THE INFORMER PAGE 2 APRIL 28, 1992 Marie Toompuu: from refugee camp to Cap College You’ve probably heard stories about refugee families fleeing their homeland, and leaving behind most of their belong- ings except the family jewels. Such a story can be told first-hand by Marie Toompuu, coordinator of counselling. In a round-about way, a cache of family jewels helped her make her way to Canada and to the College. Marie was born in Estonia. It was part of the USSR until last year, and during World War II it was a battleground. After the war broke out, when Marie was seven, her family fled to a refugee camp in Germany. They found life in the camp demoralizing. “Tt was very difficult there for people like my father because they had no work,” she said. “Those were empty years and you didn’t plan for the future. As a child I didn’t feel it as much, but you knew your parents were always worried.” Some families got by through “a survival type of profiteer- ing.” Perhaps one positive result came from this: In the thriving black market cigarettes were as good as cash, so Marie’s mother quit smoking. But for most refugees, conditions in the camp were un- healthy. Food, which was not always plentiful, came from charity organizations and church groups in the States. Tubercu- losis was prevalent, and some children died of it. Marie could have been one of those tragic cases, but her family had stashed enough jewelry to pay to send her toa sanatorium when she was ill. She spent two years away from her family and experienced much healthier conditions in the sanatorium than in the camp. She recovered from a suspected case of TB, which turned out to have actually been recurring pneumonia and malnutrition. The family bided their time until after the war, and then they found Germany inhospitable, Marie said. After an unsuccessful attempt to immigrate to the States, they gained admission to Australia. There, times were tough again, but in a different way. The family had had a maid and nannie in Estonia, but now they were poor. In Australia Marie’s dad worked at two menial jobs and her mother worked in a factory. Also, at the time, Australia was prejudiced against refugees and women had few rights, she said. Still, Marie was able to complete high school in Sidney and win a scholarship to attend Bethel College in St. Paul, Minne- sota. She graduated with a BA in Social Work. She went on to get a Masters of Social Work from Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario. The degree got her a job in Toronto where she worked for the welfare department. She married a Canadian- Estonian, became a citizen and then her parents immigrated to Canada. Marie went on to work in Guelph at Conestoga College for 11 years as a counsellor and teacher. Her husband’s job brought her to Vancouver in 1985. She worked at Vancouver Commu- nity College, City Centre, and also spent a year at Trinity Western University as a counsellor and teacher. Marie says her childhood experiences have helped in her counselling work. She says she feels especially sensitized to students who are learning English as a second language and making cultural adjustments to Canada. As one of the College’s six counsellors she has been dealing with an increasing workload. “Many of us work through lunches. We really do work hard through the semester and during peak periods,” she says. ““We’re seeing a lot more students with a lot more serious personal problems.” She sees many students who have problems with self- esteem. Others who visit counselling have been physically or sexually abused, or come from dysfunctional families. Depres- sion, loneliness and, especially during mid-terms, stress-related problems all bring students to her door. Still, she found time last year to serve on the internal evaluation committee. This year she is on the faculty profes- sional development committee and the enrolment management committee. She co-taught in the native transition ARC program this semester. When not working hard at the College she and her family organize to send food parcels to their many relatives in Estonia. “Tt’s a drop in the bucket, but people helped us in the refugee camp, and now we’re doing it back.”