Sorry it's been a while. My life starts to feel so normal here that I don't register change as much. I forget not everyone lives on a Caribbean island. Fortunately, one of my New Year's Resolutions is to update more often. And take more pictures. Happy New Year!
I just returned from a 3 week vacation in the US. I visited a bunch of cities(Kansas City, Houston, St. Augustine), ate tons of delicious food and went into total sensory overload in places like Target and Wal-Mart. The superstores in Kingstown take up about 500 sq feet, smell like moth balls and sell everything from flip flops to matresses, but they just don't compare. It was a complete whirlwind of a vacation and I was surprised at how quickly I re-adapted to America. To be honest, it was hard to come back to SVG, but my first day back, several of my neighbors and friends stopped by to chat and hang out on my porch, and I remembered why I like it here. Even without a Target.
School starts back on Monday. It's the dreaded "Sports Term," which, you may recall is about as conducive to learning as cartoons. There will be lots of missed school over the next 2 1/2 months, but at least the students will be getting some exercise. My schedule looks about the same - reading classes, music classes and after school tutoring. I might throw in some chemistry, but I have to talk to the teacher first. This week, we have a couple of teacher planning days and grades are given out, so I still have some desperately needed time to transition from 'vacation mode' to 'work mode.'
Let me backtrack a bit. In December, another Peace Corps volunteer, a local volunteer and I took 5 Vincentian students (aged 10 - 17)to a running event in Barbados, Run Barbados (clever name)! We'd been planning the event for months, but it definately came together at the last minute. Our funding proposal was accepted about 1 1/2 weeks before the event, so you can imagine how hectic that time was (buying plane tickets, getting passports, reserving hotels, registering for the race, etc!). We made it and it was an absolutely incredible experience for everyone. We were so happy to get the opportunity to introduce the students to another culture, and even happier to do it in a way that played to their strengths (running). Three of the five hadn't travelled outside of SVG, so it was neat to watch their reaction to things we consider ordinary, like malls and movie theaters and swimming pools. We all competed in the 10K race on Saturday, December 5th. I finished in 1 hour and 42 seconds, and our oldest student, Linda, WON the race for her age group! The whole group did really well and had a lot of fun!
In other news, the Great Peace Corps Read is still going strong. I just finished "The Geography of Bliss," by Eric Weiner, which I highly recommend and "Snow," by Orhan Pamuk, which I don't (unless you're into slow reads). Next up: "The Winemaker's Daughter," by Timothy Egan, followed by "Memoirs of a Geisha," by Arthur Golden. Read any good books lately? I'm open to suggestions, assuming we have it in the Peace Corps library.
That's all for now. If you trust me to keep my resolutions, you should hear from me again in about a month.
3 years ago
2 comments:
Shelby:
I am COO of Water Charity, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that does water, sanitation, and public health projects worldwide. In July, 2009, we started our Appropriate Projects initiative to fund small water and sanitation projects very quickly. Applicants are limited to Peace Corps Volunteers, Returned Peace Corps Volunteers, and Peace Corps Response Volunteers.
I am a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer (Bolivia ’66-’68), and am well aware of the difficulties Volunteers face in the field. Appropriate Projects is an addition to our regular Water Charity model that is allowing us to provide project resources to PCVs in the field immediately.
Often there is that little project that must be done now (before the rains start, before school begins, or in response to a critical need), but there are no funds available. Traditional funding sources are cumbersome, and there are long forms, detailed requirements, limited resources, and long delays.
PCVs working in water and sanitation usually have potential projects lined up. For those working in other program areas, there may be water components to their projects, or improvements needed where they work or teach.
Sample projects may be: rainwater or spring catchments, handwashing stations, water systems, piping, tanks, pumps, latrines, wells, etc.
We like to do the water and sanitation parts of projects for schools, clinics, and community centers. So, if you can get funding for the building and other stuff, we can help with things like the water supply, filters, sinks, plumbing, and drainage.
We like to finish projects that have been started, and fix things that have ceased to function.
We encourage follow-up projects that expand upon the successful completion of the first small project.
If you have a project in mind, please fill out the application form. We want this to be easy for you, so we have developed a simple form that you can fill out in one sitting.
If you have any questions about the appropriateness of your project, or you need some time to get it together, just let us know.
We pre-fund projects, so you don’t have to wait around for donations to roll in.
If you do not have a project that qualifies, please pass this message on to your fellow Volunteers who may have an interest. Finally, if this initiative resonates with you, please let others know what we are doing through your social networks, websites, and blogs.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Regards,
Averill Strasser
Appropriate Projects
http://appropriateprojects.com
Water Charity
http://watercharity.org
This is truly inspiring. Barbara Kingsolver will be presenting writers' workshops at the San Miguel Writers Conference in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico February 19-23 2010. I just signed up. It looks like a rare opportunity to meet her. Are you going?
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