Nate Holler, Skogman Realty,  423-9596

Mark Lynch, Skogman Commerical

Ethan was born and grew up in Iowa City. He attended high school at Iowa Mennonite School in Kalona, IA. He is the current President of “Continental Crossings” the UI’s student chapter of the NGO “Bridges to Prosperity.” Ethan, along with several other UI students, traveled to Nicaragua during the summer of 2012 to construct a 44-meter suspended bridge together with a rural community in need.  They've just returned from their summer 2013 project to build another bridge in central Nicaragua. Slides depicted the work of the team, including the completed bridge, then retraced the steps taken from start to finish.

Ethan explained that in many impoverished countries, the rainy season causes rivers to flood and become impassable for weeks or months at a time. Bridges to Prosperity (B2P) is a nonprofit organization that provides isolated communities with access to essential health care, education, and economic opportunities by building footbridges over impassable rivers. The UI student chapter (B2P) is part of a nongovernmental organization called “Continental Crossings”. The team is responsible for building a relationship with the community they are partnered with, working with them to build a footbridge that they design and for which they personally fundraise.  Funding is needed and the group will pursue a grant application along with car washes and other fundraising events. Upon completion of the 2012 bridge the team and the villagers celebrated the final product with a piñata with the host families. Some photos showed young children helping with removal of the rocks from the river bed. The 2012 community’s population is about 250-300 and their native language is Spanish.  Some of the villagers learned some English.

 For more information see:  www.continentalcrossings.com  Any donation checks can be made out to”Bridges of Prosperity” and sent to Continental Crossings c/o Luke Smith, 11 Cherry Lane, Iowa City, IA. 52240.