custody. These sources explain that the deceased was found on the dirt road between Tom's store and SDA school by her students, whom the principal sent out to look for her in the morning. Kirsten, and avid runner, was often seen jogging and people on the small island knew her well because of this.

1/3rd of Micronesia below Basic Needs Poverty Line

Government bean counters in Micronesia, a central Pacific island nation with close ties to the United States, have released more bad news about their nation’s economy.

According to reports from the Office of Statistics, Budget and Economic Management, inflation is still on the rise in the islands.

Second Quarter (April through June 2009) inflation across Micronesia was 9.6 percent – more than double the rate for the same quarter in 2008.

The jump in inflation was primarily driven by a 21.1 percent growth in the cost of food.

By state, the annual inflation rate for the 2nd quarter of 2009 was 5.8% in Kosrae, 11.2% in Pohnpei, 8.8% in Chuuk, and 8.9% in Yap.

The Office also announced details of a new analysis of trends in household income and expenditure patterns. They investigated the number of individuals and households that lack absolute minimum resources necessary for long-term physical well-being.

Households falling below the The Basic Needs Poverty Line (BNPL) had increased between 1998 and 2005.

In 2005, about 22.4% of households fell below the BNPL.

About 29.9% of the population was below the Basic Needs Poverty Line.

About 4.8% of population was vulnerable to falling below the BNPL.

Learn more about the economic and development challenges faced by Micronesia -and the role of education in reducing gaps in opportunity and capacity- at habele.org.

Habele Students at Berea and Saramen High Schools, Chuuk

Habele, the all-volunteer charity serving students in Micronesia, has just received an update from Michael Gall, a US Peace Corps Volunteer living on Chuuk.

Mr. Gall visited Habele tuition scholarship recipients who are attending Berea Christian High School and Saramen Chuuk Academy.

This school year, Habele awarded full tuition scholarships to 5 students living on Chuuk, as well as a further 13 on Yap Proper and Pohnpei. Habele also supports public schools in these islands through donations of books and school supplies.

Meeting personally with the students and their teachers, Michael took these great photographs of the Chuukese Habele Scholars:

Barky, junior at Saramen Chuuk Academy.

Bradley, senior at Berea Christian High School.

Jody, sophmore at Berea Christian High School.

 

Maverick (left), sophmore at Berea Christian High School.

 

Simon, freshman at Saramen Chuuk Academy

These and other pictures can also be found at the Habele Fund Picasa Album. Visit habele.org to learn more, and find out how you can help!

Chaminade Prep Robotic Team Donates Books to Micronesia

Pictured: the high school robotics team at Chaminade College Prep in West Hills, California stands with donated books for students in the Central Pacific.

The Charminade students have gathered text and reference books which they will be sending to impoverished public schools in Yap and Chuuk States, part of the tiny island nation of Micronesia.

The Federated States of Microensia (or FSM) is a remote and under-resourced nation of hundred of small islands that span thousands of miles across the Pacific Ocean. The region is roughly northwest of Melanesia and due west of Polynesia. The FSM, and its neighbors in Palau, the Marianas, and the Marshalls, were formerly administered by the United States government and still enjoy close relations with America.

The Charminade Robotics Team book drive was intiated by Amelia Weiss last school year. Amelia has since graduated  and is now attending the University of California at Berkley. She visited Micronesia during the summer and saw first hand the need for basic educational materials in the Pacific.

The team has completed similar service projects for the Massai, New Zealand, Hawaii, Mexico and Baku. This year a small group from the teams is travelling to japan for a robotics event.

The students are working with Habele, a charity that promotes educational opportunities in Micronesia's Outer Islands. Habele donors have committed to pay for the books gathered by team members to be mailed directly to students in the Pacific.

Learn more about Habele coordinated book drives and consider making a donation to help this important work!

School Supplies Donated to Ulithi and Woleai, Yap State FSM

A South Carolina based charity is sending boxes packed with supplies to public school classrooms in the remote Outer Islands of Micronesia.

"Habele," an all-volunteer nonprofit in Columbia, has been supporting students and educators in the Central Pacific island nation of Micronesia since 2006. Founded by returned Peace Corps Volunteers, the group targets it's donations to the most remote islands and atolls in the Micronesian states of Chuuk and Yap.

"These materials -just the most basic supplies for instruction and classroom activities- are sorely needed by students and teachers," explained Habele President Neil Mellen who served as a teacher in Yap State for three school years. "We are grateful that so many generous donors in the United States have committed to investing in the educational aspirations of Pacific Island students."

The boxes, filled with over $600.00 in pens, pencils, markers, whiteboards and note cards, are headed to public schools on the islands of Falalop and Mogmog on the Ulithi Atoll as well as Falalop and Falalus ( or "Falilus") on the Woleai Atoll. These islands are situated slightly above the equator, south and southeast of the American Territory of Guam.

Materials are being sent to both elementary and high schools.  Peace Corps volunteers who live and work on these remote islands will distribute the supplies.

Habele also provides tuition scholarships to students from these and other islands who attend private K-12 schools in state capitals. This school year Habele issued 17 full tuition scholarships to low-income Outer Island students attending prestigious independent schools on Yap Proper, Weno, Chuuk, and in the Micronesian national capital of Pohnpei.

Those interested in supporting Habele can visit www.habele.org to learn more.