Happy Thanksgiving, Merry Christmas and Have a Fabulous 2012!

Dear Everyone,
Hope everyone had a great Halloween and your Thanksgiving and Christmas plans are well in the works! It was a really good day today. Angel told me today that she bought her tickets to come visit me in Uganda. Christmas Eve she will arrive. YEA I am so excited!

Over the last 2 months, it seems that I have been able to make alot of progress. After the Peace Camp the Lango teens in the Iceme area (about 23 of them) got together and we developed a Peace Club. The sustainability for the Peace Camp was that the teens would go back to there community and form Peace Clubs.
I really am so proud of them...they have really taken off! They selected their club name, “Rainbow Peace Ambassadors,” a vision, goals, set up there meeting schedule for the next year and what each meeting was going to be about. They came up with that name because at Peace Camp they all were given different color t-shirts, so when they got together in Iceme they all had different color shirts. They will alternated between Drama, Community Service, Conflict Resolution, Activities (games and sports) for teamwork building, and Lifeskills. In October they did a Domestic Violence drama (both in the family and at school) for the community. It was a great success and I will post pictures on facebook. Next time they did Community Service and collected rubbage from the Health Center and slashed the grass. You do realize here there is no lawnmowers in Uganda....it takes weeks to slash the grass at the Health Center. Yesterday, they did a drama on conflict resolution and then talked to the community about Alcohol and Drug use. They really are great actors and they Love doing Drama! They are well on there way to being a real asset to the community.

The end of September I had 7, not 5 like I thought, Peace Corps Trainee’s (PCT) and Instructor come to my site for Emersion Week. One of the girls said, “Oh now I appreciate how far you have to travel to come teach us at RACO.” It is a long way to Wakiso from the North! It was hard hosting that many people when you have no hotels, running water or electricity. They were spread thin, but they were great FUN! It took me 2 hours to make breakfast for everyone (one meal at a time). But they got to see the HIV/AIDS support group and the War Victims support group that I have. Also, they attended my Secondary Girl’s School Lifeskills class. We did a game called the “Best Response.” The PCT’s were the judges, so everyone had fun. We also got a chance to go down to the market in Ngai. Ngai is about 9Kms from Iceme, we took a Taxi down and walked along way back before getting a ride. So we were really tired when we got back. They were also fortunate to see the airplane model that Waca Martin made from local materials. I have posted on facebook. He is so talented!
So I want to help him do this as an Income Generating Project...he can make any type of model you want. So if you know anyone out there that wants to help a talented, hard working youth make some money for school...let me know and let me know what model you would like made. I have posted the plane on facebook, it is made of Sorghum stem! So if you want a model of a plane you fly...or of a person you know...or a truck you drive...or a guitar you play....or of anything else you want made, that is homemade from Ugandan just let me know!
While I was in Kampala, I started to market his talent to African Craft shops and I will take a model with me next time I go. The plane that is hugh posted on facebook was to be given to Museveni during Independence Day. But security did not let them though.

We had our Mid-Service Training in October...WOW can you believe 1 year is up???? It was held in Masaka, which is south of Kampala about 2 1/2 hour drive (past the Equator line). It is only 18 kms from Lake Nagabuga. So another PCV and I went down the weekend before and spent a really nice time at the Lake just relaxing. It was very clean and the cottages were new, the customer service was excellent. But, you are really away from everything!

After mid-service I went to Entebbe for training for Camp BUILD (Boy’s of Uganda in Leadership Development). The camp will have 150 boys, ages 12-15 years old. It will be December 4-10, 2011. I will be a counselor and teach Lifeskills on HIV/AIDS and Malaria. It should be fun! However, the focus is on developing leadership rather than on the focus that the Peace Camp had; which was on Forgiveness and Reconciliation.

It was good to get back to Iceme! Remember that my grant for Informatic Technology that was approved? The money is now in the bank! One day the company that I had ordered the copier/printer showed up. I had no idea that he was coming, so I had no money for him. I would have to go to Gulu or Lira and transfer money. However, the job did not get completed because the network cables were not put down...they did not bring enough cables. So that was almost 2 weeks ago and the work still has not gotten done. What did I expect! I am in Uganda! Anyway, the copier works but no printer yet. I did order my computers for Iceme, however they have not been delivered yet either??? Next year when everything is up and running, I will train the Iceme staff in computers.

For Thanksgiving I will meet up with about 30 other PCV’s in Gulu. We are going to cook Thanksgiving dinner at the Ethiopian Restaurant. The manager is going to let us use his kitchen! It should be fun! So I want to wish you all a wonderful and Happy Thanksgiving. I have so much to be thankful for and I realize it more and more every day. I so appreciate every moment, my family and my friends and I hope that you are able to find that appreciation for Life and the things we have this Thanksgiving!

1st of December I will be back down to Kampala for my Mid-Service Medical. We get a dental exam and a workup to make sure we are still okay!!!
I go right from there to BUILD camp. After BUILD I will go to West Uganda for training to train the Village Health Teams (VHT) in Northern Uganda. I am not sure yet, but I think that I will be traveling alot to teach VHT’s in the North.

I will only be back for 3 days before I go back to Entebbe to pick Angel up from the airport. We are going to go on a 9 day trip for my vacation down to Rwanda to see the gorilla’s, then to Queen Elizabeth National Park, and then horseback ride in Mbule National park, up to Murchsion National Park before ending our trip in Iceme. So she will get to see my site and my community! Sometime before she leaves I will take her to Gulu. I am really looking forward to Christmas with her!

So I want to wish everyone a Very Merry Christmas and a Safe New Year filled with much Joy and Happiness. 2012 almost here!!!!
Don’t Stress....Be Happy!
Take care of yourselves, and stay safe.
Love & Light, 
Mari

4 Months of Busy Work and Travel

Dear Everyone,

WOW, I can not believe it has been 4 months since I entered a blog update! I hope everyone is doing well and that All the Father’s out there had a great Father’s Day!

I have tried to keep the photos coming on Facebook, but it seems like forever for them to load...so only a few at a time. Every month I continue to do some of the same things in Iceme that I have been doing when I am there. The last 3 months I have been traveling at least 10 days to 14 days out of the month.

So that said, I will fill you in on my travels under the months, and this is what I have continued to do when I am in Iceme.

I still work with my HIV support group and the War Victims support group. It really is something that when the Ugandan’s come to anything, they expect money or to be feed. So my first meeting with them, I explained the purpose of the support group and that no money was coming, and no food....only water, information and sharing! Well, it took a while, but they found out. My first HIV/AIDS meeting there were 46 people and the War Victims we had 25. Because of no food or money, I was really surprised when the next meeting came, I thought that 1 or 2 people might come. But, we had 83 people for the HIV/AIDS and 28 for the War Victims. They are really hungry for information. I always thought that they were well educated in that area because of all the NGO’s putting money into HIV/AIDS...but not so. The basics they do not know. So I will continue even if 1 person comes to the groups. I am still doing Basic Life Skills at the Iceme Secondary Girls School when they are in session. They just started a new term. I continue to go on Outreach to the villages to follow up with patients that have been sent home on Hospice. Boy, we have it great in the States with Palliative Care and Hospice! I met one 18 year old girl with AIDS that was about 70 lbs, nothing but bones. She was sent home on “Hospice,” however the father did not buy any pain medication for the girl, because he said that he did not have any money. This is not the first case I have seen that children and adults are dying in Severe pain...and I am sure it will not be the last. But this case really hit me.

I am still working on my secondary projects. I did get the Grant written for 3 computers, copier/printer, internet airtime, and lying cables at the Health Center. The Grant was approved for $10,000. Once the money comes I will go to Kampala and buy the computers and start training the H/C staff. The borehole is now fixed and they have had another NGO fund a second borehole. So we will no longer be without water when the electricity goes out. I still need to meet with the Local Council 3 of Iceme and the Farmers Chairperson to fill out a proposal to submit to the Heifer International. I would like to get some more Livestock in Oyam District!

The project that has taken most of my time was the Peace Camp in Ocer, outside of Gulu. This was a great success, I will talk about it in the August section! I also applied to work on the Boy’s Camp called BUILD in December and have done a little with the curriculum committee.

I am still showing movies to the kids when I am in Iceme, the joy that they get out of watching the animated cartoon’s are great. Angel, my daughter sent me the Karate Kid movie and they LOVED IT! They were laughing, and really got into supporting the boy and cheering him on. It was not too violent for them and taught them a good lesson in teamwork, and that discipline and practice will help you be successful in life. It was a real hit! We have had many movie nights, I try to combine it with some HIV education. But it is really a highlight for me to watch their faces, the projector was the best investment I could have made!

I have started teaching the young kids (7-13 yrs) that come for the movie about HIV/AIDS and Sex while I am setting up the movie, then we watch the movie. It really took me by surprise that the next day I was working in the office and here comes 5 of the boys...wanting to know more about what I had said. They had in there hands a booklet called, “Making Healthy Choices ‘Using lifeskills education in managing our sexuality and controlling HIV/AIDS,’”and wanted me to go over it with them! I thought that was really great, just another verification that they are hungry for education!

Someone in the States ask me if they could send eye glasses and the answer is Yes, they need them here and if you want to send them my address is on the right side of this blog.

I have to apologize about not getting back to people who have sent me emails.....Thank you so much. I do read them. Because alot of time when I have internet, I don’t have electricity and when I have electricity, I don’t have internet. So I try to get on the computer and off as fast as I can. I will have to contact Apple when I get back....you all know that I bought this computer mainly for the 10 hours battery life....well I have NEVER gotten 10 hours. Now I only get 4 hours of battery life, sometimes I think it is even less. It is only 1 year old! Anyway....so I am sorry if I have not gotten back to you.

So when I am Iceme, I work on the above, but now for my travels!

In June I went to Rakai for a HIV/AIDS mural painting. Rakai is south of Kampala, so it took me about 6 hours to get to Kampala and then another 2 1/2 or 3 hours to get to Rakai. Alot of PCV’s and the community also came to paint HIV scenarios on the walls. I taught Lifeskills to about 120 teens on HIV definition, transmission, prevention, STD’s and Disease Progression and Positive Behaviors. We had condoms there and a model for them to do a return demonstration on how to apply the condom.....it really was great to see them and be able to correct them when they were putting the condom on the model wrong. The kids really had great questions and stayed for 3 hours even though the STD pictures were graphic! Some of the questions were...what do I do with a condom after I use it? You may have seen pictures on facebook on the Rakai trip. Also, in June I traveled to Gulu a couple of times for the Peace Camp meetings.

July was a busy month of activities and travel. But I did take a rest with other PCVs over the weekend at Sesse Island. I really had a great time of just relaxing and spending time with my friends. It did take a long time to get there. I took a bus to Kampala (6 hours), then a taxi to Entebbe (45 minutes due to traffic), then a 4 hour ferry ride to the Island! But it was great. Then off to Mbale (5 hours on bus from Kampala) for a mandatory community health Malaria training. The PC, Uganda Ministry of Health and Uganda Government formed a PMI (Preventive Malaria Initiative) collaborative to decrease Malaria 70% by 2014. So now that initiative is added to my projects. I do plan to submit another Grant request for Education, pregnant mothers/children, mobilizing the community and community involvement, as well as purchasing mosquito nets for the Health Center and the Iceme Girls Boarding School (they have no nets currently.) No one here takes malaria prevention meds because they can not afford it. So I just finished collecting data from 2010 to now on positive malaria test at Iceme. Northern Uganda has the highest rate of Malaria in Uganda, with Apac and Oyam districts having 1,564 cases/year; 63% of children are affected in the North and 75% with anemia related to Malaria. 25% of all admissions to the hospital are from Malaria, 20% of child deaths in the hospital are from Malaria. Northern Uganda has an endemic of Malaria. Did you know that 658 Million US dollars are spent annually on Malaria (all the interventions.) Because the North is so high, they did IRS (Indoor Residual Insecticide Spraying), which cost 14.5 million! Since it is so expensive to do, only the North got IRS. IRS has to be sprayed every 4 to 6 months. The government only planned to do it 2 times because of the expense. The data that I collected shows a significant decrease in the Iceme area after IRS in Jan and June.

After Mbale I went to visit Linda in Soroti about 2 hours away for the weekend before heading back down to Lweza (6 hours away) for Train the Trainer workshop. We all have to attend if we are going to train the PCT's.

Then off to Gulu for another Peace camp meeting. I had been receiving alot of applications from the teens to go to the Peace camp. The applications are out for the Ugandan and PCVs who would like to help also. They went out this month.

So I was gone almost 2 1/2 weeks from Iceme this month...”I was lost,” they say.

August, I also was lost 2 1/2 weeks. I made a trip up to Gulu for a Peace Camp meeting....camp was getting closer (August 21-27, 2011) so the last minute details had to be worked out. Peace Camp was for war victims (abducted, defilement, physical abuse, raped, child soldiers, or saw their parents or brothers/sisters murdered) ages 15-19 years old. We decided to have the 4 tribes in Northern Uganda that were involved in the LRA (Lord’s Resistance Army) war to begin peace-building skills in order to establish and maintain a violence-free home and community. The Lango, Acholi, Teso and the Alur tribes participated. There were 4 of us PCV’s that were putting this together (Mary Beth, Me, Bina and Chelsea). You would be surprised, there is so much hostility between the tribes because they blame each other for the acts of violence on their tribe. Not just the LRA, but each other. You see, the youth were abducted and forced to go into the other tribes and kill. So this was really going to be a heavy camp and we were prepared for alot of PTSD. I am really proud of how the camp turned out and how the teens rose to the challenges of facing trauma and starting the act of forgiveness between each other. Yes, we did have a number of teens that had PTSD episodes. The week was geared towards ongoing healing, building on the theme of the day before, and ending with a celebration dance. It was a week long of 80 teens, divided into 8 groups of 10 with 1 Uganda Counselor and 1 PCV Counselor. We had lectures, lifeskills, drama, arts/crafts, a rope course nightly rituals, reflection time and sports. Prior to the camp each tribe met and practiced their traditional dance and song. Lango (my tribe), of course was the Best! Each tribe performed for their Cultural Leaders. Hopefully, I will be able to upload that video to facebook someday, also I plan to upload the slideshow that was made of the camp...it really was great! The teens are to go back to their villages and start a Peace Club. We will meet in Iceme next Monday night to start the first Peace Club. I had 88 applications for only 30 Lango teens for the Peace Camp. So it was really hard to tell the others that they had to wait for the Peace Club and could not go to the camp. All in all, the camp was a success, so the Peace Club should be able to benefit from the week at Camp!

Then I was off to Seeta (another 6 1/2 hours bus trip from Gulu) for the PC All Volunteer Conference, which was really inspiring. I was able to get some great ideas from volunteers about Income Generating Activities (IGA’s). Plus, I got to be with other PCV’s.

September. Next stop was Wakiso to train the Peace Corps Trainees (PCT) in Mental Health/Stress/Alcohol and Drugs with the Medical Team. Finally, I headed back to Iceme from Kampala on the 7th. It was not a good trip. I got on the bus at 7:30 am, but we did not leave until 9 am. Then it took us 2 hours to get just alittle outside of Kampala. We were close to Luwero when the bus broke down. We waited 3 hours for another to come and pick us up. But that was not the worst...when the bus came, everyone got up and started gathering their things. A 9 year old boy saw that the bus arrived and ran across the road and was hit by a car and died. It really was tragic. Please pray for the family, the mother had 3 other children with her.

I will go back to Wakiso around the 20th to teach the PCT’s Sex Assault with other PCVs and Medical. At the end of the month, PC will send 5 PCT’s to my site for me to work with them on Emersion Week. I have alot planned for them, but I was shocked when they told me that it was 5 people instead of 1 or 2! I reminded them that there are no hotels or restaurants here in Iceme! Anyway, during Emersion Week they see if they are going to like staying here in Uganda.

The US Embassy is hosting a 50th Celebration for the Peace Corps Volunteers next week in Kampala. However, I think that might be too much traveling for me, so I will not go. I did want to meet everyone at the Embassy though.

I found out that Healing Touch International published my article in the HTI Perspectives Newsletter about my classes earlier this year. I was so pleased and shared it with the new Country Director and Program Managers.

When I got back to Iceme this time, my counterpart did some work in my garden and planted some beans. YEA!

Do you know that fuel in Uganda now is 3900 UGX, which is about $2.00/gallon? That is alot for Uganda. Also, prices on food have skyrocketed. Inflation has gotten really bad here. The teachers wanted to strike because they are not getting paid enough, however Museveni said if they do not go to school they will get fired, so all the teachers are going in to school, but not teaching. Inflation really is getting bad here.

Well, this is long enough and I hope that I will do a better job updating my blog sooner in the future. Hopefully, I will be able to post the pictures that have not been posted yet. In the meantime, take care of yourselves and stay safe!

Love & Light,
Mari

My Return to Iceme, Uganda from South Africa

Dear Everyone,

Happy Mother’s Day to all you Mother’s! Hope your day was great!

I have not updated my blog in awhile...so this is a long message, but fills you in on everything up to date.

I arrived back in Kampala on April 28th and stayed there until May 4th when the PC drove me back to Iceme, Uganda. I really am so happy to be back and so glad I did not have to take the public transportation! I have been welcomed back with great enthusiasm by the Lango people. When you are gone for a while they have a saying that, “You were Lost.” Sometimes I feel that way. But I am getting back into the swing of things here after cleaning 2 inches of dirt from inside my home. With windows that don’t close all the way and open vents to the outside above the windows in my place, whenever there is dirt and dust flying around...it comes in and takes over!

Anyway, last week was busy. The Health Center worked with Health Alert and we had 80 people mobilized. It was great, I was able to counsel them on HIV/AIDS and then they got tested for HIV and along with another staff member I gave them their results. The next day I went with the Samaritan Health for Outreach in Aloni for HIV counseling and testing, the following day it was done at Iceme Subcounty. Uganda has a 6.4% prevalence rate for HIV and Northern Uganda is at 9%. When we did our HIV testing the first day 6% of the people were HIV positive and 5% the next day.

I still work with my counterpart on Immunizations both here at the center and Outreach. I start my HIV support group on the 18th and the War Victims group on the 26th. Iceme Secondary Girls School starts on the 23rd so I will start 2 nights/week teaching 60 girls each night Basic Life Skills. I am still working with other PCV’s on a Boy’s Camp, a Girl’s Camp and in Northern Uganda we are working on a Peace Camp for war victims. I also will continue to go on Outreach to the villages to follow up with patients that were admitted and also to do teaching and counseling.

I still have some secondary projects that I would like to work with and that is to bring more livestock to Northern Uganda. I need to meet with the Local Council 3 of Iceme and the Farmers Chairperson to fill out a proposal to submit to the Heifer International. I also want to write a grant for a computer, printer, internet airtime and a copier for the Health Center. There work would be so much more efficient and productive if they had computers. Then I will teach them computer skills. So I think I will have a full plate and will let you know how things progress.

When I was in SA I brought a projector to use with my HT Classes and the Basic Skills Class, but I also had planned to use it to show animated cartoon movies to the children at Iceme. Well, it has been GREAT! We have had many movie nights and they are so happy watching them. It really has been a highlight for me to watch their faces! The first week that I got back I was digging and making my garden. You see it is rainy season here now, so planting is a must if you want to eat! So you will see a picture of me gardening....don’t laugh...it really is hard work out there in the sun!

In the meantime, let me tell you alittle about South Africa and what I did! Previously, I told you about the Ukutula Lion’s Reserve, which I loved and was able to hold and feed Lion cubs. I also went to Pilanesberg National Park, the Elephant Sanctuary, Groenkloof National Reserve, Freedom Park in Pretoria and the Apartheid Museum in Jo’Burg. You may have seen the pictures already on my facebook.

The Pilanesberg Safari has all the Big Five of South Africa, which are the lion, elephant, rhino, buffalo and leopards. These animals were so named because they are said to be the most dangerous especially when hunted. Of them, the buffalo is said to be the most dangerous since he can slow his heart rate and you think he is dying but in the meantime, he is circling around to get you. We did not get to see all the Big Five because it rained and some of the roads were closed in the park. But the animals that we did see were: wildobeast sometimes called gnu, gazelle, antelope herd including the tsessesebe (fastest antelope in SA) and the hartabeast, kudu, elephant’s including an elephant they call “Steroid” who tips cars. We also saw giraffes, impalas (nicknamed McDonalds since they are seen everywhere and have a big M on their rear end), wart hogs, black back jackel, ostrich, New Guinea fowl, spring buck (distinctive white face & belly), eland (largest antelope in SA), water buck (white circle on their rear end), zebras, and baboons. We were told by the park ranger that we had just missed seeing the leopard.

The Elephant sanctuary was a unique experience of touching, feeding, walking and being kissed by a magnificent African elephant! You can see my kiss and the elephant actually sucks your entire half face when kissed!

Groenkloof National Reserve was a walk though nature. We were lucky enough to see and have a family of Zebra’s come up close to us while we were in the bush. You will also see them on facebook.

Freedom Park in Pretoria is a memorial to what South African’s have achieved as a nation. It serves as a beacon to guide a route of hope and patriotism to a proud united nation. It was built due to the necessity for the diverse people of South Africa and the world to understand and appreciate the country’s struggle for liberation. Freedom Park was born as a national and international icon of humanity and freedom. It is a South African tale in the voice of the South African people, using their unique culture, heritage, history and spirituality. It tells of the events that shaped their people and why they are who they are today. It really is a breathe taking park that gives honour with dignity to those who endured pain so that now people can experience the joy of freedom. It is designed with spiral paths, peaceful places, Walls of Names, Amphitheater, Sanctuary, Eternal Flame, Gallery of Leaders, Reeds, President’s Tree, Moshate (high-level hospitality suite used for presidential and diplomatic functions), Lesaka and boulders (symbolic resting place for the spirits of those who played a part in the struggles for humanity and freedom in SA), Lekgotla (semi-circular seating structure built around an Umlahlankosi tree), Water Points (cleansing and healing in many belief systems) and the Umlahlankosi trees. The Umlahlankosi trees symbolize one of the mediums through which the spirits of South African’s fallen heroes and heroines have been brought to Isivivane, a sacred space and spiritual resting place.

Apartheid Museum in Jo’Burg was also fascinating and a bonus was an exhibition celebrating the life of Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela. The Apartheid Museum is an award winning and internationally acclaimed museum. It is the journey and recounts the political upheavals beginning in the last century and moves on to the transition from a racist state. The Apartheid Museum brochure reads, “The path through the museum leads you on a journey beginning with segregation, the cornerstone of apartheid. It takes you back through the history of the myriad cultures converging during the pre-apartheid era. Through the years of race classification, the 150 acts of apartheid, detentions and the oppression of the nationalist regime. You will examine the rise of black consciousness, the armed struggle and finally witness the release of Nelson Mandela after 27 years of imprisonment which led to the final negotiations for peace.”

So I was very fortunate to be able to visit and experience some of the wealth and knowledge of South Africa during my stay. I have put pictures on facebook because it is too long to upload images onto Blog.

During my time in SA, Uganda PCV were put on Standfast and once when I got back to Uganda in Kampala. This was due to the riots in Kampala and all of us that were in Kampala at the time where picked up by the PC and taken to the PC Office, we stayed there all day. I am sure you have all heard this on the news. Just want to let you know that I am safe, but this is what they say is happening.

Ugandan opposition leader Kizza Besigye has been allegedly placed under house arrest after heavily-armed security officers surrounded his compound and prevented him from going to work or out to buy home essential items. He was blocked by police.

Besigye’s wife was blocked by police officers while going to the Entebbe International Airport, she was returning to work. She works with the UN in New York and was on her way back to duty. Her car was towed to the police station.

Kizza Besigye has been leading anti-government peaceful protests by a "walk to work" that urge people to leave their cars at home on Monday and Thursday’s to highlight soaring fuel and food prices. Fuel now in Uganda is 3300 USH, which is about $1.50 USDs/gallon. That is alot for Ugandans.

The protests in the Uganda have been met with opposition from the police. Anne Mugisha, Deputy Foreign Secretary of Besigye’s Forum for Democratic Change party (FDC) stated, "We consider Besigye under house arrest." According to the Reuter, “Anticipating another protest, a heavy contingent of police blocked the road to Besigye's house on Monday. However, Besigye had decided not to walk due to a ‘heavy flu.’ The protests started slowly but were boosted three weeks ago by the brutality of Besigye's fourth arrest since they began. His car was attacked by plainclothes men who smashed the windows with a gun and a hammer, doused him with pepper spray and hauled him onto a pick-up truck.

Riots erupted in Kampala and two other towns the following day as Besigye flew to Nairobi for treatment to eye injuries sustained from the pepper spray. At least nine unarmed people were shot dead by military police during the riots, according to Human Rights Watch.”

I found out that last week researchers announced that people with HIV can reduce the risk of infecting THEIR sex partners by more than 90 per cent if they start treatment with antiretroviral drugs when their immune system is still relatively healthy. The results were released early because of the significance of the findings. The research confirmed a belief held by many scientists and physicians — that starting drug therapy early can help to limit rates of transmission of the virus that causes Aids. This is great news for Ugandans....however, we do not even have the antiretroviral drugs to give to the very sick HIV/AIDS patients and that is a tragedy! There just is NO ARV drugs.

You may remember me telling you that my Supervisor, Sr. Gertrude was reassigned to a Hospital in Luwero. We got a message from the US Embassy stating, “May 14, 2011, the Uganda Ministry of Health confirmed that a 12-year-old girl who died on May 6 at Bombo Military Hospital, Luwero District (one hour north of Kampala) was infected with the Ebola virus. The Ministry of Health, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and international partners are investigating the case to determine the extent of the outbreak and if additional cases are present. As of now, there are no additional cases.”

This weekend we had the 100th celebration of the Catholic Faith, it was brought to Northern Uganda by the Camboni Fathers in Sudan. The faith has gotten very strong in Northern Uganda and there are over 4 million people out of 7 million in Uganda that are Catholic. But it was 100 years this year in the North, so the ArchDiocese of Gulu and the Diocese of Lira celebrated! President Museveni came to the ceremony and gave a speech and donated 10 million schillings to the Church. So you can imagine...yes the security was real tight! My camera was taken any from me so there are no pictures of President Museveni, but after he left I got some.

After 6 months, I just realized that I am still in PCU!!! At WLA VA I was in the Progressive Care Unit, always referred to as PCU. Now, I am in the Peace Corp Uganda also referred to as PCU. So everytime I see PCU, I think of the VA in LA.

All in all my recovery from gallbladder surgery was a relaxing, healing, fun time! I am all healed and now back in the bush! So I will keep you posted.

Stay safe and take care!

Love & Light,

Mari

My Travel to South Africa

1st HTI Level 1 Class in Uganda Utukula Lion Reserve Bengal Tiger

Dear Everyone,

Well, I had the opportunity to be able to travel to Johannesburg, South Africa on March 15th on medevac business. I flew Kenya Airways from Entebbe to Nairobi (1 hour 10 min flight), then from Nairobi to Johannesburg (4 hours 10 min flight). Not sure how long I will be here, however my airline ticket is for 2 weeks, which may or may not change on either side. I had some down time during my travels, so let me tell you what I did!

Prior to boarding the plane in Entebbe, I was in Kampala and met this women who was a retired teacher from Chicago. She was traveling by herself and had gone to Kenya and Tanzania and now was exploring Uganda. I really could not believe all she had accomplished by herself! She spent 2 weeks in each place and then she was meeting up with a church group and continuing with them. She actually was scouting out areas and looking for an NGO to work with for 1 year. I thought that was amazing because you really have to know local people to get things accomplished here.

Not like the airlines in the states...we got breakfast and lunch on the plane...without fees! When I arrived in Johannesburg I had to change US dollars into Rand. It is 1 US dollar/6.700 Rand. Then I was picked up at the airport by the PC vehicle and taken to the Peace Corps office in Pretoria, the PC Medical Headquarters for all of Africa. Pretoria is the capital of South Africa and the accommodations are really nice. South Africa is nothing like Uganda! It is built up and has some of the state of the art hospitals, alot like the US hospitals. Well, the first Heart Transplant was done in SA! Anyway, you can buy just about anything you want in South Africa at reasonable prices. Basically, I would compare it to Washington, DC in the US.

During some of the downtime between my test, I am having FUN!!!! It is like I am back in the states with everything! Even food! However, the different is in the medical care. Here you do not wait for any test, you get it that day and the results that day; in fact they give the results within 30 minutes of your scan/MRI etc. to the patient. Which is Great! America could learn from SA on health care, also, there really is no waiting at MD offices.

So while we were in the process of decisions, I went to the Opera and saw “Carmen,” and that really was a great production! I went to the Lion Reserve, “Utukula,” with 4 of the other PCVs that were Medevac’d from Zambia, Rwanda, Morocco and Swaziland. It was great, You can pet lion baby cubs, feed them with a bottle...I Loved it! I also petted a grown Cheetah! There were Lions, tigers, bengal tigers and white lions all there it was great. Some of you said when I put pictures up on facebook that I had on lipstick. Yes, I still wear lipstick, even in Uganda because that is the best thing that protects your lips! Also, yes, while I was here in South Africa I did do my hair! Also, another question I got on facebook was the houses in Uganda, where they all made of concrete? The majority of homes are huts, but at the Health Center and the Staff quarters they are a type of concrete, but not the concrete we have in the US. It still burns if the fires come up, but less likely and we have tin roofs.

I want to do a few more things while I am here in South Africa before going back to Uganda, like go see a Professional Soccer or Rugby game here at the stadium, go to the Museum in Jo’burg, and go on a safari. Don’t know if I can do all that, because per diem is not much and I can not use shillings here or exchange them...which is strange. Money is all in Rand.

I will also put some pictures on facebook when I went to the Entebbe zoo in Uganda. I was there for a Girls and Boys Camp meeting in February...you will even see me on a Camel!

Updated April 8, 2011

I really can not wait to get back to Uganda, because in April I start teaching Basic Life Skills to the Iceme Secondary girls school 2 x’s per week, about 120 girls. Also, I start my two support groups for War Victims and HIV/AIDS patients and I will be going out into the community more for HIV testing and counseling...so I really want to get back. In February and in March, I taught 2 Healing Touch International Level 1 classes to the staff in Iceme and want to also start a practice group. I am working on the Girls Camp and the Boy’s Camp committees (2 separate camps) for youth development and empowerment. Also, we are starting a Peace Camp in the North, which I am on. I was suppose to teach the new group of volunteers that came in February about Depression on April 4th, but I did not get back. I also missed the PC 50th Anniversary celebration on April 1st. But, I have alot in the works that I want to get back to work on. However, some of the work I am able to do via email which is great. I had my surgery on April 5th, so I should be getting back to Iceme, Uganda after recovering in about 2 or 3 weeks.

Where I am staying at the “Rose” is absolutely gorgeous!, it has a pool, beautiful lush greenery, my own room with this large old fashion time tub, electricity, running water of course with a sink and toilet! We get this magnificence breakfast. I am getting spoiled! The streets look like a High End street in the states. Trees line the streets and they overlap into the middle. I am told that in May the trees are all bloomed with purple flowers and they say it is breathtaking. It is really beautiful and lush even now without the blooms. PC has all the PCVs from all over Africa that are Medevec’d staying at “The Rose” guesthouse. I will put pictures up on facebook as soon as I can. So I get to meet volunteers and find out about their countries PC policies, which are different in each country depending on the Country Director and Staff. Anyway, just wanted to touch base with you all and let you know I am in Great hands here and really in a great place!

Stay safe and Take Care!

Love & Light,
Mari

Uganda Presidential Elections

Hello, February has been quite a month! First I want to wish everyone a Happy Valentine's Day and St. Patrick's Day!!! I started off the month of February getting back into my routine. When I arrived home from IST in January my home had about an inch of dust everywhere and that took me a while to clean it up. We were told at IST that we were expected to have the a drill of the emergency activation plan the first of February and that one region would actually evacuate during the drill. We had the drill the end of January and the first of February. My region did not have to evacute and the drill went well as planned. So we were on Standfast in an alert situation from February 11th to the 25th. Elections were held on February 18th. During elections all text and some phone communication was cut off, but not much violence. The opinion poll suggested that President Museveni was the favourite candidate with Kizza Besigye in second. Ugandans felt like they could not talk reely about politics. Museveni hired alot of Police to cover the elections. TNS Research International, a polling firm with vast local and international experience did a survey and 65% stated that they always and often have to be careful about what they say about politics. The fear factor is has spread across all four regions of the country but the highest in the central region. 65% say they fear becoming victims of political violence or intimidation. The fear was highest in northern Ugand, which is only emerging from two decades of the LRA insurgency, and was lowest in Western Uganda. What was interesting was that after all the voting...the votes were counted right at the polling stations and the totals were then called in. However, some of the polling stations could not communicate there scores because the phones were blocked. So they said that President Museveni had the majority of votes and won, until they found out about Kizza Besigye and the polls that finally reported when the lines were opened back up. Then Kizza Besigye had the most votes, so now it has to be decided in the court system. The county is really on hold right now until the courts make a decision. Depending on the decision, we may or may not have violence. It is said that Museveni has 45% of the votes and Besigye has 47% of the votes. So maybe in a year when it is finally heard in court, we will find out. Until then Museveni will be President. But elections were very interesting to be present for! So we were on Standfast for 2 weeks, which meant that we were not allowed to leave our sites and travel. But right before standfast, the volunteers in the North went to Loro to meet up with other volunteers for an overnight visit. Don't know what happened to me, but I got a stomach virus or something and laid on the sofa all night..Oh the joys of Life! I have been very busy working on the action plan at Iceme. I was told during IST that my Supervisor was going to be transferred to a Health Center IV outside of Kampala and that I will be getting a new Supervisor. Sr. Gretrude will be missed alot, she pretty much ran Iceme Health Center III. Before she left I was able to teach 2 classes at the HC to the staff in Healing Touch International Level 1 classes! The first for Northern Africa and the first in Uganda! They LOVED learning Healing Touch and I think that they will really use it frequently. I want to Thank Healing Touch International for all their support, energy and prayers in getting HTI started in Uganda. South Africa has taught alot of people already in Healing Touch International. This is going to be great for the staff, they will be able to assist with pain management as well as many other problems. I also taught a Basic Life Skills class at Iceme Secondary Girls School with Thomas on STD's. There was about 100 plus girls and they were all so interested in the power point. I know that they got alot out of that class. Later in March I will be going to Entebbe for a meeting to organize a Boy's Camp and a Girl's Camp. We are also organizing a Peace Camp in the North, which I will go to Gulu for. I am still teaching basic computer skills to some of the staff at Iceme. I have set up a date for the War and HIV/AIDS support groups and Sr. announce it at the Church. That is the main communication for the community. I will start that the first of April. I have worked really hard cleaning the room I will be using for my office and the support groups and I am having the carpenter make a desk for me. Also, I met up with one of the community workers and we have set up times to go out into the community for HIV testing and counseling. So everything is in the planning stages, so I am excited to get started with alot of the projects. Well, I think that I have updated you in all I know so far and hopefully I will be able to upload pictures soon. Take Care and Stay Safe, Love & Light, Mari

Back at Iceme Health Center

Lake Victoria Nile River

Artwork from Jinja

I was at IST from the 11th though the 22nd. Training was great and those 11 days spoiled me again. We had plenty of food, warm showers, laundry service, a pool and the hotel had entertainment. So it was pretty nice to say the least! Plus, it was a bonus to be able to see all 45 of us again. Everyone really looks great with alittle weight loss and they are happy! IST was very productive, everyone worked on a project for implementation at their sites. Sr. Gertrude, my supervisor and I worked on Staff Morale as our project. I found out that Sr. will be reassigned from Iceme Health Center to another HC about 3 hours away. So my 3 month plan, my secondary projects and the new project will all have to be reviewed again. However, we will be able to implement a large part of the plans and projects before she leave in March.

We heard that there is another set of Peace Corps Trainees coming in February and that class is 45 as well. They are Educators this time.

After training 35 of us went White water rafting in the Nile River and it was really FUN! We all had a great time. I am sure you have seen some of the pictures on everyone’s facebook and blogs. I put some on facebook as well. We had a dinner cruise down the Nile and into Lake Victoria. It was really relaxing and fun! I am sure that you have heard and seen pictures that were posted as the “booze cruise,” but really was a dinner cruise. No one really overindulged because the next morning we were out on the Class 2,3,4, and 5 rapids. It was great with 12 rapids. Yes, my boat flipped 2 times, both with a class 4. We really were safe with all the kayakers watching each boat and with the life vest we knew if we waited a while our heads would pop up when we went under! Until one rapid, when my head tried to pop up, I realized that I was trapped under a rock! Yes, you are right, I was down for a while and not sure if I could hold my breathe any longer .... when I walked my hands out from under the rock and then realized I was under the flipped boat! Just needed to hold my breathe alittle longer. When I did come up my guide was frantic looking for me. Rafting is really much more FUN when you are able to stay in the boat! But we really had a great time.

Peace Corps Uganda is gearing up for the upcoming elections! PCV will be on Stand-fast as of 2/11 and remain on stand-fast until 2/23. That way if any riots start or they need to evacuate us they know where we are. The Ugandan government has also hire a ton of extra police to parole and show force in numbers during the elections. We will have no problems up here in the North...I am sure. Kampala is off limits the whole month of February except for Medical problems and that has to be approved before travel. Elections are February 18th. The new group of PCT’s coming in will not be staying with Homestay families and will not be in Kampala or Wakiso. We have 5 PCV’s from Uganda that were vacationing in Egypt, they are all at the airport in Cairo waiting to be air lifted with all the other Americans. They are safe.

The bus ride back to Aboke is 5 1/2 hours, then I have another 45 minutes to Iceme. Now, that I am back at Iceme, I can regroup and start focusing on my work here. It will be at least 6 months until we all get together again for training...so by then I will be ready for another mini vacation. In a way, I feel so blessed to be able to have a break and time away. The people here are in the community to stay. I have realized since I have been back that even though I have no water or electricity, I have everything else I need and more. Yes, it is challenging at times, but nothing like the people here. They face those challenges everyday with no breaks. Let me just give an example of one day’s daily routine at life here. For instance, my neighbor gets up around 6:30 am and I hear the ax chopping the tree for wood to start a fire just to cook breakfast. The dirt around the house needs to be swept next. After her family eats breakfast, she goes to the water tanks or borehole to fetch a 20 liter jerry can of water (which she carries on her head while walking anywhere from a block to 1/2 mile). Then she would wash dishes and start on washing cloths to hang out to dry for the day. Now she can get really for work, which entails a cold bucket bath! She would then need to leave work around 11-11:30 am to start the fire for lunch, goes back to work while the food is cooking and returns to eat around 1 pm. Back to work until about 5 pm when she returns home again to start the fire to cook dinner, she puts dinner on and goes back to work. She will leave to eat around 6:30 pm before it gets dark. Dishes are washed outside with cool water over the trash pit. She returns to work until around 8 pm when her replacement comes in. Because she has children to feed, she does this day in and day out. Her days off, she will prepare the garden and food that requires, peeling, drying, soaking etc. It seems to be endless and it is not even planting season yet! You have to sweep the yard and homes twice a day because of all the dust. You are continuously cleaning.

Then when you have a family member admitted to the Health Center, it consumes all of your time. You have to make their food for them for all their meals, and sanitize their water, just like you would at home. Patients have to bring there own food, cooking equipment, jerry cans, water, sheets and wash basins. If the patient is there for a while they wash the cloths and sheets and hang them on the line. The Health Center is filled to capacity with mainly children, but with adults as well. It is impossible to keep the Health Centers clean with all the dust.

We have 5 burn patients and I mean 30-50% of their bodies; they are in so much pain and keeping the dust off their wounds is extremely hard. The pain they endure and conditions these people live in all the time is unbelievable to me. When I look at them, I think of all the pain medication that could be given to them in the states and here they get Ibuprofen maybe twice a day. Since we have 5 patients needing pain meds, we will run out soon and it really does not even touch their pain levels. There is alot of epigastric pain here, it would not be a surprised if they didn’t have gastric ulcers as well. Not much in the way of antacids here. So this is just a snap shot of some of the challenges that the people in a third world country endure.

Raining season here is suppose to start in March and April, so they plant in February. Well, no one has planted yet and the rainy season may be coming early this year. It rained last night and it rained today. Hopefully, this is just a few rain storms because of the heat, otherwise hungry season will come early. Normally, hungry season is in June and July, no crops or food to vest.

I may have mentioned some of my projects that I will be working on for the next 3 months, but here they are again: Set up weekly support groups for war torn victims and a weekly support group for HIV/AIDS patients; Community Outreach teaching 3 x/week and home visits; outreach immunizations and HIV testing; teach HTI Level I class to the HC staff; work with the water committee for Bolehole repair; teach Life Skills at the secondary girls school; write grants for funding for a new ambulance (the HC does not have a functioning ambulance); write proposal to the Bishop to see if Father or Sister could come to the US for Catholic relief funds; meet with the farming committee to complete proposal to request for livestock; continue to study Lango language; teach computer skills to staff at Iceme; continue with Health Center patient assessment/observation and staff morale project. Also, I hope to plant a my permagarden next month, if I can get fencing....animals eat everything and walk though everything here!

I will keep you posted on what gets accomplished! This will keep me busy I think!

I worked for the government before, so I know the paperwork...but I just finished the PCV Trimester Report. It is computerized and extremely extensive...Boy Washington wants to know when, where, who, what and why everyday as well as how many people were along the way!

Well, I think I have updated you all on everything!

Until next time, Stay safe!

Love & Light,

Mari

Mini Vacation

I hope everyone had a great Christmas Holiday and a safe Happy New Year! I want to Thank everyone for the good wishes and prayers that you have sent my way...it really means alot!

Christmas in Africa is so different from the States! There is really no Christmas hipe, you hear the Langi people playing the radio and occasionally you hear christmas music that you hear in the states. But it is not all the time. No one really decorates for Christmas. Even when you go into a big town, you see no decorations or signs of Christmas. I saw my first Christmas tree in Uganda when I went to Kampala. I only saw 3 and they were being sold walking up and down the streets as the cars stopped. The guy was holding them up in his hand...it really was funny. The tree was fake, sparse and only about 3 foot (it looked like a Charlie Brown Christmas tree, only small). Even though there are no decorations and santa does not come, the spirit of Christmas was still alive in their hearts. People always wishing you a "Happy" Christmas and a Blessed New Year. The church has a nativity scene with lights around it, but no trees, greenery or decorations. The boys that live next door to me got a little mobile car toy that was made from clips and ties (see above) and they play with the toy all the time.

I can really see now how commercialized Christmas is in America, we go overboard. I really Love a real Christmas tree, the smell of the evergreen, the lights and the warm feeling of home at Christmas. Maybe if we cut down on all the other expectations in America, people would not be so stressed at Christmas and could enjoy friends and family more.

I really had a wonderful mini vacation for Christmas. Kampala was off limits for safety to PCV because of the violence and robberies. So I had to take special measures when I went to Jan’s house. Shelley, Linda and I went to Kampala and stayed with Jan at her house for Christmas. Jan is the Associate County Director, so her home was extremely safe...she has a gated yard and guards around her house that patrol the yard every 1 hour! I was also spoiled with a warm shower, washer and dryer, electricity and internet access. We made American food and had real cheese! I got to wear shorts and tank tops! So it was really nice. Then we went to Jinja for 4 nights at a hotel that was established by people from Amsterdam. It really catered to Europeans, it was detailed in every way! I felt like I was in the Caribbean! We again had a warm shower, pool, good American food, massages...it was really 4 days for Self-Care!

I arrived back in Iceme and brought in the New Years quietly asleep in my bed. New Years day I went to Ngetta in Lira with the Sisters. One of the young novice Sisters that I meet in Iceme when I first got there was being consecrated as a Nun into the Order of Mary Mother of the Church. It was the first consecration celebration I have ever been to in my Life! Not only were some of the Sister saying their first vows, but there were also sisters celebrating their 25th Anniversary in Religious life. Wow, it is something to see. There were 3 Bishops and 54 Priest and of course all the Nuns from all around Uganda, families and friends. They had an outdoor Mass and during the Mass the novice nuns were brought up the the altar and the parents gave the girls to the church, like in a wedding ceremony. After Mass they had a hugh catering of food and entertainment. I will also try to put those pictures on facebook when I can get better internet access. It was an all day event and pretty interesting. They had a program that included Part I and Part II; Mass, welcoming remarks and speeches from the LCs, Chaplain’s, a member of Parliament and the Superior General, cutting of the cake (which there were 10 cakes stacked up on a rack), presentation of gifts, entertainment and lunch. (I have put pictures and a video of the Dancers on facebook).

Now that the holidays are over, people are getting back to there routines. In Iceme they are preparing to spray all the homes inside and outside with FICAM (Bendiocarb) to stop the spread of Malaria. We had alot of patients admitted to the Health Center over the Christmas/New Years season with Malaria, Typhoid and diarrhea. So it looks like when I come back from In-Service Training (IST) there is a hugh need for education in the villages. CDC released the report that the disease that took the lives of 46 people in the North was Yellow Fever. Good thing I had that vaccine!

I just finished my action plan for the next 3 months with my supervisor...and boy I hope that I can do everything! It includes starting support groups for war torn victims, and one for HIV/AIDS, getting the proposal together for livestock, getting the water borehole fixed, education at village homes, follow up with patients that were admitted to the Health Center (HC) at their village home, assessment of patients admitted to the HC, teaching Healing Touch to the HC staff and other things.

I leave for Seeta for the PC IST on the 9th and that will end on the 22nd. PC will have our Supervisors come to Seeta for training from the 17th to the 22nd. The training will be on Project Development and Implementation, and Life Skills training. Life Skills training will include Behavior change modifications. It will be good to see everyone again. On the 22nd I will go with the other volunteers to Jinja to do white water rafting in the Nile River before I go back to Iceme on the 25th.

Well, I think that is all I have for now. I will try to put as many pictures as I can on facebook.

I wish you all a healthy, happy year ahead.

Take Care and Stay healthy and safe!

Love & Light,

Mari