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Saramacca, Suriname - The Maria Internaat, is a girls' home run by Catholic nuns in Suriname. On September 18-20, 2009, RYS alumni collaborated with the Suriname Youth Parliament to assist the nuns in setting up a cattle farm. The land for the farm was still in its rustic state and the temperature was a high 40?c during the day and 9? to 0?c at nights. The participants prepared tools for the job including chain saws, machetes, water boots and insect repellant. There was a participant assigned to the job of "animal predator outlook."
As the work began, the volunteers were totally unable to see the sky through the trees; however, after a few hours of tree-cutting, the clear blue sky finally revealed itself and the big sun came shining through. The participants worked tirelessly to clear two acres of jungle as the foundation for a cattle farm. After two full days of work, the jungle undergrowth was completely cleared away and the land ready to accommodate the farm and cows.
The participants took an afternoon off and enjoyed the evening in Groeningen by the Surinamese River.
The farmland was then handed over by RYS Alumnus/Youth Parliamentarian Raynell Fraser.
September 18-20, 2009