Moving right along

Wow! Hard to believe it’s been two and a half weeks since the gala!

 

 

What an amazing time, I’m still pinching myself!! It’s taken me this long to catch up on thank you cards, laundry, my birthday (age is relative), and get back to a routine! Even Tony helped me with the thank-you cards this weekend, Thanks, honey! Now, it’s time to get back to work and make a difference bringing technology, education, and healthcare to the villages! I just want to share the outline for the upcoming trip. It’s so “upcoming” that I leave tomorrow!!

Many of you have been wondering what will be going on in the villages and the projects we will be working on now that we have the (amazing!) funding from the gala. We have a lot to accomplish when I am there this trip with more details, lots of fine tuning, and news letters to follow. We will take things slowly, utilize the funding wisely, and build things that are needed, wanted, and will last through generations.

I will take lots of photos and we will work hard on project documentation as the projects evolve and move forward. I’m excited about the work we are doing and I hope you are too! Most importantly, we are working collectively with the people in the villages, getting their input and participation. I truly feel this way we will be more successful for the long term and give people the hope and opportunity to maximize their potential, and in many cases help them achieve their dreams. Thank you for your love, encouragement, and support! Together we are growing!

Laurel

If you are interested in knowing what’s on our agenda for the upcoming weeks, below is an excerpt from an email I sent to Nashon and Thadei on August 9, 2016. It may sound like a lot , and it is a lot, but it’s all related. We are working together and now thanks to the gala, and everyone’s generous donations, we will accomplish so much and help thousands of people who have so little. I think you will really be inspired by the photos and the stories that are to come, so please check in regularly.

Hi Nashon and Thadei, here are the goals I hope we can accomplish over the next couple of months. Much of this we can work on when I am there but the time always goes by too quickly! We don’t have to stress or rush, let’s prioritize based on what the village can benefit from the most in the short term (water, poultry, workshop, beekeeping) and continue to plan in detail the health center and community/children center for the ward.

• KiliTech project notebooks – Each village will have a notebook detailing each project with project plan, monthly updates, and financials. Each project should have a signed agreement with the executive sponsor (Kamili, Freddie, etc) and stakeholders (village leaders and village project managers). Try to get a letter from the district commissioner saying he approves of our projects and he is committed to helping us with our success. Anyone should be able to walk into our office and you say, “This is what is going on in the East Kahe Ward, which village do you want to know about,” and you hand them a notebook full of information!

• Meeting and review of financials with Daniel, our local accountan

• Develop and document a master plan for East Kahe ward with Kamili

• Community center for children and adults

• Size, location, services offered

• Establish executive committee for building and running the center

• Government involvement and support

• Budget and timeline

• Healthcare clinic

• Size, location, services offered

• Partnership with Mawenzi

• Government assistance

• Project CURE? Is expensive, $25K, but is an option

• Budget and timeline

• Family planning campaign

• FGM, birth control, end childhood marriages

• Education and awareness seminars and marketing materials

• T-shirts?

• Staff from Mawenzi and other women to help educate the men and women in the villages

• GIS/Mapping requirements and equipment – this will be very cool, wait and see!

• Review of census reports and is data in the computer?

• Hire assistant project manager to report to Nashon

• College educated, English skills, computer skills, database management, willing to learn GIS

• Soko Village project plan

• What do the villagers want? They are the stakeholders!

• Vocation training (poultry and beekeeping?)

• Training, materials, animal welfare to ensure health of bees and chickens

• Water – meeting with ward counselor and engineers this week!

• Power – need more solar power (Alpha power?)

• Majengo Kahe

• Help the women grow in their vocations/give them more support/marketing for their services and products

• Workshop for the men – size, location, equipment (this is priority!)

• Build beehives and chicken coops will be a great opportunity for jobs and to help adjoining villages

• Spare parts and belts for the mill

• Bags for the maize flower (Tunakua!!)

• Info on the remaining four villages in the ward

• Lots of photos and videos

• Updates with MIT and if Wifi is better, MIT improvements, mapping classes?

• Rock Your World update.