Home Life

Something I’m learned about myself since I left: I’m not very good at keeping a blog… sorry about that.

My Canadian friends left a couple of weeks ago, which was terribly sad. We had become good friends and it was hard to see them go. Thankfully, another volunteer came a week later, so I wasn’t by myself for too long.

                                 Left to right: Doreen, Melissa, Kristina (holding Beth), me, Jo, and Valence

I’m not sure I’ve written very much about my home life yet. I live in an area of Lugazi called Kikawula. It takes about 10 minutes or so to walk into Lugazi town. We live inside a compound with the family who runs the organization. The family lives in the main house, and then the kitchen and volunteer rooms are across from the main house. It feels like a very safe area, but we do have a guard who comes every night just in case.

We have power at the compound (most of the time) and running water. The shower is really cold, but we're thankful to have running water! Lately I've been going for a run in the evening, then the cold shower feels amazing. The kitchen has an oven, but no refrigerator, and no other appliances. The oven means lots of cakes though : )

Valence and Doreen, the couple who run Youth Focus Africa Foundation (YOFAFO), are great people. They have a huge vision for their organization, and are very passionate and invested in the work they do. Doreen heads the Microfinance project, while Valence takes care of the other projects (Health and Education).

Jo and Beth are their two children, and they are both extremely bright. Jo is only 3 1/2, but the way he speaks you would think he was 5 or 6. Beth (1 ½) is a cutie and follows her big brother around everywhere, wanting to do whatever he is doing. They manage to create quite a bit of mischief together, but their cuteness usually makes up for it.

As the Social Media intern, I update facebook and twitter, work with Amy (media/communications coordinator) on fundraising campaigns, and do whatever else is asked of me. The last couple of weeks I have been helping Doreen enter information for their microfinance program into the computer (she is more than a little busy with the kids). It has mostly been a lot of data entry, but it is still interesting to learn how their Microfinance program works.

That’s all for now, but I’ll try to write more soon about YOFAFO programs, and the organization itself. 

Ebola, Baseball and Life in Lugazi.

Sorry it has been a while since my last post. My life here has settled into somewhat of a rhythm, and things that once felt new and uncertain now feel normal and routine. It’s a nice feeling to feel settled.

Work:

YOFAFO is trying to get on a site called Globalgiving.org, which would allow easy online fundraising for specific projects. YOFAFO is doing amazingly well with very little resources, but it would be really great if they could have a new platform for fundraising. The first few weeks I was here was focused on helping Valence and Amy get the proper documents in order to submit for the Global Giving deadline at the end of the month. A couple of weeks were also focused on helping with a grant YOFAFO is applying for through the US Embassy Small Grants program. Now that both of these are finished, my work has gone back to focusing on the Social Media side: Facebook, Twitter, making flyers, newsletters, etc.

Life in Lugazi/Uganda:

Lugazi is a nice little town to live in, but it has also been nice to get out to Jinja or Kampala at least once a week or so, just for a change. Kampala has some great coffee, and we have found that Jinja, along with having the source of the Nile, has a couple of really great places to eat, as well as some stores that sell tons of movies. It has been fun to do some exploring in both of these cities.

The power goes out pretty frequently, which makes things interesting. As my work here revolves around Social Media, a computer is very necessary to get anything done. There has been many a day so far when I can’t really do much because the power goes out and my computer dies. I am definitely learning to be flexible.

There was a week or so when we were getting a ton of rain- and when it rains it usually pours. Unlike in Seattle, where people go about their business despite the weather, things here usually stop when it rains- for good reason. The roads become slick with mud, the raindrops are so big they cause the mud to splash up onto your legs, and enough rain often indicates a coming power outage.

You may have heard about the recent Ebola scare in Uganda, but it seems to have been contained before it spread very far. Honestly, people in this area didn’t seem very worried at all, as we are quite a ways from Western Uganda, where the outbreak started. My Canadian friends and I were a little nervous at first, and were careful about where we were travelling, but the scare seems to have died down.

In other news:

A couple of weeks ago we met two American guys here filming a documentary about the local Little League team. Apparently the team has made it to the Little League World Series in the US, and will be the first African team to actually play in the history of the Little League World Series. I guess a different team from Uganda made it a couple of years ago, but then their Visas were denied and they weren’t able to go. A documentary was made about their team as well, and Kristina and Melissa (the Canadian girls living here) watched it before they came, and used it to fundraise.

We ran into them again several days ago, and they told us this crazy story. Apparently they ran into this boy who saw their cameras and asked them to film him. They got a couple of shots of him doing different things, and went on their way. Later, he kept showing up at the baseball field when they were filming or watching. Eventually, they started talking to him (through a Ugandan friend of theirs, as he didn’t speak English). He told them that his mother had sold him as a child laborer to a woman here in Lugazi. He makes the equivalent of about $10 a day, but sees less than $0.50 for himself, and the woman who he works for takes the rest. He had to quit school, and is living in very poor conditions with two other boys in the same position. The two American guys and their Ugandan friend interviewed the boy and filmed his living conditions, as evidence to turn into the police. They are hopeful that something will be done about it, and already talked to the boy’s aunt, who agreed that he can live with her and go back to school. We met the little boy one evening, and he had such a sweet face. It’s so heartbreaking to think of how often these types of situations occur without anyone caring or having the resources to change their circumstances. It’s also amazing to think how much this boy’s life and circumstances will change if and when he gets out of this situation and is able to be back in school instead of working all day. It will definitely give him a better shot at a positive future.

Well, that’s all for now. As I write it is POURING rain, and I’m anticipating a power outage in the very near future. It’s also really windy, which is unusual but reminds me of home. Thanks for keeping up with me and I’ll try to write more frequently in the future.