On Monday I celebrated one year that I have been in Malawi. So how did I celebrate? Since I was in Lilongwe I made sure to eat lots of food I don’t normally eat in the village like burritos, ice cream, Chinese food, and toast. I got to see a lot of friends, particularly those in my group who have also made it a year so far. But more than the food, I was able to celebrate this milestone for three other cool reasons…
1. The project to build an under five health clinic in my community is now ready for people to donate to. So if you are interested in learning more about this great project and how to donate, go to https://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=donate.contribute.projDetail&projdesc=614-226. It’s a totally community supported and initiated project, my only role is to try to source the funding and to make sure the funds are used properly. So please consider giving today so that the building can start ASAP once finished the health services will be free and available for the women and kids in the community.
2. I got 8 soccer balls for a women’s soccer tournament in my area. I had the idea to start this tournament a while back and I thought it would not be very well-received since soccer is only played by men. However, with some cool prizes and a lot of excitement on my part and some other friends, we have been getting a lot of support from the community. The “Kapiri Women’s Football Cup” will be held in the first week of May and already some of the teams are practicing to get prepared for it. So these soccer balls will really help the women to train and learn how to play.
3. The women’s group finally received their loans!! They went yesterday to the bank and now they will be able to use the loans to jumpstart their own businesses. Their loans range from about $35 to $130 and will be paid back over a four month period. Hopefully this is just the first big step in enabling them to make their businesses run sustainably and profitably.
In other news...
I have four kittens! I’m still amazed that Chips was able to have that many, but now they are about 3 weeks old and soon enough they will be running around. I will most definitely make sure that no chimbudzi accidents happen like last time!
At the end of this month I will be going back to Dedza to the College of Forestry for the pre-service training of the new environment and health group who just arrived to country on Sunday. It’s a really exciting time for them and I am reminded that only a year ago I was just as wide-eyed, scared, excited, and pale as they are right now!
That's it for now, I want to say a big thank you to all who are reading this and who have been supporting me for this past year. I hope you all enjoy reading this just as much as I enjoy experiencing it!
1. The project to build an under five health clinic in my community is now ready for people to donate to. So if you are interested in learning more about this great project and how to donate, go to https://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=donate.contribute.projDetail&projdesc=614-226. It’s a totally community supported and initiated project, my only role is to try to source the funding and to make sure the funds are used properly. So please consider giving today so that the building can start ASAP once finished the health services will be free and available for the women and kids in the community.
2. I got 8 soccer balls for a women’s soccer tournament in my area. I had the idea to start this tournament a while back and I thought it would not be very well-received since soccer is only played by men. However, with some cool prizes and a lot of excitement on my part and some other friends, we have been getting a lot of support from the community. The “Kapiri Women’s Football Cup” will be held in the first week of May and already some of the teams are practicing to get prepared for it. So these soccer balls will really help the women to train and learn how to play.
3. The women’s group finally received their loans!! They went yesterday to the bank and now they will be able to use the loans to jumpstart their own businesses. Their loans range from about $35 to $130 and will be paid back over a four month period. Hopefully this is just the first big step in enabling them to make their businesses run sustainably and profitably.
In other news...
I have four kittens! I’m still amazed that Chips was able to have that many, but now they are about 3 weeks old and soon enough they will be running around. I will most definitely make sure that no chimbudzi accidents happen like last time!
At the end of this month I will be going back to Dedza to the College of Forestry for the pre-service training of the new environment and health group who just arrived to country on Sunday. It’s a really exciting time for them and I am reminded that only a year ago I was just as wide-eyed, scared, excited, and pale as they are right now!
That's it for now, I want to say a big thank you to all who are reading this and who have been supporting me for this past year. I hope you all enjoy reading this just as much as I enjoy experiencing it!
1 comment:
aw rhubarb, sorry it didn't work out how you planned. wish i was there to cheer you on! xo.
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