Nichole Saccareccia

We the Peoples: the Bus, the Journey, the Lessons Nichole Saccareccia

In the spring of 2002, high school students from North America and Europe were selected to participate in the Odd Fellows and Rebekahs United Nations Pilgrimage for Youth. Their mission was to explore the essence of international dialogue and confront the new era of globalization through first-hand experience. This was no ordinary youth program. On July 11th, these thirty student delegates embarked upon a journey that would greatly challenge their existing worldview, which until that time, was shaped only by their familiar, local surroundings. Cultures that for centuries remained oceans apart, embodied by these fledgling delegates, lived on a bus together for twelve days. These students were forced to reconcile their differences, yet the flames of prejudice and division would test their resolve. Could these innocent youth face the challenges that have plagued humanity since the dawn of civilization and learn one of the most valuable lessons known to mankind? This is their story.