THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, November 4, 1994 TAG: 9411040076
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E14 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY HOLLY WESTER, CAMPUS CORRESPONDENT
LENGTH: Medium: 64 lines
WHEN 21-YEAR-OLD Jessica Davey learned that Glamour magazine wanted to celebrate her accomplishments, she was a little surprised.
Jessica, a Norfolk native who spent the summer of 1993 volunteering in India, thought it was unusual that a fashion and beauty magazine was interested in her work. After all, she didn't shower once during her 10-week stay.
But the dirt hit the pages of this month's issue of Glamour when the Wake Forest University senior was named one of the top 10 college women in the country.
``I'm really honored and flattered,'' she said. ``I think it's neat.''
Jessica's most celebrated accomplishment, the trip to Calcutta, India, was a long time coming.
Since her grade school days at Norfolk Collegiate, Jessica had been fascinated with the work of Mother Teresa.
``Ever since I was little, I have collected books and articles on her,'' she said. ``I wanted to go to India and work with her.''
After 11 years of exchanging letters about work, spirituality and poverty issues with the Nobel Prize winner, Jessica asked if she could come to the Missionaries of Charity to volunteer.
``She wrote back and said, `Come with heart and hands to love and serve the poorest of poor in the streets of Calcutta,' '' Jessica recalled.
Three months later, Jessica landed in New Delhi. She took a taxi to Calcutta and hit the streets to meet people.
``It was very isolating at first . . . very lonely,'' she said. ``I wandered around the city with a backpack, looking for a bed. Inevitably, you meet other volunteers.''
After making friends with a young woman who worked for the Salvation Army, Jessica found her way to Mother House and began working. She saw Mother Teresa every morning and evening.
But Jessica's pen pal wasn't what she anticipated. ``I was expecting a sweet old woman,'' she said. ``She's a very, very, very assertive, no nonsense type of person.''
Jessica spent most of the summer comforting patients at Prem Dan, a home for mentally and physically handicapped adults. ``I've been back for 14 months, and I still think about it every day,'' she said. With the money left over from her savings and grants she received for the trip, Jessica was able to put five Indian children through a year of school.
The experience virtually changed her life. ``There's a lot of poverty there, but it's very rich in culture, tradition and history,'' Jessica said. ``It taught me a lot about myself and what I really need as a person. I learned the difference between needing and wanting.''
A religion and sociology student, Jessica volunteers regularly with the Wake Forest Volunteer Service Corps, an organization that connects interested students with places that need volunteers. During Christmas vacation, Jessica will go back to Calcutta with 10 other Wake Forest students.
After graduating, Jessica hopes to work for the Children's Defense Fund or UNICeF and stand by the philosophy that defines her life: ``People will not always believe what you say, but they will always believe what you do.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo
Holly Wester is a student at Virginia Wesleyan
by CNB