Okay, I might not be a biological mother but that doesn’t mean I haven’t loved and taken care of others as if they weren’t my own blood. Over the years I have “mothered” many. Heck, my title while working with pregnant teens in the states was “House Mother”. Right now, I am the proud “mother” of [...]
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Peace is especially important in the North. After 21+ years of insurgency, communities are wanting to get back to normal. Different methods have been used to promote peace including peace clubs and service activities which promote looking towards a better tomorrow and ownership of the community. The Peace Club at PGA completed service work in the community on July [...]
This morning, I was excited to use my stove top espresso maker and add some mocha mixture to the taste. I grabbed a plastic container, scooped out a spoonful, and gleefully added it to the mug. I kept stirring, but the mixture didn’t seem to dissolve. Once finished with the first cup, I boiled extra water to see [...]
At PGA, we like to celebrate and to learn on the road. The first few photos are from a newcomers welcoming ceremony. We took the Secondary 4 students for a field day to a fishing village and then to a rock quarry. Guess what we had for lunch? Fish of course!
God is seeking to “interrupt” your life and reveal to you a journey that will set everything in your world, all of your planets of purpose in orbit. Sometimes, he will lead us down a path, to a job, into a life of someone or someone into our life – and the pause in the [...]
The school year has begun and it’s good to be getting back into the swing of a routine. Pader is ever so dusty, windy, and plain hot (which are all characteristics that I’m not overly fond of) but this is my Ugandan home. The last few months have been long and treacherous yet coming back and seeing [...]
Even before getting the invite to be a Youth Development Volunteer in Uganda for 27 months, I was creating a list of what take with me. A missions trip for 2 weeks is very different than moving to a new country for 2 years. While in India four months, I made a list of items that I [...]
This is a rather interesting article about the affects of rather intense situations on volunteers/aid workers . Granted, I am not in the forefront of conflict and I don’t have to worry about LRA attacks at this time, but it makes me think about the people I’ve met that are in the midst of the storms. The [...]
A little idea of what I’ve been working on lately… Definition of Trust- Firm confidence on the integrity, ability, or character of a person or thing. Where trust is derived from—The basis to trust or distrust a complete stranger is social conditioning, which may be influenced by ethnic or cultural group, the characteristics and values [...]
Aid groups have called for efforts to prevent mass killings by one of Africa’s most feared rebel militias over the Christmas period. The aid agencies say a concerted effort is needed to stop the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) from committing what have become known as “Christmas massacres”. LRA fighters killed hundreds of people in the Democratic [...]
Today, I visited the Holocaust Memorial Museum. Occasionally, I would have to take a deep breath as I looked at photos of sunken skin on protruding hip bones of 10 year olds or bodies dismembered for experimentations, listened to the audio of screaming women and children as they took their last gasp of air before [...]
Go placidly amid the noise and haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible without surrender be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even the dull and the ignorant; they too have their story. Avoid loud and aggressive persons, they [...]
Something good is happening. Something very, very good. It’s been a long process with lots of waiting and learning and figuring things out but it is finally happening. Pader Girls Academy is starting Maleng Designs. Excitement is growing at the school. I sat with the business teacher, art teacher, senior 1 teacher, our restaurant manager, [...]
I have spent 3 months at Rainbow Christian Camp living in an Ark (Converse, IN) 2 months wandering Alaska and 2 weeks in Washington 4 months in a sweet barn(Sante Fe, IN) 4 months surrounded by the poor in Kolkata (India) 6ish weeks shared between Indiana/Alabama/Washington 10 weeks in Wakiso (Uganda) for training 3 months in [...]
Lillian, 14 If I were to make 3 changes in my community as a village head woman… I would bring change in promoting children rights. This is because children in village are suffering from child abuse like rape, defilement and domestic violence so if I become a woman head in an area I will try [...]
Brenda, 15 If I were to make 3 changes in my community as a village head woman… I would carry out charitable work to help the needy and disabled people like grandparents, sick people and lame people because they do not have courage and energy to do work. I would also carry out counseling as [...]
Modesta, 14 If I become a village head woman in my area… I will promote and encourage girl child education because girl child educations are undermined about in many areas hence leading to increasing number of illiteracy in many countries, villages, and areas. If I become a village head woman in my area, I will discourage [...]
Peace Corps is anticipating its first ever Camp GLOW this December. Female students ages 13-15 will attend the week-long camp the week after this term is finished. The ladies at PGA were quite excited and I had over 30 interested. Well, I could only nominate 5 students so we had an essay contest to see who the lucky [...]
Catalyst. Change Agent. Development worker. This is someone who generates ideas, promotes new practices, models healthy behaviors, draws attention to opportunities, and encourages networks to help people move forward in reaching their goals. This is not someone who imposes their own ideas on others, but rather helps others realize their own potential and the opportunities [...]
Awhile back ago, my RPCV friend Daneen and I put our muscles to work in Gulu during their initiative to make Gulu Green and Clean. Here are few photos… I remember using clothe gloves, shovels, and plastic garbage bags last time I did a clean-up in the states… here, we use twigs in the shape of a broom. [...]
What did it take for me to realize that where I live is different than the other 2/3rds of Uganda? Was it when I read a book about Northern Uganda titled “First Kill Your Family”? The first story of someone miraculously spared from being abducted by the LRA? The first time I saw a man without lips? [...]
This is the Working in a Post Conflict Area session outline I created for training the newbies in country. Of course, it is missing the life that having a human being brings and the stories that can only be told face to face. Something that helped when presenting was a giant map of Uganda where we [...]
I remember the day we learned our language groups. We had been in the country three days, still getting over our jetlag. There are many, many regional languages in Uganda and learning your language group meant learning the region you would be spending the next two years. My name was under the “Acholi” group and [...]
I want to leave Kampala. I want to go back to site, say hello to the “lost boys”, talk with the girls and their babies out at the school, and get back into the routine of being in the village. For the most part, I’ve been really fortunate with my health and feeling fine. Of [...]
August 11, 2010 Anneke Van Woudenberg, senior Africa researcher New Regional Strategy Needed to Protect Civilians and Rescue Children (Washington, DC) – The Ugandan rebel Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) has abducted more than 697 adults and children in a largely unreported campaign in the Central African Republic and the neighboring Bas Uele district of northern Democratic [...]
At one point, I thought about making 1.5 liter cupa pi, or water bottles, into bowling pins by putting a small amount of sand in them and then inviting the kids over for a game. Have them use one of their locally made plastic bag balls to knock them down. Or, there was the honey idea [...]
“We suffer from what has come to be known as “hurry sickness.” One of the great illusions of our day is that hurrying will buy us more time… hurry will keep us consumed by “the cares and riches and pleasures of life,” as Jesus put it, and prevent his way from taking root in our [...]
This is Jonathan. He is around 2 years old and his mother, Judith, is in Senior 3. During the Prefect handover ceremony, he enjoyed drinking Mirinda Fruity… which is equivalent to liquid pixie sticks. Students are allowed to keep their babies at the school until they turn 3 at which point they go back to live in [...]
Beijing, China (CNN) — In China, white people can be rented. For a day, a weekend, a week, up to even a month or two, Chinese companies are willing to pay high prices for fair-faced foreigners to join them as fake employees or business partners. Some call it “White Guy Window Dressing.” To others, it’s [...]
We go outside for fresh air and room to breathe… And sometimes we even plant trees to help with that fresh air… Lovely Ladies that help me breathe a bit more easily by translating, explaining concepts I can’t convey quite right, and being extra helpful in class… So that at the end of the day, [...]
I am 20 years old girl who have dropped out of school in 2006 due to pregnancy. Chased away by my relatives who were taking care of me and I have stayed with my grandmother for three (3) years. In 2010, God has taken me back to school but the worse thing I am thinking [...]
If you somehow ended up on a deserted island, what would it take for you to survive? What would you need to live life there in the moment? A group of 7 westerners from Europe and both Americas, here for different lengths and reasons, were asked this question by a fellow volunteer who is an [...]
I like to teach interpersonal relationships/life skills- Each week, I teach 5 classes, roughly 50 young women ages 13-33 in each class, and its a challenge that I like. Probably 75% of the students have young children from reasons such as defilement, abduction, vulnerability in their communities… Pader Girls Academy is the only school in the country [...]
Thank you Marie for this great article!!! http://www.iuk.edu/index/services/communications/sandi_giver.asp AN IU Degree Close to Home Sandi Giver graduated from Indiana University Kokomo in May 2008 with a Bachelor of General Studies degree. Currently, she is a Peace Corps volunteer in Northern Uganda. Here is her story: Q. Why did you decide to pursue your baccaluareate [...]
“imara? imara?” — asked the little boy on the end. “Eya, Amari” — me. i(you)-mar(love)-a(me)? Do you love me? Eya (yes). Yes, I love you.
Going to the cinema is one of my favorite activities when wanting to get out of the heat, needing a laugh, or when I’m in Kampala and glad to be out of the village. For that hour and a half, you are entertained and almost feel normal again— normal as life can be after 14 [...]
7 months after swearing in, things are slowly starting to come together! Soccer with the neighborhood kiddos and life skills with PGA students… This week, a guy at the stationary shop was able to find a needle to fill my soccer ball. When I attempted to gather a group of kids to play with it, I could only [...]
Although long, I have a tendency to start with slightly fluffy material as an opener into deeper issues as I continue writing… Sometimes, good intentions aren’t all that matter. A few items shipped from overseas that I shook my head at this week: 100 fur lined winter boots- This is Africa. If they were gumboots/rain [...]
Over the past few weeks, exciting things have been happening. A new organization, new people, sites to see, celebrations to be had. After 4 months of living amongst the people he has learned to love, Curtis is heading back to Canada. On Saturday, we celebrated his time here with dancing by different groups, such as [...]
Sandi Alaska is no Indiana Jones yet sometimes it’s as if I get a little taste of his adventures- exploring new territory, discovering the unknown, maybe a little danger here and there. It’s no Temple of Doom for sure yet walking alone down cold cement stairs where a single window muted by the rain dimly [...]
Just a quick update to say life is looking up! The trip to Rwanda was beautiful and eye opening, visiting friends in the West was refreshing, life in Kampala is crazy, and training was exciting. I’ll travel back to Pader in the next couple of days and I’ll type up a few things I wrote [...]
I just might have a slight crush on you. The heavy fog flowing between your lush green mountains while traveling into your beautiful country in the early morning was simply beautiful. Although you went through terrible times in 1994, your people have worked hard to recreate itself into a clean and dignified place. Thank you [...]
Every now and then, I like to play with the kiddos around here. This is Andrew. His mother is a student at FRO and she is one of the most hardworking and happy young ladies I know here. Her eyes get huge when she talks to you especially when she’s excited. Here, Andrew decided to [...]
I really like How I Met Your Mother. Seriously, good stuff.
Robin, Lilly, Barney, Marshal, Ted- the baby hater, manipulator, womanizer, giant, and hopeless romantic. On a cold rainy evening, there is nothing better than sitting on my green cushions slowly sipping a hot apple cider mixed with mulling spice. My smile warms up as I [...]
I like the Frigid North- even if it is stinkin hot. I like the people up here. I like teaching the kids ‘Sandi Says’ (pronounced more like ‘Cindy Says’). I like the traditional food that is super cheap. I like the sunsets. I like how the stars seriously grew in numbers. As much as I [...]
It is absolutely clear that God has called you to a free life. Just make sure that you don’t use this freedom as an excuse to do whatever you want to and destroy your freedom. Rather, use your freedom to serve one another in love; that’s how freedom grows. For everything we [...]
When you live in a small little place, the taste of a Mocha is like heaven on earth. Thankfully, Kampala has a few places with good coffee.
One of the highlights during training were the birthday celebrations when groups of us would go out and have a jolly ol time
Great thing about making [...]
Bad thing #1:
I’m in my bed Tuesday morning at 8am, not wanting to get up quite yet, when I hear a push at my door. Really confused and without my glasses, I see a guy standing right inside my hut. If it were one of the kids I could kind of understand, but [...]
Just a quick note to say hello and that I love and miss you all. Things are going well and hope to update with more info later on. …
Everyone enjoys a little reminder of home. If you would like to send mail, I can be reached here the first 10 weeks or so. Once training is completed and have been sworn in as an official PC volunteer, I’ll update with the new address.
Sandi Giver, Peace Corps
Trainee P.O. Box 29348
Kampala, Uganda
Some tips:
Write “AIR MAIL” [...]
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