Martin Oemus from Germany....

I'm from Germany and I joined the Bridge Community for one year shortly after I finished school. This year was one of the most inspiring experiences I have ever had and I really encourage anybody who wants to do something meaningful to come and live here for a while (or longer).
To be honest: working in Camphill can sometimes be really exhausting. But it definitely is rewarding and I could not think of anything that broadens your whole horizon as much as working and living with people with special needs does.
I personally did really enjoy my time being here. Of course I struggled sometimes but you have that with everything you do. The nice thing in Camphill is: there will always be somebody that helps you out.
Furthermore you will of course meet a lot of different people from around the world, you are going to improve your ability of speaking English and last but not least Ireland is just such a beautiful place to be. No need to say there is always enough to do and usually so many things are going on that you will never get bored ;)

I never would have imagined… …

A few years back, 17 years old and just finished school in Sweden, that I would be in a Camphill community in Ireland in the summer of 2008. That I would be cooking lunches for about 16 people two or three days a week, planting rainbow chard in the rain, at the same time as I am trying to keep an eye out for a villager so that she does not pull out theedible stuff instead of the weeds, that I would live in a country with traditions and values quitedifferent from what I am used to, whose unofficial national dish is salt and vinegar chips .

What I have experienced during my time in the community I never would have imagined. That I would experience, not just the ordinary south east Asia backpacking tour, like so many other of my generation.. Little did I know then, how this year would change me and shape my future the way it has done. Community life is intense. No matter who you ask I am quite sure they will agree. Coming to Camphill for a year as a young co-worker I entered a life totally different from what I was used to, and in doing so also committing myself to work and live according to principles and traditions I might not totally agree with. Having one day off a week where you are free to do your own thing, is very different, and trying to find personal space within the house and in the course of a day, is not the easiest, but somehow you manage.

Life in Camphill is not always easy and fun, and you need to be prepared for challenges. Living in community has showed me that it can be very developing to allow yourself to be challenged. In community you really need to be flexible and willing to engage yourself in the people around you. There is nothing that will work if you just want to go on autopilot. If you heart and head is not with you, you will fail. What has also struck me about community life, is how in moments of crisis or hardship everything works so direct. If there is a problem, it will be solved, here and now, or by means of discussion and planning first, if necessary. And if there is a problematic situation or crisis, there will be a meeting held and people will offer to help, filling in wherever it is needed. I truly admire and love this sense of directness. If the whole world was more like this, if people had an awareness of each others and the greater community’s needs, everything would be so much better. It has been hard at times, really hard. I have wanted to scream and hit something, or just lie down and cry. But I guess my experience has been a real life experience. Good and bad. That I have been able to live through the hard times, seeing what that could teach me, but also reaching the peaks of joy and total light, where everything seems possible.

If someone asked me where home is, I would say that except from where I live now, and where I grew up, the Bridge Community, Main Street, Kilcullen Co. Kildare would be it... Life in Camphill is somehow very honest, it seems to me. Great in its simplicity. And I am very proud to have been a part of it.

Anna Wibron, Sweden, Co-worker from September 2007- September 2008

The Bridge is the place for you!!!

When I first signed up to Camphill I think that considering the information I had at that time, you can defiantly say that I had no idea where I was going. I was an officer in the army, a guy that used to control and command, and there I found myself going to a place where I'm as equal as everybody and I have to share everything. I believe it was faith that brought me to the Bridge Community. I actually signed for two communities, one in Scotland and the Bridge, signing up to the Bridge was actually after I couldn’t come to Dingle community because the time they wanted me there was too early.

After I told the other community in Scotland that I could not decide between Ireland and Scotland, they made the decision for me and took another girl that was 100% convinced about going there.

So here I am, two weeks before my flight to Ireland receiving an e-mail from Ben, whom I thought to be a man, that I won't be in a community name Grangebeg and I will be in the Bridge in a house called Isserin. Isserin is the big house and the center of the community.

During my year in Camphill I lived with 7 villagers, 7 different co-workers and the house family – all of them are great people. At the beginning I was a part of the garden group for a full time job, a job that I never experienced in my life. The garden workshop gave me a lot of knowledge about gardening and also created in me a new connection to the land and the food we grow. After a while I got the chance to use my special hobby of cooking by joining the kitchen and coffee shop crew. Working with the people in Camphill is a special experience that I'll neverforget. It took me exactly one week after I left to miss the people. Working and living in camphillis not easy at all, but I think you get much more then what you give. I really miss the guys from my home, especially Colm and Justine. Colm is a guy that will make you smile anytime, even if he wakes you up at 2 a.m. and Justine is someone that no co-worker will ever forget because she makes sure to stay in contact with everybody and posts us letters every month!. If you want to give a bit from yourself to society and to get a great life experience – Camp hill is the place, if you want to meet great people and get to know a beautiful country – Ireland is the place, if you want it all and with great people who lives in a great supporting little town – the Bridge is the place for you!!!

Ariel Kedem, Israel, co-worker November '08 – August '09.