Summer 09 in Sierra Leone
07/08/09 13:03 Filed in: Journal
Hi all!
We are in Sierra Leone, having arrived July 28th. We spent a few days in Freetown, visiting the Minister of Health and Sanitation, the Minister of Finance, and the head of the Sierra Leone Association of NGOs. We got our supplies and headed upcountry on August 2nd. That was a day later than we planned, because our vehicle has a cracked block, and it took an extra day to find a suitable vehicle for the trip.
We held our first annual MOMS’ TBA Jamboree, and it was well-received. We learned some awkward lessons about planning a large event like this from a distance. Next year, we’ll make some changes and learn some new lessons!
We visited the site of our proposed next cohort, in a village called Ngolahun (pronounced something vaguely like “go-lown”, rhyming with down). The village greeted us warmly and committed to participating in the full program of training and community development. Over 150 adults and uncountable children attended the meeting where we discussed the needs and our solution. Then the community presented us with a goat, several kilos of rice, and armsful of plantains. After lunch, we toured the current birth hut, and I did a neonatal exam on a 7-hour old baby. For my small effort, the child was named Patricia Jebbeh! She looks strong and healthy. I encouraged her mother to breastfeed only and often, and to rest. From there, we toured the site where they want our help in building a maternity clinic. All looked positive, and we will apply with them for a grant for the first phase of the building, conducting the initial training, and providing the basic supplies needed.
Now we are back in Daru, preparing to conduct the continuing education program this group needs. We’ll discuss effective planning techniques, project management, intermediate anatomy and physiology, intermediate nutrition, peer review, and a few other topics. On the 15th, we’ll go to Jokibu to spend a week with them, doing similar continuing education, and on to Pellie on the 22nd.
Of course all this travel depends on our ability to get a functioning vehicle. We had to send our rental back to Freetown today, after we learned that the owner planned to charge us $200 per day! We definitely cannot afford that, so we are, for the moment, stranded.
We’ll head back to Freetown on the 28th, and catch a flight home on September 1st, arriving sometime on the 2nd. We’ll rest for a few days, then back to work raising money.
Well, if you are reading this, you know that the attempt to upload this was successful. It is a little surreal, sitting in the jungle while listening to people singing with the accompaniment of rattles and drums, and to the roar of the generator, and to the pounding of rain on the zinc roof, using my Apple computer on dial-up!
I’ve also been trying to update our Causes site on Facebook, so you can check there, too. Please email us (no attachments) and we’ll respond as soon as we can.
Trish
We are in Sierra Leone, having arrived July 28th. We spent a few days in Freetown, visiting the Minister of Health and Sanitation, the Minister of Finance, and the head of the Sierra Leone Association of NGOs. We got our supplies and headed upcountry on August 2nd. That was a day later than we planned, because our vehicle has a cracked block, and it took an extra day to find a suitable vehicle for the trip.
We held our first annual MOMS’ TBA Jamboree, and it was well-received. We learned some awkward lessons about planning a large event like this from a distance. Next year, we’ll make some changes and learn some new lessons!
We visited the site of our proposed next cohort, in a village called Ngolahun (pronounced something vaguely like “go-lown”, rhyming with down). The village greeted us warmly and committed to participating in the full program of training and community development. Over 150 adults and uncountable children attended the meeting where we discussed the needs and our solution. Then the community presented us with a goat, several kilos of rice, and armsful of plantains. After lunch, we toured the current birth hut, and I did a neonatal exam on a 7-hour old baby. For my small effort, the child was named Patricia Jebbeh! She looks strong and healthy. I encouraged her mother to breastfeed only and often, and to rest. From there, we toured the site where they want our help in building a maternity clinic. All looked positive, and we will apply with them for a grant for the first phase of the building, conducting the initial training, and providing the basic supplies needed.
Now we are back in Daru, preparing to conduct the continuing education program this group needs. We’ll discuss effective planning techniques, project management, intermediate anatomy and physiology, intermediate nutrition, peer review, and a few other topics. On the 15th, we’ll go to Jokibu to spend a week with them, doing similar continuing education, and on to Pellie on the 22nd.
Of course all this travel depends on our ability to get a functioning vehicle. We had to send our rental back to Freetown today, after we learned that the owner planned to charge us $200 per day! We definitely cannot afford that, so we are, for the moment, stranded.
We’ll head back to Freetown on the 28th, and catch a flight home on September 1st, arriving sometime on the 2nd. We’ll rest for a few days, then back to work raising money.
Well, if you are reading this, you know that the attempt to upload this was successful. It is a little surreal, sitting in the jungle while listening to people singing with the accompaniment of rattles and drums, and to the roar of the generator, and to the pounding of rain on the zinc roof, using my Apple computer on dial-up!
I’ve also been trying to update our Causes site on Facebook, so you can check there, too. Please email us (no attachments) and we’ll respond as soon as we can.
Trish