The Beginning.....

My name is Erin Colshan. I spent the summer of 2008 in Moigrad/Zalau, Romania, along with 14 other students from North America and Australia working on an archeological dig. In addition to the efforts of the Western students, the project directors hire workers from the local community who, for the most part, are just scraping by. The workers are employed by the Porolissum Forum Project for about 6 weeks each summer, earning money for themselves and their families. They also gain valuable, deep and sincere friendships with the Western team members. After the Project, I chose to stay in the area for 5 more weeks to work on other excavations. During this time, I got to know the people of Moigrad intimately. I had a previous impression of the economic condition of most of the people, but during this time, I learned about specific situations. This had a deep impact on me and I became motivated to help the children and families that really needed that extra hand. When I returned to the USA, I e-mailed the students who participated on the archeological program with me, as well as past participants. I received a great response and am now hoping to really get Porolissum Prietenie moving and working toward its goals.

Our Goals

I am hoping that this initiative significantly improves the lives of people in the community of Moigrad and nearby towns. Porolissum Prietenie is looking for several kinds of help. Monetary help is, of course, very important, but other forms of aid, such as care packages containing "old" clothes or supplies for school would be wonderful. I hope that our efforts will assist those families who desperately need money for food, medication, and education. I am hopeful that we can set up scholarships for the higher education of gifted students. Many of our young friends have dreams of going to college. Given the financial means, these bright young students would be the first in their families to attend college. Some even dream of coming to the United States to go to school. I hope that with scholarships, we can help make some of these dreams a reality.