June 4, 1999: Volume 46, Number 10

Mallach Volunteering to Reunite Kosovo Families

Jordanna Mallach, a veteran of international relief work in places like Guatemala and the Ukraine, this month finds herself filling a humanitarian need just a few miles from where she grew up in Maplewood, N.J.

Mallach is in Fort Dix, N.J., at the center of an international human drama in which several thousand Kosovo refugees hold vigil over CNN awaiting a glimpse of a loved one. Unfortunately, for most, that glimpse never comes.

Enter Jordanna Mallach, who is volunteering with a Red Cross tracing unit, interviewing newly-arrived Kosovo refugees about missing family members. The information is shared with other camps and relief organizations in the hopes that families can be reunited.

"You're sitting across from the desk and listening to their horrific stories. You give them a tissue, hold their hand and try to be as warm as you can."

The refugees are at different stages of dealing with the trauma of the war, she says. Those newly arrived are preoccupied with getting health care. Some are dealing with the trauma of fleeing their homes or losing loved ones. Those who have been there a while are dealing with boredom. "It's really hard on the kids when it rains," Mallach says. "But kids are kids and they usually find something to play with."

The experience has bolstered Mallach's opinion of the relief organizations dealing with the emergency, particularly the Red Cross, she says. "Everyone recognizes what they are involved in and they take a special pride in what they're doing."

She says she also has been impressed by Army personnel, many of whom she sees playing for hours with the kids, or doing a full shift of outside duty the pouring rain.

Mallach, one of 72 Red Cross volunteers at the base, brings her knitting with her. "All the women come up to me to show me a different way of knitting," she said. "They are looking for people to talk to."

Mallach says she is struck by the socioeconomic range of the refugees, which runs counter to her preconception than many were rural poor. "Some of these people are doctors and lawyers who left three bedroom houses. Some of them had servants and chauffeurs. Some of them were upper class members of society."

She also has been surprised by the size of the families, many of which include extended members like cousins, aunts and uncles.

There are nearly 4,000 refugees at Fort Dix, with planeloads of up to 450 arriving every few days. Most are expected to stay for up to four weeks until they can move elsewhere with American relatives or be placed with resettlement agencies.

CNN, the all-news network, is a centerpiece as families watch reports for a glimpse of someone they know. Mallach says she also tunes in at the end of the day. "It's strange to come home and see my day on the news."

Mallach, a political science major who plans to graduate next year, deferred her admission to Union for a year to work at a mission in Guatemala. On leave from Union this term, she has just returned from one month in Cherkassy, Ukraine, where she volunteered with a relief organization teaching school and coordinating a feeding program for the elderly. She also has done relief work Israel, and traveled in China and Taiwan.

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