A Friend in Need

Just a note: I normally don't reach out through social media in this manner, but this is a special case for an amazing man.

Fredrick Kiyingi, long time servant of the Peace Corps Uganda Program, dedicated father and model citizen, has been diagnosed with hepato-biliary cirrhosis and is in need of a liver transplant. Fred has been the Safety and Security Coordinator with Peace Corps for more than half a decade, protecting and serving American Volunteers and supporting them in times of crisis. It is clear to me and everyone in PC Uganda that he has dedicated his life to making sure we PCVs are safe. Fred has literally laid his life on the line for volunteers in the past and through his bravery, connections, and wit, he has rescued many more - they call him the Ugandan James Bond for a reason.

Staff, friends, and family have all been donating what they can via the Federal Emergency and Education Association, but 26,000 USD still need to be raised by March 31st. I would ask that you make any donation that you can to the site below, which is one of the many efforts being made by PCVs to reach out to the general community. It would make a huge difference in the life of someone who is truly a wonderful human being.

Feel free to message me personally with any questions that you have.

Link: Save Our James Bond

Life in Uganda, Part I: At Home

Welcome to House 11!

The front of our house - and our laundry. Doing sheets by hand has to be one of the most time-consuming tasks ever.

Our backyard with our latrine and what they call "our plantation" - we have two types of bananas, avocados, passion fruit, cassava, and sugar cane. And we haven't even planted our garden yet!

 We have a different kind of traffic here.

Gardening is called "digging" in Uganda, for a good reason.

Our gardening tools!

One of two avocado trees.

Our bountiful avocado harvest. We probably go through about six avocados a day.

Kitchen with our stove top and pantry area.

Living room!

Our bedroom, complete with a jury-rigged mosquito net.

Guest bedroom - come and stay with us! See, you get your very own net and candle!

Doing laundry out back - the ol' three bucket system.

 Someone trying to pay a visit.

With no power half the time, you have to come up with creative ways to entertain yourself...Celebrating my birthday with a Little Debbie brownie, candle, and snowflake plate sent from the States!

"Necessity is the mother of invention." Never was there a place where this was so true. Buying scratch-off airtime for our phones and some milk in a bag!

Find joy in everything you choose to do. Every job, relationship, home... it's your responsibility to love it, or change it.

                                                                   -  Chuck Palahniuk

Birthday at Bunyoni!

This past weekend, Kris along with my friend and fellow volunteer Amanda arranged an amazing birthday weekend for me at Lake Bunyoni, recently called "The Loveliest Lake in Africa" by The Wall Street Journal. It was an incredible time and the perfect way to ring in my 28th year on this planet and my first year in Africa!