Dr Maria Meilak

Dr. Maria Meilak
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I had always wished to dedicate at least two years of my working life as a volunteer in developing countries. When I finished medical school I worked for two years at St Luke’s Hospital in Malta to improve my surgery proficiency before helping others. I thought surgery would cause the least problems in language communication since I hoped that all my patients would be anaesthetised! Malta was an excellent training ground.

My first experience overseas was with Concern Ireland who sent me to Ethiopia in 1975. Sadly, there was a civil war going on during this time. I lived for about nine months in a house shared with female Irish volunteers. They were great and I learnt a lot from them, but I realised the difficulty for a Maltese volunteer to live with other foreigners in a country where English was not spoken much. I believe you need to know the nuances of a language when it comes to sharing a home.

This experience planted the idea of Voluntary Lay Missionaries. When I returned from Ethiopia I started to work on this organisation helping volunteers in Malta to offer their services overseas for a minimum of a year. Then in 1985, with the approval of the late Archbishop Joseph Mercieca and others, we founded the organisation. Between 2000 and 2013, we organised a yearly course in Missiology with the Faculty of Theology, UoM. Several students commented on how rewarding volunteering was.

My advice to young university students is to follow your dream. If you are a believer pray to see what the Lord wants of you. Whatever career you decide upon, try to offer some of your time as a service freely not because you have to. When you are qualified, continue giving this service, even if you can only afford a short amount of time and I can assure you, you will be happy if you do this. Always be kind.