Hi, Rachel here, I'm an intern from New Zealand. I arrived in Uganda in March and have been volunteering with Wrap up Africa and UCCF since. It's been a pretty amazing 7 months. I've had my ups and downs, my joys and my frustrations (oh the frustrations!) But it is an experience I will certainly never forget...
The Frustartions...
My daily “matatou” commute into work. - Matatous are essentially mini vans that work in a vaugely (very vaguley) similar fashion to buses. They are very cheap, many of them aren't particularly road worthy and they cram them to the brim with people (and the occasional chicken or goat).
It is common for the seats and/or doors to not be properly attached – makes for a fun journey. And as it is rainy season at the moment, they are permanently caked in red mud – and apon exiting, I also am caked with red mud!
The really fun part (note sarcasim) of the journey is the change-over. It is vaguely (very vaugely) based on a bus terminal principle. All mataous in Kampala come through this “Taxi Park”. But there really is no rhyme or reason to how it works- hence much of the time it doesn't. There are no allocated parking spaces, so the mini vans enter, and then get stuck in the mass of vehicles criss crossing eachother, and can't get out. It is possible to sit here for hours (growing ever more pleasant as you discover the gentleman next to you isn't wearing deodorant). At such times I have to laugh, otherwise I would likely cry!(I have been informed there are some quite comical videos about this very taxi park on “You Tube” for your continued education)
The Joys...
Working with the teams involved in Wrap up Africa and UCCF has been a pretty inspiring experience. These are people who are devoted to the cause of child cancer. Many of them are volunteers, but the dedication and compassion they have for these kids is astounding!
The other great thing is of course working with the kids. Despite facing some huge challenges, these kids are amazing. They are incredibly bright, lively,creative and a ton of fun!
I couldn't not mention the great work Wrap Up Africa is doing... I've been fortuate to see this baby start to walk. Going from a great idea and a lot of hard work to getting it up and running and really seeing the huge benefit it is to people. I totally believe in this kind of micro-enterprise approach, not just hand-outs, but really enabling and challenging people to work for a better tomorrow.
I urge you to get behind Wrap up Africa, go on... buy something!
Or if you're feeling even more adventerous, come and volunteer to join our team, short or longer term, I tell you it's an experience you'll never forget!
Monday, November 10, 2008
Friday, November 7, 2008
Evelyn's story
Evelyn works with Wrap up Africa to train our tailors. This is her story...
My name is Evelyn Akoko. I am Acholi by tribe, born in a small village in the war-torn Gulu district of northern Uganda.I was born into a poligamist family, my mother had nine children and my father had over 40 children to various mothers.
I grew up with many problems and challenges, despite this I have never given up on life.
After completing my O levels at high school I joined a technichal school. Before I could complete my typing course I was abducted by the Lords Resistance Army (LRA) rebels. They came to my village late one night, they killed two of my brothers and forced my younger brother and I into the bush. My younger brother died on the way. My mother was left behind badly beaten.
I
was fortunate to escape from the LRA with my life after serving them for a month. I made my way back home, but after losing my three brothers was never happy. My mother was also distraught and became weaker and weaker. I was eventually taken to a place where they keep those who have escaped from the bush. This is where I joined a tailoring class, I worked hard and became a good tailor.
After completing my tailoring course my elder sister and her husband died of AIDS. They left behind three orphans, at the age of only 15 I became responsible for these children as there was no-one else who could. Life became more difficult as I also had to care for my sick mother. Everything had fallen onto my shoulders and it wasn't easy. My mother died in 2000. After this I decided to get married so I would have a husband to help me look after the children, but things remained the same, he could not take care of the children.
We decided to move to Kampala, so I worked hard to put my sisters children in school and I left them with my only remaining brother in Gulu. My brothers wife however did not want the children and once again I had to care for them. My eldest neice became pregnant at high school, I now care for her child too.
My life has not been easy, but through the suffering God has been there, my comforter and my provider. He has given me a loving heart to give a mothers care to these orphans. So I decided to stop crying and open my eyes. I looked for a course to make a new life for me and my family.
Through a friend I found out about the Kibo Foundation, a local foundation offering exceptional training. From the time I joined Kibo my life began to change. I began to forget my problems and realise I can make a difference for myself and my community. Kibo took us to visit the Ugandan Child Cancer Foundation, here I saw people who were suffering more than I was and I wanted to help. These children really touched me and opened my eyes. I started volunteering with Wrap Up Africa and was soon offered a job. I now work teaching our tailoring trainees.
My name is Evelyn Akoko. I am Acholi by tribe, born in a small village in the war-torn Gulu district of northern Uganda.I was born into a poligamist family, my mother had nine children and my father had over 40 children to various mothers.
I grew up with many problems and challenges, despite this I have never given up on life.
After completing my O levels at high school I joined a technichal school. Before I could complete my typing course I was abducted by the Lords Resistance Army (LRA) rebels. They came to my village late one night, they killed two of my brothers and forced my younger brother and I into the bush. My younger brother died on the way. My mother was left behind badly beaten.
I
was fortunate to escape from the LRA with my life after serving them for a month. I made my way back home, but after losing my three brothers was never happy. My mother was also distraught and became weaker and weaker. I was eventually taken to a place where they keep those who have escaped from the bush. This is where I joined a tailoring class, I worked hard and became a good tailor.
After completing my tailoring course my elder sister and her husband died of AIDS. They left behind three orphans, at the age of only 15 I became responsible for these children as there was no-one else who could. Life became more difficult as I also had to care for my sick mother. Everything had fallen onto my shoulders and it wasn't easy. My mother died in 2000. After this I decided to get married so I would have a husband to help me look after the children, but things remained the same, he could not take care of the children.
We decided to move to Kampala, so I worked hard to put my sisters children in school and I left them with my only remaining brother in Gulu. My brothers wife however did not want the children and once again I had to care for them. My eldest neice became pregnant at high school, I now care for her child too.
My life has not been easy, but through the suffering God has been there, my comforter and my provider. He has given me a loving heart to give a mothers care to these orphans. So I decided to stop crying and open my eyes. I looked for a course to make a new life for me and my family.
Through a friend I found out about the Kibo Foundation, a local foundation offering exceptional training. From the time I joined Kibo my life began to change. I began to forget my problems and realise I can make a difference for myself and my community. Kibo took us to visit the Ugandan Child Cancer Foundation, here I saw people who were suffering more than I was and I wanted to help. These children really touched me and opened my eyes. I started volunteering with Wrap Up Africa and was soon offered a job. I now work teaching our tailoring trainees.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
