African Promise Foundation

Today was one of the best days I have ever had as far experiences are concerned. We started off the morning with a huge rainstorm that made everything muddy. After breakfast we picked out bicycles from a group of 1950 Indian bikes. It was like going back in time. As we started off unsteadily  for what would be 4 mile journey everyone was was smiling and laughing as we went through the large mud puddles and the local kids ran out as we passed them shouting Hi "Mzungu". Everyone in the group was grinning ear to ear and those who weren't kids felt like we were 10 again. We only had a few crashes, Becky taking the worst of the falls landing smack dab at the end of a twelve foot puddle in the mud. Bruce and Ginny who didn't ride bikes were ahead of us in the back of an off road  vehicle taking pictures of the great fall. We were all laughing so hard our belly's hurt. We then arrived at our destination, a dilapidated primary school. We were greeted by hundreds of school children dressed in Orange uniforms smiling and welcoming us. The structure for a kitchen was awaiting is final touch, walls. Our job was to work with the local community to mud the walls. A few strong young men along with Alex began digging the earth of a former termite hill. Meantime, our volunteers began fetching water from a muddy pond about 100 yards from the site. We find out their week was broken so these kids only water source is this muddy hole. The volunteers were amazing, many carriers water weighing 30 lbs on their heads the entire way. It gave them an opportunity to see how challenging it is to not have drinking water. After fetching the water it was mixed with the freshly dug dirt and the locals and volunteers jumped in feet first mixing the mud with their bare feet. There was much laughing, singing and many smiles and friendships blossoming as we worked along side the community. Many remarked that this belonging in a community is something we are really lacking in the states. After the mud became the right texture a large assembly line of Mzungus and locals formed a human chain lifting the mud into large pies and passing it until the massive pile was in the middle of the kitchen. Then the fun began! Globs of mud began to form walls and we were in business! This experience of working together with locals is one that we will never forget! Later in the afternoon we ventured out on our bikes  had our second project distributing DGG kits to a group of local village women. We sang Do a Dear as we traveled on a rush that looked and felt like a scene from the sounds of music. It was a successful day! Suzy

One Good Thing:

Brynn/ Hannah:  Letting the children play with their hair.

Suzie: Showing videos of her family to the children at the school. 

Becky: Sound of Music bike ride!

Ginny: Cooperation in mudding the school. Train of people from the mud pile to the school, wouldn't it be great if we could always come together like that.

Bruce: watching everyone falling in the puddles on their bikes as he rode it the back of the truck.

Steve: teaching the boys at school. They were anxious to hear what we had to say.

Alex: Stomping the mud. I was doing it alone and it was really hard but when the girls started helping it was a lot easier. It was easy to work at a team but harder alone.

Heather:  mudding the school kitchen, riding bikes and enjoying the beauties around us.

Amber:  handing out the tortillas to the children. They were so gratefull!

Kara:  mudding, working as a communtiy.

Stacie: co-operative of women in the community

Maddy:  kit distribution, the women were concerened about their daughters and wanted to pass the knowledge we had just taught onto their daughters.