As most of you know, Chris and I have spent the past 6 weeks in Italy and the UK seeing many cathedrals and castles as well as catching up with lots of family members. Chris went home on Thursday :( and I will be on a plane this time tomorrow heading to Uganda.
Plans have changed since I left Vancouver...I was supposed to be going to an orphanage called Kinship House where I was going to teach at the primary school in the village but a week ago I received an e-mail from kids worldwide (the organization that sets up the volunteering) saying that they had decided to "withdraw support from Kinship house due to a lack of financial accountability as well as strained relationships between the director and the volunteers". Although I was completely shocked when I found out, I finally decided that it is probably for the best. When you are investing so much time and energy into something like this I wouldnt want it to be ruined by a shady director.
So the new place I'm going to is called Uganda Rural Fund (URF). It is based in Masaka which is fairly close to the Tanzanian border and as many people have told me supposed to be an incredibly beautiful district! What will I be doing there??? Well I guess we'll find out soon. But from what I've been told and what is posted on the website, URF helps co-ordinate and run several different programs such as an orphanage, a women's empowerment group, after school lessons for child-headed families (families that have no parents and the oldest child, usually a young teenager, is in charge), feeding animals (I think they have a some pigs) and gardening. Most exciting is that a couple months ago (in May) they opened a secondary school and I can do some teaching there!!!
From my understanding, all children in Uganda are given a primary school education, but only those who can afford a secondary education get one. (not only because you usually have to pay fees, but also because they often can't afford the time which could be spent working). This leaves many children with only a grade 6 level education. The school they have opened called Hope Academy. Although it is just in its beginning stages it has about 40 students, half of which are orphans or returning drop outs.
So tomorrow evening I'll be getting on my air Emirates flight to Dubai (7 hrs) and then another 7 hours to Entebbe (2:45pm local time). GROSS! Hopefully I can sleep most of the way. A friend of Papa's from Kampala will meet me at the airport (which I am really grateful for) and then I will return to the airport at 8pm that night to meet Daniel (another volunteer from Alabama) who will be arriving that night. We are both spending the night in Kampala with Delia and then Fred or Adrian (project co-ordinators) will take us to Masaka where we will be staying at a family (the Waliggo's) house. A bunch of other volunteers will come later.
Alright, think thats a pretty good intro to what's going on. I am so excited...kinda feel like puking, but that might just be the malaria tablets. For those of you wondering, I still don't really know how long I'll be away. To be perfectly honest, I don't know how I'm going to cope with the huge change in, well, everything. I know that I am going to be open minded and try to be as flexible as possible. Maybe I'll see you all in a month, maybe a year. Who knows?!? I kinda like the flexibility.
I know how hard it can be to keep in touch, but I get so happy when I have emails in my inbox and even more excited when they're not airmiles updates!! I will have a cell phone number once I arrive, and if anyone wants to write me a REAL letter (remember those) there is even an address you can send it to! I dont know how long it will take, but I sure am curious to find out.
c/oThe Waliggo Family
Kyetume, Kyawagonya-Lwengo.
35KM Masaka - Mbarara Road
Masaka, Uganda.
P.O.Box 1220 Masaka.
Thank you everyone for your support, thoughts and prayers. Wish me luck!
Missy
xoxo
