Gord Hutton admitted to being full of nervous energy the day before leaving Jasper. At the pace he’s going, he won’t have long to worry.

Hutton and Penny Bayfield, both long-time locals, departed last Friday (May 19) on what will likely be a whirlwind year, at least. Both have taken positions with Medecins Sans Frontiers (Doctors Without Borders), the international relief organization renowned for going to the world’s most needy places. These locations often happen to be among the world’s most dangerous as well.

While Hutton and Bayfield had both been interested in the work of MSF for some time, it wasn’t until their former tree planting crew chief took up with the organization that the two began seriously considering taking the time to get involved. And just to answer the question that’s been on the tip of everyone’s tongue since they first announced their intention, no, the pair aren’t doctors, nurses or otherwise involved in the field of medicine. They’ll be working as logisticians, a fancy word meaning jack-of-all-trades and general go-to person any time something goes awry. As one could imagine, in the world of MSF, that’s a pretty frequent occurance.

“We are there to assist the whole program,” says Bayfield, who, like Hutton is really trying to piece together an exact job description. You can’t blame them for being uncertain. After all, they applied just short months ago and almost as soon as they heard they had passed the lengthy and demanding screening process, Hutton had been offered a posting in India. Kashmir, to be precise.

“It’s all happening a lot faster than we thought,” says Bayfield, in the understatement of the interview.

The couple has been managing Alpine Village for the past seven years, but with that job coming to an end, Hutton and Bayfield were looking for something different.

“We thought about taking a year off to travel, but it just seemed too hedonistic,” he says. “We saw an opportunity where we were finishing employment and could do something good, rather than thinking of ourselves.”

After a short training course at MSF headquarters in the Netherlands, Hutton will be off to the subcontinent. Bayfield, meanwhile, is likely headed to Sierra Leone, although that posting wasn’t confirmed before she left Jasper. The couple will be separated for at least one year, although there may be opportunities to visit. The two were recently married, something that may make the process of getting visitor’s visas a little easier down the line.

While they aren’t exactly sure when they’ll be back, Hutton and Bayfield have no plans to pull up their considerable roots in Jasper. Both have been highly involved with the community, Hutton as a member of the volunteer fire brigade and Bayfield through her work with the Jasper Crisis Team. They’ve rented our their house and arranged for their dog to be cared for.

“We like it here,” says Hutton. “We’re not going to be running away.”

Bayfield and Hutton encourage Jasperites to find out more about MSF through the organizations’ website at www.msf.org.

“The group runs completely on donations,” says Hutton, already committed to the cause.