Here is the official DVD put out by HELP-International. Anyone who is wondering who HELP is will get a good feel by watching this short video and a good understanding of a few of the projects we will be doing even though there are quite a few more we will be doing this summer once we get in country.
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
A taste of my upcoming summer
Here is a video put together from last years team. They were located in the same village that I will be in which is Lugazi, a small sugarcane village. Near the beginning of the video you will see a house with a gate around it, that is the house my team and I will be living in. Here is just a little taste of what my summer will be like, I can't wait!
Just copy and paste this link, there maybe a way to actually put this video on my page, but I'm new to the world of blogging and I haven't figured it out yet. If you know how, let me know :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwWJNTw8Klk
Just copy and paste this link, there maybe a way to actually put this video on my page, but I'm new to the world of blogging and I haven't figured it out yet. If you know how, let me know :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwWJNTw8Klk
It's been a bumpy road . . .
It's been an interesting juggling act trying to get ready for Uganda this summer, keeping up with school, and dealing with some medical problems that have come up recently. Over the past few weeks I have had a few medical scares that made getting ready for this summer a very rocky roller coaster. At times I thought that I would not be able to go, other days I was told that I could. It was really difficult for me to not know what was going on, to never have a sure answer from my doctors. But then I remembered the most important thing. I had already received my answer months ago. When I originally contemplated going to serve the people of Uganda I prayed about going and my answer was a very firm "Yes." My parents received the same confirmation. Through the tough times of the past few weeks it has been a faith building experience for me to rely on my answer to prayer rather than the 'arm of flesh' or simply the unreliable answers of medical doctors, which in my case were changing every day.
Every day my desire to be with the people of Uganda grows and grows and my faith in what we are going to be doing strengthens. I already have developed such a love for these wonderful children of God, I cannot wait to actually meet them face to face and serve them for three months. Originally the trip was to be four months, but these medical circumstances have changed that and it has been shortened to three. But that just strengthens my desire and drive to make those three months count and work as hard as possible to accomplish as much good as possible while there.
The main goal of HELP International is to empower the people so that when we leave they are able to continue doing on their own the things we taught them. I know this will be an amazing experience for myself personally, but even more than that, I hope that I can at least help in the life of someone in need in Uganda and be of service to one of God's beloved children in need.
Every day my desire to be with the people of Uganda grows and grows and my faith in what we are going to be doing strengthens. I already have developed such a love for these wonderful children of God, I cannot wait to actually meet them face to face and serve them for three months. Originally the trip was to be four months, but these medical circumstances have changed that and it has been shortened to three. But that just strengthens my desire and drive to make those three months count and work as hard as possible to accomplish as much good as possible while there.
The main goal of HELP International is to empower the people so that when we leave they are able to continue doing on their own the things we taught them. I know this will be an amazing experience for myself personally, but even more than that, I hope that I can at least help in the life of someone in need in Uganda and be of service to one of God's beloved children in need.
Monday, March 9, 2009
The Training Begins
Oli Otya! (Hello!)
This past Saturday marks the first day of training. I went through 9 (long, but interesting) hours of training. The first set was Program Planning and Implementation and the second was Orphanage and Recreational Therapy Training. I learned quite a few things that really got me excited, some that got be nervous, and some that really just touched my heart. The school that I will most likely be working in in Lugazi, Uganda houses over 900 children, orphans, AIDs victims, and disabled individuals of any age. This was a situation I was not prepared for and am glad that I learned about before I got in country. Hearing the stories of some of the children there was so touching and broke my heart.
We aren't able to really plan our projects until we get in country. Once we get to Uganda we will spend the first week going into the villages of Lugazi and other surrounding villages and doing problem assesments and just talking to the people as well as our partners there in an attempt to find out what we can best do to help the people in the short 4 months that we are there. While that 4 months seems like a long time to us, it is not long enough. I hope that we will be able to a great work there that will really help the people be more independent and that what we do is what the people really want, not just what we think they need. That is exactly why we really get to TALK to the people and have them help us with the projects and work side by side.
The rest of this month is full of training sessions and meetings in attempts to prepare for the trip of a lifetime. Along with all of that I still have to balance school and attempt to mantain a semi-normal life. We'll see how that goes. But I can't wait for the chance to be with the people of Uganda.
Mweraba! (Goodbye!)
This past Saturday marks the first day of training. I went through 9 (long, but interesting) hours of training. The first set was Program Planning and Implementation and the second was Orphanage and Recreational Therapy Training. I learned quite a few things that really got me excited, some that got be nervous, and some that really just touched my heart. The school that I will most likely be working in in Lugazi, Uganda houses over 900 children, orphans, AIDs victims, and disabled individuals of any age. This was a situation I was not prepared for and am glad that I learned about before I got in country. Hearing the stories of some of the children there was so touching and broke my heart.
We aren't able to really plan our projects until we get in country. Once we get to Uganda we will spend the first week going into the villages of Lugazi and other surrounding villages and doing problem assesments and just talking to the people as well as our partners there in an attempt to find out what we can best do to help the people in the short 4 months that we are there. While that 4 months seems like a long time to us, it is not long enough. I hope that we will be able to a great work there that will really help the people be more independent and that what we do is what the people really want, not just what we think they need. That is exactly why we really get to TALK to the people and have them help us with the projects and work side by side.
The rest of this month is full of training sessions and meetings in attempts to prepare for the trip of a lifetime. Along with all of that I still have to balance school and attempt to mantain a semi-normal life. We'll see how that goes. But I can't wait for the chance to be with the people of Uganda.
Mweraba! (Goodbye!)
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