Monday, February 14, 2011

Think Humanity returned from Uganda January 23, 2011


Think Humanity was created to provide relief, support and hope for a promising future to refugees in Africa.

Think Humanity board members and volunteers just returned from Uganda. Beth and Jim Heckel, Joe and Deb Bergholz and Vanya Tellez spent 16 days in Uganda and visited three different camps.

Acholi Quarter Camp in Kireka – TH visited homes and surveyed the people to get results from our July 2010 bed net distribution. We were so pleased with the outcome. The decrease in malaria incidences showed 93 percent effectiveness results. Thank you Red Empress Foundation and Global Healing for the nets.

We visited the young mothers who are learning a tailoring trade. Think Humanity has donated eight manual sewing machines to young mothers (see below) so that they can learn tailoring skills. We purchase the products that they make and sell them so that we can give them further help. We also gave children Crocs, wooden cars from Toys for God’s Kids and many school supplies. We brought back recycled paper bead jewelry, (Valentine’s Day – pink, reds and purples) banana leaf baskets and tie dye sling purses to sell. After sales, TH donates 100 percent back into our projects to help refugees. TH is a true Fair Trade model. Our store.


An Acholi child holds a wooden car from Toys for God's Kids

A young mother with child strapped to her back is learning to sew.


The Acholi children were so happy to receive school supplies, shoes and toy cars. Many thanks to those who donated school supplies. Thank you Crocs Cares and Ella Vail for donating shoes!

Kyaka II Refugee Camp – In 2008 we sent our managers to visit Kyaka II on a reconnaissance trip. Kyaka also had similar needs as all UNHCR and IDP camps; malaria, no access to clean water, lack of education, etc. We finally made it to Kyaka II in 2011. We met with the UNHCR leaders and they welcomed us. We had our first bed net distribution there where we gave out 500 bed nets. We also left hundreds of school supplies and many wooden cars. Thanks to Birthing Kit Foundation Australia, we were able to leave 150 kits in the village. We had a social day with COBURWAS Kyaka. The singing, dancing and speeches went on for hours, but it seemed like minutes. When TH gets the funding we plan to bring more mosquito nets and as soon as possible we would like to build two new wells in Kyaka II.


Vanya Tellez, TH volunteer handed a bed net to a young mother and her baby at the net distribution in SweSwe Village in Kyaka II Refugee Camp. Pictured below, many waited for their names to be called as Beth gave a young girl a bed net. TH Program Director, Amani Jean-Paul ( in the white shirt) called out the names.

Hoima – TH was very busy in Hoima. We held meetings and visited a lawyer where we drew up papers to become a non-profit organization (NGO) in Africa. We also looked for property for a TH office which had to also have room for our future volunteers and a place for our TH Clinic. We had hopes to rent the place where we had our TH Sick-Bay, but it didn’t work out. We left Hoima confused, but the good news was that a better place was available. When we returned to Hoima from Kyangwali, we signed a contract for the purple house with a separate facility in the back for our clinic and pharmacy. After we left, the owner built a brick security wall and painted in and out. We’re excited only that we need funding to purchase furniture, more medical equipment and we will need more staffing (clinic officer and lab technician) so that it can become a registered clinic.

The shelves were still full of medication at the sick-bay after the last school year where more than 500 students and women had been served in 2010.


The new Think Humanity Office/future clinic in Hoima, Uganda.

The shelves were still full of medication at the sick-bay after the last school year where more than 500 students and women had been served in 2010.
Kyangwali – In Kyangwali we got to visit our first completed well. We had a small ceremony with the chairman of Kinakyeitaka Village and gave our speeches.



Emmanuel, TH Meds and Nets Manager at the new well in Kinakyeitaka Village and Joe Bergholz looks on. The wood sticks are to protect the well from children. The well is locked certain hours of the day. Thank you Global Healing for the grant to build this well.

After that we walked to the location where the second well was being worked on. Below is a picture of this site where children are collecting dirty water from the stream until the well is finished. It should be finished this week. Thank you Americans for Philanthropy for the donation for this well.

Children collect dirty water near where TH is constructed their second well. Soon they will be able to have clean water. We continue to raise money for a third well that will be constructed in UNHCR Kyaka II Refugee Settlement Camp, Uganda.

To help provide clean water you can donate at this link: Water is Life on Razoo

In Kyangwali we gave out Crocs, school supplies, toy cars and 250 birthing kits. We were thanked so much for the birthing kits. Debbie Bergholz brought 50 stuffed toy bears from Crossroads Kids in Loveland and we really enjoyed giving them to the COBURWAS Learning Centre children that are getting educational assistance through TH donors.

On left, a few of the Kyangwali children play with the toys donated by Toys for God’s Kids. Above are some of the CLC children that are helped with their education through TH donors.

  
Naomi smiles with her bear & car.
 
Roice gets a new pair of Crocs.
 
Irene holds her new toys.

A group called Cheyeye invited us for an afternoon of singing, dancing, drumming and drama. We presented them with the baby blankets that were handmade by Debbie. Cheyeye is a group that goes door to door singing and collecting small gifts (i.e. firewood and beans) for new mothers. The baby blankets will go to new babies in the camp. (below)


Children from many different villages took turns singing and dancing to welcome TH in the Camp. Debbie was welcomed and thanked for her wonderful gifts for the new babies in the community.


Thank you Vitamin Angels for the Vitamin A capsules. We watched as the children were getting the Vitamin A doses.


We visited children with malaria. Pictured is one of the girls from our Girls’ Hostel with her younger brother who is suffering from malaria. We had some extra bears so we left them with sick children. The children we visited were not conscience, but we pray that they survived and can enjoy the stuffed bears. Please help us save lives by donating to TH Meds and Nets Project.

Think Humanity purchases bed nets for $5 and anti-malarial medication for less than $2 a dose. Your donation is very important to us and even the smallest donation can save lives.

“Every 30 seconds a child under the age of five years old dies from malaria in sub-Saharan Africa”.-World Health Organization

Protecting refugees from malaria and assisting them with an education are a couple of the most concrete things we can do to lift refugees out of poverty. Please consider giving them this chance.

Think Humanity is a registered 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. Our federal tax identification number is 26-1635429
Think Humanity
2880 Spring Mountain Dr.
Loveland, CO 80537 USA (970) 667-9335/214-1299
or
Think Humanity Uganda Office/Clinic
Isaka Kinjungu
P.O. Box 219
Hoima, Uganda

Special thanks to the following who make everything possible: Amani Nkoma Jean-Paul, Program Director; Emmanuel Nsabimana Ntamwete, Meds and Nets Manager; Nteziyaremye Jonas, Education; and Bagisha John, Secretary, TH Board of Directors USA and donors.


1 comment:

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