Carrying Water

A couple days ago, we got the pleasure to meet and help Rita's grandmother. We found her home with friends mourning the lost of her eldest child. They had set up the traditional approach which is very similar to sitting Shiva, where they sit and remember the individual for up to five straight days. We thought it would a helpful experience to carry water for them. It didn't seem like it would be that bad and as soon as we mentioned our plans, people came running to give us their Jerry Cans. These yellow containers, originally used for petrol, are about 5 or 6 gallons and are ubiquitously used for water carrying. Almost every family has multiple cans to hold and transport liquid. Our group, Colleen, John, Lindsay, Zoe, Sarah, a couple locals and I, all walked to the bore hole laden with multiple empty cans. It seemed like a fairly short walk, no more than a half mile, and in comparison with the distance many of the kids have to walk everyday, it was nothing. John didn't seem to think so and bet any girl 500 dollars they couldn't walk all the way back with a can on their head. I was surprised to see Colleen take up the challenge and after filling all of our cans and a couple for the locals who were waiting, she strode out undeterred. Although she had a smaller can, it was still impressive and funny to see try the African way of carrying things. Zoe, Linds, John and John all grabbed one of the big cans and I thought I could do two. As we set out from the bore hole the cans didn't feel two heavy and all of us were going pretty strong. Luckily the day wasn't to hot and it actually started to rain which cooled us all of but made the cans extremely slippery. Once we were about halfway back, it was a effort to keep going. These things got heavy fast. Soon I could manage 30 steps and then had to lay down the cans for a few seconds. Colleen didn't stop once and managed to hustle all the way back. Us mortals though soon felt the weight and struggled to maintain a good hold on the cans. Non the less we all made it back and were rewarded with hot tea, grounds nuts, hugs, smiles and thanks. Just doing this short walk once was enough to make all of us further respect the incredible work it takes just to get water every day.
Photos by Sarah Morris

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Homestay at Sharifa's Home

After only one day in Kamuli Lindsay and I hopped on the back of boda bodas (motorcycles). We were headed to the home of Sharifa, one of the 52 Kids. Upon arrival we were greeted warmly by her family, each person kneeling down and holding our hands. The women greeted us with the traditional welcoming shriek and giant loving embraces. Kaiso, one of the employees of 52 Kids here in Kamuli stuck around with us for a while and helped translate so we could get to know the family better. Before we knew it the sun had set, and we were without light. Luckily, Lindsay and I had brought headlamps which helped profusely as we played the Ugandan version of "UNO" with Sharifa's uncle, Daniel. At around 8:30 PM we were served a delicious snack of roasted groundnuts, which taste a lot like peanuts, and fresh tea. As we waited for the actual meal Lindsay and I played tons of games with Sharifa, her siblings and cousins, as well as two of the other 52 Kids, Gerald and Jesca. We played thumb wars, ring around the rosie, the slap game, and even the macarana. In turn they taught us a few Ugandan games, and soon we were all having the greatest time. For dinner we were served a feast. It included mashed plantains, baked casava (which is a type of flour that they use here), greens, beans, and chicken. The women had been slaving over the meal for hours, it was incredibly kind and generous of them. After eating it was almost 11:00 PM, so we decided to head into bed. Sharifa's family, along with the help of Josefine, had set up a beautiful looking bed for us to sleep in. We felt incredibly lucky to be able to experience such a wonderful family. In the morning we woke up so that we could walk around the village and meet other neighbors and friends of the family. Each time we were greeted warmly, and we even learned how to greet the proper way for a woman, kneeling down and saying "wasazo tia nyabo/sevo" (definitely not the right spelling!) We had such a great time talking to each family, and every time we were given a parting gift such as fruits, eggs, or groundnuts. Finally, it was time to leave. It was sad to say goodbye and it was hard to describe how thankful we were for their generosity and kindness. A few days later we returned to Sharifa's home to bring a thank you gift of sugar and a pan, the family again was so excited to see us, and we hope to visit them one more time before our departure!

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PR, surveys and the 'Breakthough Coach'

I just finished up summarizing the results of our survey about people's reaction to the HOUSE campaign, spear-headed by Peter Brady. The response (from nine different clients) was wonderful and overwhelmingly positive. My meetings with Alexandra from KSV (PR help) were also great, and she made a really nice customized PR strategy for the 52 Kids on PowerPoint. On Friday I'm going to be in Whitehall NY visiting Mal 'the breakthrough coach', who has been a regular supporter of the Foundation for over two years. I hope everybody in UG is having a good time and gaining from the experience. Please keep us posted.

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Internet, Pen Pal Letters, Music, and more...

I cannot believe that I am sitting in the dorm writing this blog! Sarah and John have been working with the internet connection in the dorm and it is working faster than we ever expected it to. This opens up so many possibilities... communication with our folks on the ground here, kids using technology while living in the dorm...it is huge! On Sunday we traveled to some of the homes of the kids to deliver the pen pal letters and give them the clothes that I have collected for them. I helped them read the letters and explain the questions that their pen pals asked. It was a very special moment with each kid. Today we are working on the song about self reliance with the group of musicians, and then teaching beading to a group of women. Later today we will go to Township to visit the 5 kids that are boarding students there. The teenagers are fading in energy a bit today but those of us that are tough are crusin along!

photo by Sarah Morris

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Summer Trip

This is a picture of the group in Uganda that I took at the airport in Burlington just before they left. I just moved into my new apartment with my wife in Rochester and am going to explore the city today. Later on tonight I have a meeting with a PR professional (Alexandra Tursi of KSV). Hopefully I'll learn about how to get the word out about 52 kids. John e-mailed home recently and said that the trip is going really well so far.

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Off to Kamuli

After spending two nights in Kampala we are finally leaving for Kamuli in just a few minutes! The past 36 hours have been filled with so many amazing experiences. As Lindsay mentioned, we visited Bead for Life which gave us a snapshot of how another nonprofit organization was trying to help out in Uganda. We were able to speak and observe so many motivated and wonderful women who were really trying to make a difference in their lives. Later that day we got to take a van down to Seeta Boarding School, where a fourteen year old girl Ritah, who is in the 52 Kids program is attending school. Ritah is really special, because right now John is in the process of adopting her. When we arrived Lindsay, Caleb and I had to wait outside the gates so that Colleen and John could get a chance to greet her alone. During those 20 or so minutes we were able to bypass language barriers, and begin playing a hilarious game of Simon Says with a group of little kids. By the end of the game they were jumping all over us asking for kisses and hugs! All of the sudden we saw a young girl start running full speed in a green dress towards us. Once she had reached us, she gave everyone a strong embrace; it was Ritah. As the last part of our visit to Seeta we were able to enter a classroom of about 60 students and interact with them for a while. The children were so eager to talk to us, and so welcoming a kind; this was surely one of the best parts of our day.
That night, after dinner with our whole group John, Kristin, Lindsay, Caleb and I decided to accompany Pichu, Collin and Frank to a bar near our hotel. We had so much fun talking, dancing, and shooting pool that we were out until 3:30 in the morning!
There's so many more stories to tell, but right now we have to go catch a bus to Kamuli. I am so excited to be here, the people are so welcoming and kind, the culture is so rich, and the country is so beautiful. I can't wait to see what's in store for me down in Kamuli!

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We are here!!

We are finally here. After almost thirty hours of plane flying and car riding, we arrived in Kampala around midnight here (that is about 5 o clock eastern time in the US). There is a seven hour time difference here, but after going overnight on our plane to Brussels, I have lost all sense of time. Our group is staying at a great hotel called the Speke Hotel, I highly recommend it to anyone who comes to visit Kampala. We met Dr. Frank Woitera, Collin and Pichu last night before bed. Everyone is so nice and welcoming. As I went up to introduce myself to Frank, I was a little intimidated, but when he shook my hand he swept me up into a huge welcoming hug that made my breath catch in my throat. Never had a been so warmly welcomed into such a foreign country. Those welcomings did not end there. All of today (July 28) wherever we went, we were welcomed with smiles. Our first journey through Kampala lead us to the Bead for Life head quarters. This foundation is the most organized project I have ever seen. I would also recommend visiting the website if you would like to find out more. All the women there are amazing beatiful people. They allowed us to take pictures and watch them work on beads, bags and bowls. Those who did not understand us merely smiled or giggled when we tried to address them. The bracelets, necklaces and various other products these women made were remarkable and gorgeous. I could not believe my eyes when I saw the final products. These women who live in poverty unlike any I have every seen, build a life for themseleves and their family by creating beads out of shiny, old magazine pages!!!
As we travel the streets of Kampala in an old bus, I find my eyes to be glued open. travel on the streets is absolute chaos. I can not believe the traffic and the crazy driving. You will be driving and venders will come right up to your window and heckle you to buy some of their products. There are a ton of motor bikes racing around sliding right by our big bus. Also, it was really cool that everyone drove in the left hand lane and on the left side of their car.
I have to say, I did not know what to expect from the people, food and culture, but I am thouroughly happy. I do not feel intimiated, instead I am quiet the opposite; I have been talking to Frank and many of the people freely and jokingly. I already feel as if I have been In Africa for weeks! Tomorrow we are giong to be heading to Kamuli for the next stage of our trip....
Until then,
Lindsay Kingston

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