Bristol - Center of the Universe

Or so says my friend Trace…but I do have to say it is quite an enchanting city and countryside on the East coast of England. The city has many historical sites to experience and lots of beauty.

But the highlight of the ‘England’ experience was a Saturday trip to Malmesbury in the countryside – quintessentially English is the best way to describe this village! Our friend Moira grew up here and we took the day to explore and enjoy the outdoors with walks through the fields, picking blackberries, and helping to harvest potatoes at the allotment (community garden) that Mo & her sister have.

We even did some kite flying on the downs on Sunday afternoon!

Of course all the excitement of seeing another view of English life was great, but the best part was spending hours talking with good friends, old & new. Ali stopped by for 2 days – she had worked in Kaabong right before I arrived in 07 & is now in Jordan studying Arabic! We were delighted that she passed through Bristol to spend time with us over her holiday – her wisdom and love are such blessings.

Thanks, Trace for being so very hospitable and sharing your life with me!! Already looking forward to my next visit!

Cash for Work - road construction

Another main project going on in Kaabong is cash for work road construction. We identified communities that are most vulnerable and then chose a stretch of road that is most in need of rehabilitation. Medair then enlists people from the local villages, both men & women, to do the labor and be paid. This lends dignity instead of dependency and a hope of ownership and partnership with the community. It is hard labor, and yet the people were lined up - ready to work for their wages!

Emergency Water Kit

I wanted to share some things that have gone on over the past few weeks - sorry for my lack of communication recently!

About two weeks ago our team spent a few days testing out an Emergency Water Kit that is a vital piece of our project here in Kaabong. This kit is designed to be set up within 24 hours to respond to an outbreak of a water-bourne disease such as typhoid or cholera which can devestate a community within days. The kit allows us to set up a water pumping and filtering system to provide clean water to a community and therefore stop the spread of a disease due to lack of clean water supply. The process goes like this:


1. Jetting water (using the force of water through a pipe to 'drill' a hole into the earth to reach a new, clean source of water)

2. Pumping water from the jetted source

3. Filling a tank full of the pumped water

4. Pumping the water through a chlorination tank to cleanse it

5. Pumping the clean water into a bladder tank

6. Water flows out via tap stands for people to access it


It was fascinating for me to watch this process, as I'm not technical when it comes to this stuff. :) I tried to help as I could, but my role in these emergencies would really be to hold down the fort and keep the team in communication with our offices and be a support along the way. So I became the photographer for these days and tried to keep the kids who gathered entertained as well! What I love about this part of our project is that 1)we have not had an outbreak yet that needed such a massive response (yeah!) and 2)that it really would make a HUGE difference in a very short period of time. Let's pray this is never needed, but if it is we are much better prepared for it now & will continue to tweak our ability to respond quickly and as a cohesive team.

Dola & Trace are testing the chlorination treatments

the raging Kaabong river...

Charles, Jacob (Coco), Simon, Dola & Trace - our dynamic Watsan team!

Kampala & driving in Africa

I flew into Entebbe, Uganda at around 7am on Monday morning. That’s about 10pm Sunday night for you Denver folk & midnight on eastern US time. After successfully maneuvering through the tiny airport - where the customs, immigration and baggage claim are all one room only separated by some rope – and being met by all 3 of my checked bags (yay!) I was met outside of the secure area (which is a very long walk out in the elements) by Jimmy & Phyllis from Medair. I was so very happy to see their smiling faces!

Similar to last year when we arrived in Uganda, I was met by a beautifully soft sunrise and Lake Victoria as we drove into the city of Kampala. I was determined to give this city another chance – it didn’t leave the greatest impression on me last year – and I’m glad I did. We arrived at the Medair base, which is in a nice area of the city. But what I was so shocked to notice from the view at the base & subsequent walks around the area is that Kampala is actually a city built on several rolling hills – it is beautiful! That is a look from afar, however. It is still a developing city: traffic is unlike anything we know in the US, the roads are atrocious with potholes the size of small cars and are barely paved, “very nice areas” of town would be considered the ghetto in America – very different standards of living. Ok, so I don’t LOVE Kampala, but I can handle it.

I’m supposed to take a driving test tomorrow & though I’ve explained I don’t drive manual and therefore shouldn’t be allowed on the road (desperately hoping they’ll forbid me from driving) I still must go & drive an automatic. With the skills I learned from my one manual lesson before I left (thanks Wayne!), I’ll learn to drive manual while in Kaabong, a very less hectic area of the country, perhaps even on the airstrip!

Surprises since I’ve been here…eating homemade sushi which was quite delicious, thanks to Jo here at the Kampala Medair base, eating gelato with Fanny at an Italian market down the street, having my own private room, and getting an extra 2-3kgs of space to pack stuff onto the plane with me on Friday! (Did I mention I can only take 15kgs with me on my first trip up there? That’s about 33 lbs…)

There’s my glance at the last few days. I’m glad to be here & getting to know the Kampala staff, but am very excited to head to Kaabong where my team is waiting to welcome me “home”!

Thanks for your continued prayers and encouragement! I miss you all & send much love.

***Update since I took my driving test: all went well, driving on the British side of the car/road is quite interesting, but easy to get the hang of since you're clearly trying to stay away from the cars coming at you from the other direction! I successfully navigated downtown Kampala & still have the wits about me to tell you - wow. I never would have thought to attempt driving here...I'll let you know how it goes if I ever venture out on my own (probably won't!).

Uganda

Well, as I've been alluding to I need to tell you all a bit about what the future will hold for me. At the conculsion of my week with Medair's training, I was presented with a position in Uganda as an Office Manager. I was a bit overwhelmed right then with the intensity of the week, but they asked me to come to their briefing the following week since I was planning to still be in the area. This allowed me to find out more about the position & what they were looking for. I then took a few days to think it through & talk it over with Natalie while we were in Italy - I had been so engrossed in Medair for two weeks that I wanted to be sure that someone who knows me well could hear all that I had processed through. It was great to talk it all out & get Natalie's perspective. Yesterday I called Medair & accepted the position! So, I'm heading to Uganda for a year contract around August 18th. Wow, it is finally here! I have a lot more to find out, but wanted to give you that update for now! Thanks for everyone's encouragement and prayers!

I'm in Ireland now for a few days & will head back to the US on Tuesday. Drop me a line & I'd love to catch up and/or talk with you before I head out of the US again!

In Lovely Switzerland

I`m safe & sound in my backpacker`s guesthouse here in Lausanne. Overall the travels went smoothly.

As I walked through the Geneva airport this afternoon & let the fact of where I was & why settle into my jet-lagged mind, I was a bit overwhelmed. But it wasn`t that anxious overwhelmed feeling, but a good one. Like I`m finally here, after so long of hoping & praying & anticipating. Almost 2 years ago I first was introduced to this organization called Medair & now here I am, actually going to meet them & find out if a future working with them is a possibility!

I`m very thankful - for supportive friends & family, for this opportunity in a world in which I know its not the norm to be so fortunate, and for a God who believes in me and leads me with patience and love.

I probably won`t be able to update until next Saturday after the training/orientation is over - until then, ciao!

To serve wholistically

So, about a year and a half ago I came across an advertisement for this emergency relief organization called Medair. Since then, I found myself browsing their website to learn more about who they are, what they're about, and how I might be able to get involved. See, I've been searching for an opportunity where I can serve people wholistically. It's just not me to be either an 'evangelizer' or to be strictly a humanitarian. My faith compels me to love wholly - the spiritual, emotional, physical, mental needs of people. I believe this is how Jesus lived here & therefore how I need to live & love as well. To honor God through honoring his people, that is what I want to be about.

Back to Medair...I had a brief exchange of emails with their main office last year, but didn't feel compelled right then to pursue more. No one I knew had ever heard of this organization, until my friend Brandi introduced me to an acquaintance of hers, who happened to have just returned from serving 2 years in Uganda with Medair. After pummelling Mike with questions about his experiences, I was convinced I needed to take a step forward. Thus, I began the application process to see what might happen (and in the mean time put in my notice at CCAI...that's another story!). Well, just last week I received word that they'd like me to be part of their Rehabilitation Orientation Course (ROC) next month in Switzerland, where the headquarters is. I'm not guaranteed any position with them at this point, but should know by the end of my week with them in June...whether this is the road ahead of me or just another learning curve, I'm very excited!

To be connected with a group of people whose values and goals are so aligned with my own is quite inspiring! I'll get into more of that later...until then, I'm enjoying this journey!