Volume 2/Number 1

1999

'Road Rules' with a purpose

It's sort of like "Road Rules" with a purpose. That's how two new University of Delaware graduates describe their plans to live in some of the country's poorest areas from now until New Year's Eve, filming their journey along the way.

On July 1, David Beste, AS '99, Scott Magdycz, AS '99, and three friends from Villanova University began living in poverty by choice as they get to know and film the faces behind what they describe as one of the country's most under-reported social problems.

They say they envision a resulting film that tells the real story of poverty, but in an up-tempo way that will appeal to high school and college students of the MTV generation.

Their itinerary includes stops in inner city Philadelphia; Lawrence, Mass.; Salem, W. Va.; Marks, Miss.; Pine Ridge, S.D.; El Paso; New Orleans; Immokalee, Fla.; and Washington, D.C. Additional projects are being planned in Chicago, Los Angeles and Brooklyn. They will stay with religious figures or community leaders at each stop in hopes of being accepted by the local communities and getting to know the people.

Their detailed planning, which includes fund raising and a budget that allows for donations to all the impoverished areas they visit, is astounding. This is no haphazard road trip.

As they live in poverty- stricken communities, the students are involved in such good works as helping in soup kitchens, building houses, writing grants and working with migrant workers, Cuban and Haitian refugees and homeless veterans.

While concerned about coming off like "a bunch of do-gooder Boy Scouts," as Beste says, the students-including Villanova students Sean Dolan, Will Stehl and Eileen Hayward-are united by their desire to help people and to bring about social change. All say they are haunted by questions about how poverty can continue to exist in the richest country in the world.

Intellectually speaking, they share a "common hate of the postmodern mentality" that has led to "decaying values, the polarization of society" and media coverage that excludes the common man, Beste explains.

"If you see news about the inner city, you only see violence," Magdycz says. "Or, you see news commentators interviewing celebrities and then cutting away to the bombing in Kosovo. Poverty in this country isn't news any more.

"Nobody really knows anything about poor people. If you see news about poverty these days, it's usually related to crime. There are real people living in those communities, and that's what we want to show-the human side of poverty," he says.

"We want to become as incorporated into the community as possible," Beste explains. "We don't even plan to bring out our cameras until we've been in an area for a week or so-we want the people to feel comfortable with us."

"Basically, we want to get to know, firsthand, that part of the population that we, growing up in the white suburbs, were not supposed to see. We really want to experience this. I suspect that the people in these communities will give a lot more back to us than we'll give to them. You know, missionary groups come and go in these communities all the time. The film will be something that lasts," Magdycz says.

All of the members of the group have done mission work before, and most have been volunteers for Habitat for Humanity. They used contacts they had established in the past to plan their route for this summer.

"Basically, when we contacted people in each area we said, 'If we come down, what can we do for you? How can we help you?'" Beste explains.

Dolan is the group member with the most film experience and the one who conceived the project. Beste's role was to call sites and arrange the actual visits. Magdycz was in charge of finding a donated van for the trip or a grant to cover transportation costs. He was also in charge of raising money for gasoline and making insurance arrangements.

The group has been planning the trip for about a year. Ironically, the cost of incorporating as a nonprofit agency was daunting for the students, so they have incorporated as a small business, Dolan Films.

The group, most of whom grew up in Delaware, began the trip in the Kensington section of Philadelphia.

"We wanted to start at home, in our own back yard," Beste says.

Beste, an art major, and Magdycz, a philosophy major, say their future plans depend on the success of the trip. If all goes well, they may stay in the film business. If not, graduate school is an option for both.

Alumni wanting to learn more about the project can consult the project's web site at <http://www.geocities.com/athens/rhodes/67461>.

–Beth Thomas