g****n
发帖数: 3313 | 1 【 以下文字转载自 SanFrancisco 讨论区 】
发信人: gpsfan (八戒,削她!善了个哉的!), 信区: SanFrancisco
标 题: CMAIN:伯克莱23岁学生中国做志愿者期间突然去世,
发信站: BBS 未名空间站 (Thu Feb 14 22:35:12 2013, 美东)
得勒怪病,没查出来.
挺好的一个 小伙子, 一直在作志愿者. CMAIN 会给他家里表示敬意，如果你想表示慰
问，可以通过cmain表达.
http://www.contracostatimes.com/east-county-times/ci_22590861
http://cmain.org/index.php?q=2013-NicholasCastle
Peace Corps volunteer from Brentwood dies unexpectedly
By Karen Rarey
For the Contra Costa Times
Posted: 02/14/2013 11:50:39 AM PST
Updated: 02/14/2013 05:23:54 PM PST
Click photo to enlarge
Nick Castle (Peace Corps)
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By Karen Rarey
Correspondent
Nicholas Castle's young life was cut short last week when he succumbed to an
unknown illness while serving in the Peace Corps in China.
The Brentwood native was only 23, but he spent the majority of his life
serving others, including as a volunteer tutor for local middle-schoolers.
"Nick didn't talk about what he was going to do -- he just did it," said his
mom, Sue Castle. "He lived his dreams doing what he loved."
"Nicholas was an exemplary Peace Corps volunteer who demonstrated respect,
patience and an eagerness to teach and learn from the members of his new
Peace Corps community," Acting Director Carrie Hessler-Radelet said. "The
entire Peace Corps community is deeply saddened by this tragic loss."
Fresh out of college, the UC Berkeley graduate embarked on a journey last
August to teach university-level English in the remote Guizhou Province of
the People's Republic of China.
"People talk about passion and desire to alleviate global poverty and
inequality," said his dad, David Castle. "Nick didn't just talk about these
things. He joined the Peace Corps and went to a remote part of the world to
make a difference in other people's lives."
Nick's request for a remote location was a difficult one to obtain.
"Nick loved China and wanted to be in a remote location so he could
assimilate into the culture and learn the language," his mother said. "The
Peace Corps told me that they sent
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the strongest candidates to the remote locations."
She added that he lived in a city where few foreigners were and he enjoyed
hanging out with his students.
"He loved teaching and immersing himself in another culture whether it was
the food or playing Ping-Pong or being an 'expert' in judging the many
competitions the Chinese would have," she said.
Despite moving on in life, Nick never lost contact with those from his past.
"I talked to him mid-January," said Stacy Stapleton, who had known Nick
since middle school. "He called me and I was so excited to hear from him. He
was just letting me know that he was in a bigger city (for training),
because most of the time that he was in China he was in kind of like a rural
area.
"It's just so devastating. I just wish more people could know him, like
everyone should have hung out with him, he was so sweet," Stapleton said. "
He had so much potential. I knew that he was going somewhere. I knew that he
would end up being like a senator or in congress, like something amazing."
Stapleton added, "Everything that (Nick) did was so impressive and he did it
with his heart. You knew that he was doing what he was doing because he
cared, because he loved it and he loved to help people. He was just very
inspiring to me."
Although a 2008 graduate of Liberty High School, Nick still reached out to
former teachers for mentoring.
"My most recent contact with Nick was right after he had graduated (UC
Berkeley); he sent me a note on Facebook asking me for pointers on effective
teaching strategies for his assignment in China," said Paul Taylor, who
taught Nick in a variety of social study classes at Liberty High. "It was
humbling to have even been asked; I simply told Nick that he would be fine
on his own and go and do his best."
Edna Hill Middle School teacher remembered Nick as someone "who loved life
and he embraced every moment of it from middle school, to high school, to
college and beyond."
"He gave 110 percent to everything he did and always had a smile on his face
," she said. "Over the years Nick proved to be one of the brightest and best
students we had ever had the opportunity to teach."
She also recalled a China newspaper he produced as a sixth-grader.
"It was the best I had ever had a student produce," she said. "Still to this
day, when it is time to teach China, I pull out his newspaper and hang it
on my wall for my students to see. It was hanging on my wall last Thursday
when he passed away, and it still hangs there today."
While in high school, Nick volunteered as a tutor at Edna Hill Middle School
, as well as Brentwood's A Place of Learning, which serves children with
learning disabilities, those struggling with English as a second language,
as well as others. He continued his volunteer work while at UC Berkeley at a
tutoring center for non-English speaking adults.
"He really seemed to like helping the kids he was tutoring, he was patient
with them," said fellow APOL volunteer Fran Bowman. "I am sure the kids he
tutored were blessed by him in many ways."
"It did not surprise me a bit to learn that Nick went to China with the
Peace Corps volunteers," said APOL Vice President Charles Reed. "In my work
on four continents I met many like him, determined to learn the language and
customs and then to actually help those he could with the skills he knew or
could gain."
Nick also served his community as a member of the city of Brentwood Youth
Commission.
"Nick served on the Brentwood Youth Commission, contributing his enthusiasm
and energy in all that he did, whether volunteering at fundraisers or
special events, recruiting new members to the commission, and developing a
survey for local youth," said Barbie Gary, Youth Commission staff liaison.
Gary added, "In 2008, Nick also served as a student council member in the
inaugural year of the Youth in Government program, which teaches students
how government works at the local level."
Sue Castle said that her son spent his time doing more than just
volunteering; he also played on the Liberty High water polo team all four
years of high school, and was a member of the Liberty Film Alliance,
California Scholarship Federation and the National Honor Society.
After high school Nick attended UC Berkeley where he received his bachelor's
degree in political science and comparative politics in 2012. During his
time at Berkeley, Nicholas worked as a resident assistant and participated
in student government as the Projects and Programs director. He also spent a
semester encouraging students to apply to the Peace Corps.
Aside from his commitment to volunteer work, Nick loved music, books and
film. His favorite band was The Beatles and his favorite authors included
Kurt Vonnegut, Tim O'Brien, Douglas Adams, J.D. Salinger and Ernest
Hemingway. His love of movies and film inspired him to complete the American
Film Institute's Top 100 films list.
"Nick was naturally inquisitive, always wanting to learn more about
everything; we loved talking about films and music," Taylor said. "He loved
the fascinating stories of how artists made their music, the depth of songs
or impacts of major artists.
"To this day, I use Nick's project he submitted for his study of the 1960s -
- he created a vinyl LP gatefold cover, which allowed for him to write a
research paper on The Who, one of his favorite bands," Taylor added. "The
project still serves as the example of excellence that students are to work
toward (Nick) is one of the most remarkable young individuals I have ever
taught in my 15 years in education."
Due to a delay in transportation from China to Dover Air Force Base in
Delaware, where the Brentwood native will undergo an autopsy to determine
the cause of death, services are being withheld until March. |
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