Peace through Yoga

     Greetings from Africa!  After four full days in the bush area of Uganda working at the Birthing Center we support, our group of 17 is settled in a safari lodge overlooking the Nile River. 

     It's been an incredible journey working with the local women and children. Each morning we've started with yoga followed by a day full of activities.  It is so surreal that $150,000 was raised two years ago to build the center and it is now in full force.    We ended our time there last night by singing and dancing with the women around a campfire in the middle of the secure complex.  

     This year the group raised over $15K and brought $5300 in in-kind donation.  Both will go so far here.  

     Early tomorrow we do a game run.  We've already seen elephants, hippos, and wart hogs on the way to the lodge.  Lions, giraffes and other animals are still to be added to that list. We will also do a boat ride on the Nile in the afternoon and see plenty of crocodiles.  High adventure.   Monday we will return to Kampala, the capital of Uganda, then head to south to the mouth of the Nile to river-raft.  

     After traveling to over 130 countries, there is nothing like coming back to see friends in three selected destinations---Uganda, Costa Rica and India.   It's like coming home...even though there is no place like home.  Miss you all.  

     On another important note, we are sending several children to high school that have attended the elementary school we support in Costa Rica.   They need transportation!!   If you are interested in donating $140.00, we can get the much needed bicycles for these children.  Send to Women Like Us Foundation, 7022 West 10th Street; Indianapolis, IN 46214.  Or donate on-line at www.womenlikeusfoundation.org.

Namaste!

Sal

     Can you imagine living in a tree over 18 stories high for two years?  For 738 days, without touching the ground, Julia Butterfly Hill lived in the canopy of an ancient redwood tree, called Luna, to help make the world aware of the plight of ancient forests.

     It was a blessing to have Julia stay with our family last week when she spoke at our annual Women Like Us Foundation.  The event was sold-out with 350 women (and four men).   Julia inspired me, yet again, that one person can make a difference.   Every choice we make can make a difference.    What we eat, the paper product we use or don’t use, the things we think we need but only want….  

     The other guest speaker at our annual event was Loung Ung.  She, too, had us all sitting at the edge of our seats to hear her story.  Born to an affluent Cambodian father and a Chinese mother, Loung Ung was only five years old when the Khmer Rouge stormed into her city. Four years later, in one of the bloodiest episode of the twentieth century, some two million Cambodians—out of a population of seven million—had died at the hands of the infamous Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge genocide.   She talked about her national bestseller book, First They Killed My Father. 

     Like most westerners, it really isn’t about having bigger, better, faster, now.   It isn’t about stuff.  It is about being grateful for what we have.   Julia Butterfly Hill sold every last possession before moving into the tree for two years.  It makes you think….Do we really need all the materialist things that drive us?

     In exactly eleven hours I will be flying to Costa Rica to meet up with my group of seventeen people.   There will be a reception tomorrow night with the U.S. Ambassador of Costa Rica Anne Andrew before departing for the rainforest the next day.  As always, we will spend a good two days at the elementary school we support.  We are taking tons of books, soccer uniforms, dishes for their meals, sporting equipment, paints, etc.   The week will also include zipling through the jungle, kayaking on a river and in the ocean, snorkeling, hiking, and enjoying the town. 

     Will write soon.

Adios!

Sally

     Not to be depressing or morbid, but, this is an interesting question.  If you really knew you had a year to live, what would you change?

     I’ve always judged my days by what I have accomplished.  Very type A+.  Who else would enjoy being CEO of a travel company after 9/11, going full-time getting their doctorate degree, and getting certified as a Yoga Teacher (the latter to keep me balanced).

     Every day my goal is to simplify my life.  What doesn’t need to be on that to do list?   Even though I am proud of my accomplishments, it is now time to enjoy the benefits.  With my doctorate degree, I wanted to make a difference.  Without getting bogged down with administration and raising money to run an operation, Women Like Us Foundation seems to be born of everything I have worked for my life.  The model has us working with contracted employees to get needed tasks down---accounting, administration, reservations for our trip, CPA oversight, etc.   My focus is making sure we are making a sustainable impact in the areas of the world we have chosen to work and leading voluntourism trips to Uganda, Costa Rica and India.     See August 13 Blog for an update ^_^. 

     More and more my days are judged by time outside, being with my children/husband/family, doing yoga, or checking things off my “joy list”.    A day doesn’t seem quite right if I haven’t done something on my joy list.  You should try it.  Right down 20 things that bring you joy.  Put a check to those things that you do regularly and an X to those items that you rarely do.    Your joy list can consist of things like walking in the woods, taking a hot bath/Jacuzzi, doing yoga, eating chocolate, going for sushi, reading, watching a good movie, swimming, biking, sleeping in, traveling, getting a massage, having a manicure/pedicure, laughing, being with friends/family, kissing ^_^

     One of my close friends has a rare form of cancer.  She is going through all the treatments and continues to live a joyful life.  She’s my hero and mentor.  Not just during this uphill struggle that she is going to conquer, but for all the sixteen years we have known each other.  Now when I hug her good-bye, I don’t take it for granted.  We linger over the hug, knowing that we could be doing this next year or another 20. 

     Live in the moment…walk in mindfulness… 

Until next time…

Sally

My life has revolved around the following this summer:  meditation, family, yoga—as a student and as a teacher, hiking, more yoga, swimming, and working hard on Women Like Us Foundation.   The latter almost brings tears to my eyes thinking about the growth of our global projects and the women who truly are making an impact.

Costa Rica – We hired an English teacher for Carbon Elementary School!!!  She’s a new college graduate from Indianapolis.  Addison Demaree starts September 5.  Stay-tune for Blogs from Addison.  My group going in October is sold-out and I can’t wait to go back. 

Uganda – Today I got a confirmation from a past Ugandan passenger that she and her family were donating $4500 for a much-needed head mid-wife at the Birthing Center!!!

Below is an email from Uganda describing Mary, the candidate. 

“This woman has more experience than probably any other midwife in
all of Uganda. She currently the president for the Uganda Private
Association of Midwives and oversees 700 midwives in Uganda. Her
contract is coming to an end in September. She has started and managed her own maternity centres. She is also used to applying for funding. She applied for grants from USAID and got them.

She started her interview by bringing out a giant stack of
certificates. This woman is trained in everything (and her sister is
the midwife that taught our midwives the different birth positions)
then her answer to why she wanted to work with Shanti Uganda was
"I want to grow this centre and organization".  She then talked about
all the things we need or are not doing yet (family planning etc) and
explained how she would bring these things in to being.

This why I do what I do.  Every day is a miracle.  Jessica’s friends and family got word and said they would match every penny to have Mary hired.  I just sent word to Uganda that they can hire Mary ;o)   Now that is the type of email I like to send.

INDIA - In February I will be leading a group to Rishikesh, India during the International Yoga Festival.  Prior to the festival we will work two days working with children. Ramana’s Garden is a home and school for orphans and destitute children in the remote mountainous villages of the Himalayas near Rishikesh. There are currently more than 70 children living at the orphanage, and the program provides education for 160 children, many who attend from the surrounding villages. Through past programs, we have started a new library and computer center to provide education, enrichment programs, tutoring, and access to information through the installation of computers.    Below is a picture of the founder, an incredible woman who stole my heart many years ago for all she is doing for these children.



Prabha, an American woman who founded Ramana’s Garden

I recently wrote Praha and asked her what project could my group and Women Like Us Foundation raise for about $3000.   Below is her response this week:  

Beloved, as always you are in perfect synchronicity.. Just yesterday our mason told me I really needed to start the final room w/bath for the girls hostel before the monsoon finishes since it is easier with all the rain to depend on for water.. As you see from our newsletter we built a beautiful new hostel for our girls. It is 2 large rooms plus room for the warden and attached bathroom. Now we need to complete one last room on the roof but as usual I overshot my budget and could not complete it.. I went to select the flooring and fell in love with a very wonderful ceramic tile but it was more costly.. In the end I went ahead and used it .. You only live once... these girls may never have a beautiful floor like this again sooooooo now they are thrilled to sleep 11 in a room so they could have a good floor.. But...I must build them another room so that it is only 5 to a room... The cost of construction alone will work out approx $3000 and if you manage to raise more it can go for the furnishings. You see the Singapore girls donated lovely bunk beds for the down rooms and we would like to follow the same upstairs..

Tears are filling my eyes again as I pray that we can be making this girls’ dormitory a reality.  It was very special place. 

HAITI – Just last Saturday there was a big fundraiser walk for one of our newest Women Like Us Chapters:  Kids4aCause.  Carla Snow wanted to do some volunteering for WLUF and before you know it, she started her own chapter.  She wanted to empower her son, Keaton, along with other kids to make a difference by raising money for well(s) in Haiti.     Our goal at WLUF is to empower women to make a difference.  Carla and her team raised over $5,000 at their first fundraiser. 

KENYA – We had a beautiful young lady start a new chapter a few weeks ago.  Sounds of Soweto.  Soweto Academy is a school tucked in Africa’s largest slum, Kibera, in Nairobi, Kenya.  Many of the students qualify academically for college but are unable to attend due to lack of resources.   The young lady traveled to Soweto and it changed her life.  She now wants to provide annual funds for Soweto students, which will allow them to attend a university to pursue the future they have dreamed about and change the cycle of poverty in their families and community.  Is that amazing!?!

Tea Time.   Other goals at WLUF is to inspire women, which is exactly what we will be doing this fall.  The upcoming event is keeping me plenty busy with obtaining silent auction and gift bag items, sending out word to the different media sources, finalizing the details at the venue…

LOUNG UNG AND JULIA BUTTERFLY HILL will be our speakers at the Women Like Us Afternoon Tea and Speakers Series on Thursday, October 20 in Indianapolis.  It has been an honor to work with these two dynamic women.   I just have to share their brief bios with you.

LOUNG:  Born to an affluent Cambodian father and a Chinese mother, Loung Ung was only five years old when the Khmer Rouge stormed into her city. Four years later, in one of the bloodiest episode of the twentieth century, some two million Cambodians— out of a population of seven million—had died at the hands of the infamous Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge genocide. Among the victims were both Loung’s parents, two sisters and twenty other relatives. Today, Loung has made over thirty trips back to Cambodia; and as an author, lecturer and activist, she has dedicated twenty years to promoting equality, human rights, and justice in her native land and worldwide.  Her memoir First They Killed My Father: a Daughter of Cambodia Remembers, published by HarperCollins in 2000, is a national bestseller.

JULIA:  For 738 days Julia Butterfly Hill lived in the canopy of an ancient redwood tree, called Luna, to help make the world aware of the plight of ancient forests. Julia, with the great help of steelworkers and environmentalists, successfully negotiated to permanently protect the 1,000 year-old tree and a nearly three-acre buffer zone. Her two-year vigil informed the public that only 3% of the ancient redwood forests remain and that the Headwaters Forest Agreement, brokered by state and federal agencies and Pacific Lumber/Maxxam Corporation, will not adequately protect forests and species.

On December 18, 1999 Julia Butterfly Hill, then 26, came down to a world that recognized her as a heroine and powerful voice for the environment. Her courage, commitment and profound clarity in articulating a message of hope, empowerment, and love and respect for all life has inspired millions of people worldwide. She is the author of the book The Legacy of Luna and co-author of One Makes the Difference.  Julia reflects, “By standing together in unity, solidarity and love we will heal the wounds in the earth and in each other. We can make a positive difference through our actions.”

I hope you will join us October 20 to hear the stories of these incredible women.  So as you can see…so much to do, so little time. 

Until next time…

Blessings,

Sally



       After reading Ashley Judd’s new book the last few days, All That Is Bitter and Sweet, my mind cannot shut out the past images of places that I have been that Ashley so eloquently describes.  Places like orphanages in Africa, slums of Asia, villages in Central America…  Having traveled to over 130 countries, my greatest memories, also bittersweet, have always been where I have interacted with the locals and have been of service. 

       After years of traveling and leading the largest travel club in the U.S. as CEO and President, I started a non-profit to offer voluntourism trips.  My main motive at that time was to encourage people to step out of their comfort zone, travel to a developing country, and truly make a difference.  There was no doubt that this type of travel proved to be life-changing for the participants.  They often felt like they had received much more than they gave. 

       As the destinations and mission trips grew to eighteen different countries, I spent a lot of my time with universities, corporations, and organizations interested in offering these type of experiences.  The work was becoming more and more focused on coaching the traveler, helping with their fundraising plans for a sustainable project, and building our own infrastructure to accommodate the growth.    

       Seane Corn, an internationally-known leader of yoga, asked if I would set up trips for her humanitarian organization, Off the Mat Into the World.   Each participant had to raise $20,000 to be able to go on a trip.     It was a lofty goal and for the last three years it has been incredible to see trips to Uganda, Cambodia, and South Africa come to fruition.    Raising approximately $300,000, minus the individual’s travel expenses for sustainable projects, took the concept of voluntourism to a new level.    Due to my doctorate work in this area of international humanitarian work and voluntourism, I was ecstatic. 

       My personal struggle was that I missed being face to face with the children and women we served on a regular basis.  It was also becoming extremely hard to continue moving on to different destinations versus making more of a long-term commitment to our global partners in a few destinations.   It was a surprise to many people when I turned “my baby”, a non-profit that I started a decade earlier, to one of our board members to take the lead.

       I wanted to serve the individuals who were making a difference in the orphanages, schools, and communities in which I had been taking people.  They were the women behind the foundation and success of these organizations.  Women like us making a difference. 

        Around the same time, a good friend and someone I had always admired for her work in supporting women through her company, Business Women Connect, published a book in which I was a contributing writer.   Linda Rendleman wrote Women Like Us – Real Stories and Strategies.   Within months we became co-founders of another non-profit, Women Like Us Foundation. 

       As I type away on this sleepless night, I am convicted more than ever to inspire, empower, and engage women to make a difference locally and/or globally.   Like Ashley Judd, I want to cry at the injustices I have seen due to poverty, war and gender inequities.

       Memories tonight include thoughts and prayers to the following:

• The women in the refugee camps in Jordan and Serbia.  Years of waiting and wanting more for their children were just part of the stories I won’t forget. 
• The women bringing their children to make shift medical sites in Haiti, Cuba, Kenya, Guatemala, Honduras, and others.
• The women giving birth in Uganda.  Helping deliver several natural births in a clinic and being present at a C-section where I was the first to hold the baby will never be forgotten.
• The women leaders in these destinations that I have come to know so well---Crown Princess Katherine of Serbia, Prabha at Ramana’s Garden in India, Natalie of Shanti Uganda, Martiza at the school in Costa Rica, Chick Big Crow of the Sioux Lagota Indians, and many others.
• The women in Cambodia who have had to endure so much loss due to the genocide of the Khmer Rouge.
• The women in South Africa running orphanages  in a never ending sea of needy children due to AIDS.    (Rosie and Heather, you are saints).
• The women prostitutes in the Red Light District (Patpong) in Bangkok, Thailand who have no other choice if to survive. 
• The Masaai women in Kenya who greeted me warily at first but soon discovered that we aren’t so different.
• The women who have already started Women Like Us Chapters making a difference in Kenya, South Africa, Haiti, California, etc.  

       My hope now is to ask Ashley Judd to come share her stories of meeting women all around the world and their struggles.  She would be ideal as a keynote speaker of  a Women Like Us Afternoon Tea and Speaker Series.   Like she shares in her book, I, too, am struggling with re-entry back in the U.S. after returning from Costa Rica last week.  May we never forget or become too complacent in America with all the needs around the world…even in our own country.   Even though it seems insurmountable at times, one person can make a difference. 

       Nite…or should I say good morning. 

       Here I am yet again in my favorite place.  Costa Rica.    Along with visiting “our school”, it has been a true adventure…rappelling down a three story waterfall, driving an ATV in the mountains and on the beach, zipling through the rainforest, riding a bike in the local village, swimming in the most beautiful warm ocean.… This is not including the yoga classes twice a day. 

       My niece, Carley, and I are here for a week.  It was especially exciting to introduce her to the children of Carbon Elementary School.  As a third grade teacher, she was a lot of help implementing an Easter egg hunt behind the school, dying eggs, reading to the children, helping them paint a craft project, and bringing enough books in her suitcase to make a dent in adding to the school’s new library.  Our goal is to have nothing less than 500 books—used or new—by the end of the year.  Spanish books for children 7-14 years old are especially needed.   We are looking for donations everywhere we can. The children actually got to check out their first library books yesterday!

       The school is so special.  There are 21 children currently enrolled.  It was fun to see the bright painted sign posted in the ground that our Women Like Us Foundation volunteers did last October with the school’s name.     On my last visit we had a Valentine’s Day party and gave the children their FIRST standardized school text books and uniforms.  What a week that was.    English teachers were interviewed but didn’t work out at that time.  This week, I am happy to say, has two very qualified and enthusiastic candidates wanting the position and ready to start next week.   Our country coordinator for Women Like Us Foundation and I are meeting this week to make a final decision.

       Our hope in the next two months is to get the extra school room (there are only two) totally set up as the library and English room, paint the outside of the school, fix the ceiling that was destroyed by hosts of bats living inside, and start raising money for a Community Center.  There is a half finished foundation that we can complete for $15-20K.   We will use the center for extra-curricular activities for the children—sports, yoga, art, etc.   We also hope to use it for adults.   The local women do not work and would like to make some type of income.   Products are being considered and possible sewing machines will be purchased for some of the ideas. 

        One of the things I have been trying to do this week is practice MINDFULNESS.  Big word but it is not as simple as it sounds.    Like most Americans, I get what some yogis call the “monkey mind”—always going 100 miles a minute.  Being goal oriented all my life, it is natural to always be thinking and creating some new idea in my mind.  However, here in Costa Rica, you want to just be in the NOW.  First of all, if you aren’t, you are going to get in trouble.  You can’t have your mind wandering too far when you are walking up and down in the rainforest or driving 30+ miles on an ATV avoiding pot holes.   Then there is the aspect of wanting to use all your senses while you are here.  The roaring of the howler monkeys, the sight of Toucan birds in the rainforest, the smell of the ocean air, the feel of the wooden floor as you do yoga, and the taste of all the good food will definitely keep you present. 

       My wonderful partner and co-founder of Women Like Us Foundation, Linda Rendleman, and I have a book coming out early this fall.  Women Like Us Creating Change in the World. It is full of real stories and strategies about how to make a difference---finding your passion, persevering, looking at all the possibilities, and, doing it all as only we women can do, with Poise.

       As I think of what that means this week, I liken it to Mindfulness.  Poise is that inner peace, grace, and confidence that you obtain when you know you are on the right path.   There is one particular woman, or I should say, young lady in our book who truly taught me about following your passion and doing it with poise.   Natalie Angell was just out of college when she went to Uganda to make a difference.  When she was 27 I traveled with her on my first trip to Uganda to look at property for a Birthing Center.  A group I was working with was to raise the $150,000 she needed. 

       As I watched Natalie talk to the local gentleman in the rural area of Uganda, I realized that the true success of following your passion was doing it with an inner strength, with “poise”. 

       For me, I always thought my success started with my enthusiastic energy for following my passion and persevering until goals were accomplished.   Through the year, my keys to success were expanded to include having a balanced life, giving back, and having the faith of “letting go” once you were on your path. 

       The latter of letting go and finding the poise in my own life has come from yoga and meditation.  If I had gotten into my doctorate program or become CEO of a travel company before I got accepted to Yoga Teacher Training, I definitely would not have followed that path at that time in my life.  It was truly a God-thing that I did.  

       Yoga and meditation has brought so much to my life.   They don’t call it “practicing yoga” for no reason.  There is no end.  It is a life-time practice where you personally grow physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.  And, maybe that is one reason Natalie has found her balance in life with seemingly all the right ingredients---she is a student and teacher of yoga. 

       This has worked for me but there are definitely many incredible women in our book who have all the “P’s, including poise.     

       Thanks for reading about adventures in Costa Rica to practicing Mindfulness wherever you are.  Until next time…

Blessings,

Sally

       People often ask me what my favorite place has been to travel.  It usually is the most recent trip.  So it is not surprising that tonight in my bungalow in the rainforest of Costa Rica that I think this has been one of the most outstanding weeks I have had in regard to humanitarian work.  It has been a week of planning long-term sustainability for a school that is near and dear to my heart. 

       On Monday I was blessed to deliver this year’s school books to the 16 students currently enrolled in the elementary school in the village of Carbon.   The money for the books was donated by one of our passengers on our last trip to Costa Rica in October.  

       Monday was also Valentine’s Day.  It was such a joy to have a mini fiesta at the school with the children.  I brought all types of fun gift items from the Dollar Store in Indianapolis.  We also stopped at the local store en route to the school that morning to get juice, bananas, and chips.  I already had the candy and, of course, chocolate. 

       Every day I have taught English and yoga to the kids then we end by singing some fun songs. This has been a ritual with the kids on my four trips to their school in the last 14 months.    I told them that I would try to learn Spanish if they would try to learn English. 

       Tomorrow morning two other gals and I return to the school at 7 a.m. to deliver new school uniforms.  Each child will receive a white shirt, navy blue pants, socks and shoes.   In my studies of Spanish the past six weeks that would be—camisa, pantalones, calenstines, and zapotas. 

       Another highlight was meeting with the small school board to discuss the “Plan” for the next year, have it approved by all, and start implementing it as soon as possible.  Here are the goals and, hopefully, you will see exactly why I am so excited.

1. Complete the following maintenance projects in the next 30 days:  water system in place, new ceiling in the two classrooms, and a refrigerator so that lunches can be served.

2. Hire an English teacher to start March 1.  The interview process was today and we hired a very dynamic, creative young 27 year old lady.  She will work 14-20 hours a week.

3. Start a library and have no less than 500 books by year end.  The new English teacher will also head up this project in her classroom.  New glass bookcases will be purchased to protect them from the humanity.  The teacher will set up a system to inventory the books as well as signing them out to the students. 

4. Build a Community Center where a partial structure was started a few years ago.  The hope is to raise the $15,000 needed and possibly get half of it from grant funding.  The center will offer workshops to the children as well as parents in the community.  Workshops or activities could include yoga, prenatal classes, gardening, recycling, special training for local women, theater/drama opportunities, art classes, different modules that our volunteers could implement on our trips, etc.     A couple of sewing machines will be considered to teach a few of the local women to make items designed by someone in the states. 

5. Construction of a playground will be implemented after the Community Center is in place

6. Computers will be added to the library with time.

7. Improving the teacher’s house on the property will also be a priority with funding opportunities.  Currently, Maritza doesn’t particularly want to stay on the property without access to water.  She drives back and forth from Limon, which is over an hour and a half one way.  It is not a good situation for her…or the children when she can’t make it.   Tonight I learned of a bungalow floor plan that is somewhat pre-fabricated, placed on the property and new owner is given the key.  It will be interesting to hear the cost.  It got my attention when one of our gals said it was “really cute”.

8. The school board was reassured that our plan is to continue supporting the school each year with the books and uniforms needed for each student.  

9. Once a student graduates from elementary school, our intention is to also provide scholarships for them to go on to high school (approximately $200 a year for school books---more if they need a bicycle to get there). 

       I look forward to seeing the progress when I return to Costa Rica in April.    At that time we will paint eggs and have a big Easter egg hunt.   

       In between the times at the school, my husband and I have enjoyed exploring the area a bit more plus doing some biking and walking on the beach.  We plan to meet with the U.S. Ambassador to Costa Rica in the near future.  The Ambassador, Anne Slaughter Andrew, is a woman from Indiana!!!  

Until next month….

Adios!

       No, I’m not on an humanitarian trip.  I’m in God’s country spending five days with my two daughters skiing.  There is absolutely nothing like being at the top of a mountain looking down at buildings that look like miniature toys.    The difference from the first time I came here about 35 years ago and now is that it takes a bit longer going down the slopes.  It seems you get more cautious with age.   There are so many wonderful memories as this was an annual trip when I worked for the airline and all the years the girls were growing up.

       However, it’s not all play while I am here.  What a thrill it was to take a few minutes to wire $13,690.00 today to South Africa due to the fundraising by the Women Like Us Linawo’s Children’s Home Chapter.   What two gals are doing to make a difference with orphaned children in South Africa is amazing.  Heather Wonnacott works at the Children’s Home in Africa and Amy Gleason is president of the Women Like Us Chapter in Concord, Massachusetts making people aware of the needs.     In the last year, the children moved from a shack in the townships to a home next to a school.   A jungle gym was also built and a vegetable garden was established.  Kudos to these two young women.  I love working with them!!

       In two weeks a group of 23 participants will be going to South Africa after raising $20,000 per person for sustainable projects there.  Linawo’s Children’s Home was able to receive $25,000 for their new home; a new bakery is being built for $50,000; a Halfway House will be established for children leaving orphanages to obtain skills to function on their own; a library is opening at the Christel House founded by Christel DeHaan in Indianapolis; and there are two other organizations that will benefit from over $300,000 raised. 

       What an experience it has been to work with this group the last three years as the challenge of raising $20,000 per person is set forth.   The first year Cambodia Children’s Fund received approximately $275,000.  Last February we were able to build a Birthing Center and an elementary school in Uganda.   I immediately left for South Africa from Uganda last February to set up this year’s trip. 

       It has been a shock to several people that I am not returning to South Africa with the group after a year of setting everything up.  One of the best tour directors, David Gorden, is going to implement the trip for me. 

       Since 1998 I have been leading humanitarian trips all over the world.  It first began with my passion to introduce people to developing countries.   Of course, it was also about the children we served.  What became more meaningful is when we would return to the same destination and make more of an impact with in-kind donations and raising money for small sustainable projects.

       Two years ago I turned over the non-profit I founded, Ambassadors for Children, to start Women Like Us Foundation.   My focus started to change.  It wasn’t as much about setting up voluntourism trips as it was supporting “women just like us” in these developing countries who were running the orphanages and schools we visited.   I wanted to narrow down the places we were supporting AND inspire and empower women to find their own passions and causes that they can support.  Thus, Women Like Us Chapters became a reality and have helped women make a huge difference in a number places in the world.

       I find myself at another threshold in life.  I want to go back to the same place regularly, get to really know the kids, and strategically plan on making a long-term impact.  That place would be Costa Rica.  And, on top of those goals I want to learn Spanish.   I got all the Rosetta Stone Spanish tapes for Christmas.  It is long overdue that I try to communicate with people in their language instead of always thinking people should speak English.  At the same time offering English classes in the elementary school in Costa Rica could help the children with future jobs, especially since tourism is a major industry. 

       My other wish list:  open a preschool academy near the current elementary school where kids traditionally start at seven years old.    It is like all my years of experience and education has led me here.    Supporting 27-year-old Natalie to build her Birthing Center in Uganda was a huge inspiration.  Instead of “supporting”, I want to be leading a new vision this next phase in my life. 

       My advice today is to find your passion in serving.  You don’t have to be a Mother Teresa to do this.  Serving is working for all the right reasons or serving your family as a spouse or as a parent.   As I look back at my career, I loved serving as a flight attendant then later as a trip leader and CEO of a travel company showing people different cultures.  Serving evolves like my best job of all---being a mother.   And now years of doing humanitarian trips serving schools and orphanages, I want to help create one of my own.  Wish me well.  I’ll keep you posted.

       In the meantime, I thought you might like some answers of why people should consider traveling to developing countries:

Question:     Why do you take the risk of traveling to third world countries?

Answer:        You can shine a light on issues and at the end of the day that spotlight makes a difference.

Question:      Isn't it just too depressing to travel to these places?

Answer:        It is more depressing to return here and see how we waste our resources.

Question:     Why help out when it doesn't  solve any problems?

Answer:       "Solving problems" isn't the same as "making a difference". Don't ask yourself whether you can solve a problem; ask yourself whether you can make a difference.

Question:      Why should I care?

Answer:        Being born in the west is basically like winning the lottery. How will you spend it?

Question:      Is it better to just send money?

Answer:        We cannot understand a problem until we have seen it up close. Change can't come from money alone; there must be a deep understanding of the world's issues.

       It would have been nice to have written along the way the past two weeks.  Their Royal Highnesses Crown Prince Alexander and Crown Princess Katherine of Serbia visited Indianapolis on behalf of Women Like Us Foundation mid-October for three days.    There was a private reception and dinner the first night with key medical doctors who specialize in breast cancer.   Serbia has the highest rate of breast cancer and our annual Women Like Us Afternoon Tea and Speaker Series was donating to this cause.     As our keynote speaker, Princess Katherine did an extraordinary job inspiring our guests with a view into her life as princess, whose sole focus is humanitarian work for her country. 

       I met the Royal Couple many years ago after they had established themselves into the palace in Belgrade for the first time in 2001.  Prince Alexander’s father, King Peter II of Yugoslavia,  had been exiled during the war before Alexander was born.   The Prince was born in room #212 at the Claridge Hotel in London, which Winston Churchill declared a soverign Yugoslavia for the Prince to be officially in line for the throne.  Princess Elizabeth became is god-mother, now Queen Elizabeth.

       It was an incredible visit including media interviews and other meetings with people interested in Serbia.  One special lunch included meeting with three CEO’s of Indianapolis special attractions:  The Children’s Museum, The Indianapolis Zoo, and the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra.  The hope was to develop long-term relationships with potential collaboration. 

       Two days after the Royal Couple’s departure, I headed for Costa Rica with a group of fourteen.  And, what a group it was!!    It was a delight to be with four former ATA employees that I had started traveling with in the 70’s.     It brought back memories of the many “layovers” we had as “stewardesses”.      Two other participants were high school girls from Pike and Martinsville, who had received Women Like Us Foundation “One Girl at a Time” Scholarships. 

       The entire group bonded as we stayed at Samasati Nature Retreat in bungalows overlooking the Caribbean.  The days included yoga, vegetarian gourmet meals, hikes, kayaking trip, zip-lining through the rainforest, and two days at a local village elementary school we support.  

Here is what was accomplished at the school:

·  Scholastic books for each student and a set for the teacher that will stay as property of the school

·  Five books requested by the teacher for more advanced and specialty subjects.

·  The beginnings of a library for each age level at the school. Aprox.20 books

·  A water source to the school from the spring in the mountains.

·  Made an official school sign that was posted out front.

·  12 completed desks that were cut, sanded, attached and painted by us.

·  80 trees were provided and planted to assist in keeping the river from flooding into the school.

·  A Friendship Quilt was made and hung.  Students and participants made a 4 x4 square and attached it.

·  There were stations in English lessons, physical fitness, soccer, and photography lead by our volunteers.

·  We provided a classroom size dry erase board for the front of the class room.

·  We bought two pigs for the women shelter nearby for their energy system.                    

·  Built storage shelves and provided some bins. 

·  We took photos of the children and their families, laminated them and gave them to their families.

·  Provided several tools and materials for future construction work.

·  Moved existing dirt pile to other areas.

·  In the near future we will be sending two exhaust fans for the buildings to assist in ventilating the heat and will send them in more storage containers.

       Words are always hard to describe the complete joy we had in working at this school.  I am hooked for life.  Next steps include getting an English teacher working there three days a week, finishing construction on the community center foundation that was started a few years ago, building a playground, and so much more!  Hope you will join us next year---October 29-November 5, 2011.    In the meantime, I will definitely be working on my Spanish.  Adios!

Greetings!  Words are hard to describe the view as I look out over the rainforest toward the Caribbean Sea.  It's amazing here.  My husband and I are staying in a bungalow where we wake to the sound of howler monkeys.  It is more like a roar than a howl.     There is yoga twice a day and incredible vegetarian food.   My type of place!!

It was great visiting the elementary school in the Carbon Village yesterday and today.  It has been almost a year since the last visit and there have been numerous improvements with the money we have sent down.    It was wonderful seeing the 18 students again, who range from 7 to 12 years old.    I was able to lead some yoga, sing some songs, teach a little English, and check out improvements needed for the school.

David Sleppy, our Women Like Us Mission Coordinator for Costa Rica, and I are excited to raise about $3000 to $4500 in the next month or so for the projects identified. First on our list is a new ceiling in the two-room school that has bats.    David reminds me that we must walk before we can run :)   The long term big vision would be to build a library/computer/community center where a foundation has already been laid...and sadly, abandoned due to lack of funds. 

Hope to see a lot done before my return trip from October 16-23. 

Tomorrow I am treating the two people who are helping us with the school projects to a Canopy Tour.  We will be ziplining through the jungles---18 platforms in all.  Neither lady has tried this before.   It will be an experience for them as well as for my husband. 

On another note, His Royal Highness Crown Prince Alexander of Serbia wrote last week.  He will be accompanying his wife, Princess Katherine, to Indianapolis where she will be our speaker at the Women Like Us Afternoon Tea.  A true State Visit.  Hope you can come!

Until next time....

God Bless!

Sally

Serious, there have been so many wonderful things going on this week that the best way to share them is by bullet points:

• $300,000 is being raised by at least 20 people who want to go to South Africa next February.  Five projects have been decided with one left to go for $50,000.   It was between a school library at one school or a science lab in another.  I had the wonderful task to call a long-time friend and Executive Vice President, Cheryl Wendling, at Christel House International on Monday with the good news that her “library was a go!” in Cape Town.
• Her Royal Highness Crown Princess Katherine of Serbia is coming to Indianapolis October 13 to speak at our annual Women Like Us Afternoon and Speaker Series.   We have promised her $10,000 for her breast cancer project in Serbia---the highest in Europe.  I personally need to raise another $2500 to make sure we meet the commitment.   

       The great news is that I received an email from Dr. Scott Miles, one of our sponsors, who shared his long-term interest in helping the women in Serbia by teaching Thermography.  For very little money (compared to mammography) he said he was willing to teach and help the Princess set up a successful breast screening program in her country.

       The hope is to also get the Serbian Orthodox Church here in Indianapolis involved with supporting Princess Katherine’s cause through the Tea on October 13.    A meeting is being schedule with Rev.  Father Dragon Petrovic.  Several years ago the Royal Couple came to Indianapolis to receive an award and we made a visit to their church one morning.  It was the highlight of their trip.  Many of the congregation had lived in Serbia when Prince Alexander’s father had been their King.  A visit from his son was a very special occasion. 

• A preliminary letter was composed yesterday to send to the actress/world humanitarian, Ashley Judd, to be our keynote speaker at our October 2011 tea.    Our hope is to raise $20,000 for a school in Haiti.
• We sent over $8000 to Uganda last week to buy school uniforms for all students at New Hope Orphanage and money to women in the Acholi Slums.  Several of us on the Uganda trip last February brought beads the women had made to sell.  We were able to give them over $4000 in return. 
• We have a new chapter called Women Like Us Hollywood Chapter.  It was started by Catt Sadler and a lot of her friends out in California.  They want to raise money and do make-over for teenage kids getting ready to go back to school.  How awesome is that!
• International artist and head of our founding Chapter, Nancy Noel, called on Sunday wanting to explore taking a group to Kenya in the future to work at her N.A. Noel Preschool and go on safari.  Stay-tune as we research the timing and all the possibilities.
• Another chapter is being consider by a woman who wants to take cakes to at-risk kids on their birthday.   Linda Rendleman and I are thrilled with the idea and also the hope that this can be a model for other chapters in other cities and states. 
• Literally an hour before I had a conference call with international yogis, Seane Corn and Suzanne Sterling, on Monday I received a called from Natalie Angell.  Natalie is the 27 year old Executive Director and Co-Founder of Shanti Uganda, the organization we build a birthing center with in the middle of rural Uganda.   The center is about to open in the next few weeks.  The local women are praying that they can have their babies there.   Natalie is getting people who want to fund one of their mid-wives for $300 a month, which is awesome.  However, she just signed a year contract with a Canadian gal who will oversee all the projects in Uganda for $1500 a month.  Funding is hard to get for a Project Coordinator.   Seane and Suzanne have people who were still raising money for Uganda so we hope to get part of the $18K a year covered.
• I leave for Costa Rica in three weeks and then go again with a group in October.  We have a very small school of currently 20 students.  Our hope is to build a bigger school (foundation has already been laid but funding disappeared) and turn the current two room opened air school into a community center.    From the reports that I have received, the families in the village are all excited about being a part of the building process!!!   We have two high school girls who received WLU scholarships to also go on the October trip so we are trying to get them prepared.  Talk about excitement.  They are thrilled to not only be going but getting their schools involved.

       It has been a world wind!   Conversations about Haiti, Serbia, South Africa, Uganda, Costa Rica, Kenya, and women starting WLUF Chapters to make a difference with at-risk youth have been non-stop.    This does not include all the conversations and meetings I have had with the women this week who are involved with Women Like Us Foundation.   Even though it has been a crazy and stressful, things like I have described above make it all worth it.    Hope to see you October 13 at the Women Like Us Afternoon Tea with Princess Katherine.  She’ll inspire you with what she does every day.

       Since my trip to Africa in February, I haven’t written to you.  It has taken a long time to process the whole experience.  For my group to have raised over $275,000 to build a birthing center and elementary school in Uganda is indescribable.  You are never really the same after a life-changing experience like Uganda. 

       Someone sent me pictures today of the kids we visited in an orphanage and I felt a mixture of emotions---longing to be there, sadness, happiness knowing we are sending approximately $4,000+ this weekend for school uniforms for each of the children.  It’s been extremely important to me in the world of “voluntourism” that we don’t just help with a quick fix, but we are connected long-term.  God willing, we will continue to stay connected. 

       The task now is to finalize sustainable projects in Cape Town, South Africa.  Another group will raise over $300,000 for certain projects to be implemented or built by next February.  Currently, we will be building a Halfway House for teenagers leaving orphanages.  There will also be a project with wonderful bread company in the U.S. who will help us build a bakery for $50,000.  The other projects include educating youth about AIDS through an organization called GOLD; a garden project with EarthChild; and either a library or science lab in a school. 

       I want to tell you briefly about the woman whose dream has been to build the Halfway House.  Rosie is a woman just like us. 

Rosie Mashale had no money in 2001 when she decided to provide a home and place of safety for children who were orphaned, abandoned, abused, or neglected, but she had a vision, a big heart, a lot of resolve, and the constant support of her community.

       The outcome:  Baphumelele aims to provide orphans with a stable, loving and permanent home.  It also serves as a place of safety for children in crisis 24 hours a day.  Children are sometimes brought to Baphumelele by the police or social services as a temporary place of refuge for a few days or a few weeks; others have been in Baphumelele's care for years.  Consequently, the number of children staying at Baphumelele is always fluctuating, but tends to fall somewhere between 140 and 160 children.

       I met Rosie in February after I left Kampala, Uganda for Cape Town South Africa.  She told me her dream was to build a Halfway House because the children leaving the many orphanages end up failing on their own due to drugs, poverty, and much more. 

       Rosie recently signed an agreement just for land for the halfway house.  It is over $209,000.  Several of us had a conference call with her yesterday sharing our concerns about the amount.  The main issue for us is making sure there is a realistic plan from her end knowing we plan to give her $100,000 starting this fall for the building of the Halfway House.  We were under the impression there was land and a house we could have gotten for a total $100K. 

       Below is a copy of an email I received this morning from Rosie. 

Dear Sally,

It was nice to talk to you last night although it was a very short conversation.  I would like to ask you to trust and believe on me.  I will find the foundations or people who will help me out soon.  I will be focusing on that as from next week to make gala's and write proposals, will approach many people.

The plot I have shown you with the house was also R1, 300 thousand and very small to put up all the programmes for the youth in the halfway house, land here is very expensive but I will manage all this.  I am working under pressure now because of the time frame.  I will ask Mike to explain you about myself, because he has known me for years, and I inform him and also update you from now onwards.

Thank you for supporting us and I will keep in touch always.

All the best,

Rosie Mashale

Below is my response just a few hours ago:

Dear Rosie,

You are a woman after my own heart.  I will trust you and believe in you.  Thank you for the email below.  Follow your dream and I will wait to hear your plan.  You didn't get where you are today without being persistent.

Love and blessings being sent to you.

Sally

       I share this with you for several reasons.  It is important to see the passion and perseverance it takes to follow a dream.  And, more importantly, I hope you pray for Rosie’s vision. 

       On another note, please come and meet Her Royal Highness Crown Princess Katherine of Serbia on Wednesday, October 13 at the Women Like Us Tea and Speaker Series.  Check-out www.womenlikeusfoundation.org for more information. 

       It’s good to be back with you after 5 months.  Stay-tune to hear the outcome of Rosie’s efforts.  I’ll also be writing from Costa Rica early September then from Serbia mid-September.  Their Royal Highness Crown Prince Alexander and Crown Princess Katherine of Serbia have invited me to their 25^th wedding anniversary at both their palaces for their weekend celebration :o) 

       Two weeks ago today I arrived in Uganda.  It’s been life-changing for everyone who was on this journey.  The last three days we have entrenched ourselves in the red soil of Africa by helping build an elementary school.  With the $125K we raised for Building Tomorrow, we saw the four acres that was purchased that will have the eight room school, teachers’ facility, playground, and dormitories and/or volunteer house in the future.
       Personally, my humanitarian work has usually not included a lot of manual labor.  I loved it.  I learned about making and laying bricks, carrying them on my head, and wheel barrowing and spreading dirt.
       As always the people were the highlight.  The villagers came out the first day to help work as a team.  They were so appreciative that a school was being built for their children.  This is an area that does not currently have a formal school in operation, giving many children their first opportunity to learn inside a classroom.
       I was filled with joy yesterday as we interacted with over 100 children who will attend the school.  As a group we sang songs, danced, did yoga, drew peace cards, jumped rope, read books, and interacted.
       Every child in the world should be entitled to elementary education.  Did you know that approximately 38 million kids are in school today in the U.S.?  Well, there are approximately 41 million children not in school in the sub-Saharan Africa today. 
       The group started leaving today…either for home or an optional safari excursion.  There was much joy, tears and laughter at our farewell dinner last night.  Like many nights at the hotel, we did a couple of hours of “processing” and checking in with each other.
       What did we learn?  We learned to be present in every situation; that it isn’t just about raising money for projects---it is educating the west (that would be you) about these global issues; it is never about “us” versus “them”; that if someone triggers us, it is probably something we don’t like about ourselves; that we are blessed to live in an area that doesn’t take rape to get married; it has to be about sustainability and relationships and not just giving things; we don’t get rewarded in the U.S. if we aren’t producing---sometimes it is better to let go of ambition and achieving; recreate your life if it isn’t working anymore; our work is about sacred activism—use this work to heal your soul; this work isn’t about any of one of us…this was all a God-thing.
       Thank you for reading and sharing my journey!  I leave for Cape Town, South Africa early tomorrow morning to plan next year’s journey.  In the meantime, I hope to see you at the Women Like Us Afternoon Tea and Speaker Series on Thursday, April 15 to meet Natalie Angell and hear more about the women like us in Africa.  (www.womenlikeusfoundation.org)

       Happy Valentine’s Day from Africa!  After a full day at a very needy orphanage yesterday, we had two hours of yoga practice this morning with Seane Corn.  It truly is the best way to get reconnected again---mind, body, and spirit.  Seane is an internationally celebrated yoga teacher known for her impassioned activism, unique self-expression, and inspirational style of teaching.  She has been asked recently by Oprah’s team to blog about her own background in yoga.
       Last night we had a dinner in a private home of a local yogi.  His home was a haven for a meditation outside under a beautiful pavilion.  Suzanne Sterling, who also joins these trips with Seane and me, is an ecstatic vocalist and composer whose devotional music has been called a “groove-loving and seductive journey into Spirit” and whose music has been commissioned for firm, theater, and DVD.  She sings, plays the drums, and continues to touch souls with her music and singing throughout the trip.  Check her out on www.suzannesterling.com.
       As for the orphanage, I am thrilled to say that we focused on true sustainable projects:  a filtration system for the water taken out a very stagnant stream, a vegetable garden for food, school books, new mattresses for the 80 children who live there, and painted a mural on one of the classroom walls.  The group also did stations where the children rotated every 20 minutes.  The stations included fluoride treatments, taking pictures of each child and putting them into plastic frames (first time for most of them), yoga, dance, colorful parachute, soccer or jump roping and reading.  One of the volunteers said this quote really spoke to her about the day:  "Souls don't have races or sexes or religions.  They are beyond artificial divisions.”  Once again the twenty women on this trip were deeply moved. 
       In summary, Valentine’s Day also reminds me of what this country is dealing with in regard to love, sex, and passion.  The country is trying to promote the ABC’s. 
A = Abstinence, B = Be Faithful, and C = Use a Condom.   
       The rise in AIDS for married couples increases all the time.  Billboards promote the Go Red campaign:  Reliable, Exceptional, Dependable.  Another increase in behavior is “Sugar Daddies”Would you let this man be with your teenage daughter?  So why are you with his? approaching young girls.  One billboard campaign that has been used says it all: 
       With all this, however, it is not looking at the difference but feeling the connectedness of those we do meet.  I’ve learned that true service is dignifying the human experience.  
       Have a great Valentine's Day and know I am thinking of you.
Sally
xo

       Five minutes after entering a birthing center this morning I witnessed a baby being born through a c-section.  I was rushed into the surgery room by Sister Teddy, who I have gotten to known through my three visits now to the medical clinic.  The baby almost died.  I prayed as the baby was cleaned up and a small pump was used to get the baby to breathe.  It was a blessed moment when a weak cry finally occurred.
       This was the mother’s seventh child.  She and her baby would have died if her mother hadn’t brought her to the clinic right away.  Her uterus was about to burst.  She should have had her tubes tied in the process but the law says you must have your husband’s written consent.  The grandmother was beside herself as she herself had 12 children and five have died through AIDS.
       The clinic was fairly busy today---women in labor, one woman getting a DNC from a bad abortion, another ready to deliver a baby that had no heart beat.
       It has also been joyful.  Two days ago I was able to be part of a natural birth.  A healthy baby boy!  There is nothing like being part of this experience----well, unless it is having your own children.  (Ash and Laura---two of the best days of my life :)
       Different gals from my group were able to join me the two days at the clinic.  They, too, will never forget the experience.   
       This was just part of the big news from the last three days in Kasana, Uganda.  Besides visiting the existing clinic, we were there to see the construction area of the new birthing center that was being built from the group's funding.  We took mopeds from our guesthouse the first full morning through the bush to the site.  The founder and now my very special friend for this project, Natalie Angell, had done so much in sixty days when the first machete took to clearing the brush.
       Natalie is a 27 year old Canadian gal who started Shanti Uganda.  We partnered with her to raise funds for her dream to build a birthing center in a very needy area.  The idea was to respect the women’s traditions but also support them in a way they wouldn’t get at a local hospital.  We were able to help make bricks, rub mud over the bricks, walk through the bush to see the neighboring homes, and learn about the solar system and how it was going to be maintained.
       Last night we danced and sang under the African stars around a bonfire at the site with all the local women Natalie has involved.  Natalie has chosen 28 women to learn bead and bag making.  She pays them more than “fair trade” value.  These women’s lives have changed.  I met these women on my last visit to Uganda in September so it was such a joy to see them again.
       Oops...time for dinner.  Talk soon.  Thanks for reading. 
P.S.  Mark your calendar for Thursday, April 15 to meet Natalie at our Women Like Us Afternoon Tea and Speaker Series in Indianapolis.  Money raised at this tea will help support the new birthing center.  Make reservations on www.womenlikeusfoundation.org.

     Words are truly hard to come by when trying to express this experience in Africa.  Today lives were changed for the participants on this trip.  How could it not when you go to the slums where families have been living for decades.  The Acholi Quarters are where people from northern Uganda were forced to leave and settle in Kampala.  There homes were no more than one room shacks with as many as 19 children in one family.  We felt humbled and honored to be invited into them.
     Our visit started in a larger hut used by the community where women were chosen to come meet with us, sing a few songs, then matched with one of our volunteers who went to their homes.  Before leaving the hut the women were given bags of rice, sugar, millet, soap, and de-worming pills that we brought based on the number in their family.
     Each of our women also took gifts based on what they knew of the children’s ages in the home they were to visit.  Everyone on the trip had brought an extra bag of in-kind donations for the birthing center, school, orphanage, and other children we would meet along the way.  Before leaving the hotel for the slums, it was like going Christmas shopping for the families.  All the bags were opened and gifts were chosen with care to take to the families they were to meet.
     Earlier today we spent time learning more about the recent history of Uganda and one of the most designated international criminals---Joseph Kony.  Since 1986 he has been abducting young boys (ages 8, 9, 10…) and forcing them to fight for him.  Young girls have also been abducted to be “wives” and to also cook for them.  The LRA raids remote villages with 15 to 30 solders taking food, medicine, and…children.
     Right now there is peace in northern Uganda.  Joseph Kony is operating in southern Sudan and Democratic Republic of Congo.  It has been one of the longest running wars at 24 years.
     We met with an organization, Invisible Children, and received a detailed overview of what is being done for the former child soldiers.  You cannot even imagine what atrocities these children had to commit just to stay alive.  If you haven’t seen the documentary done by the three young founders of Invisible Children, please make it a priority to do so.  Go to www.invisiblechildren.org.
     At the end of our very long day all the participants shared briefly what it took for each of them to raise $20,000 just to be here in Uganda.  I was shocked when they asked who paid for the food we delivered to the families today.  It is beginning to dawn on them---they did.  They will continue to see the fruit of their labor as our journey continues.
     Every day I learn that women all over the world are truly "women like us".  From the women who live in slums who want nothing more than what we want for our own children to the women who went out of their own comfort zone to raise funds to make a difference.  It truly is about educating, empowering and engaging.

     I am on my way to Uganda.  After a year of planning, the day is finally here.  Dressed in safari gear and a backpack, I’m ready for the 26 hour journey through four airports.  My passengers—22 dynamic women that I’ve never met---will arrive two days after I am in Kampala, the capital of Uganda.
     The most amazing thing about this trip already is that all the participants had to raise $20,000 per person to be able to go.   These gals are all ages and across the United States and Canada.   They raised their $20K through various fundraisers---a feat in itself.  It’s called the Seva Challenge.  Seva means selfless service in Sanskrit.
     The Challenge is in partnership with Off the Mat Into the World, an organization in California.  It is a transformational journey that builds community, provokes critical consciousness about global issues of social justice and equity, and raises significant funds to support communities in crisis.
     Two specific sustainable projects will include building a birthing center and an elementary school in rural areas of Uganda.   With funding sent ahead, both buildings are underway and foundations have been laid.
     The partnership for the birthing center is with Shanti Uganda, a Vancouver-based organization dedicated to improving the physical, emotional and spiritual well-being of communities impacted by war, poverty and HIV/AIDS in Uganda.   The Birthing Center will be a place where women come for prenatal support and care, prenatal yoga, birth assistance, postnatal support and breastfeeding education.  The center will also provide ongoing training for local midwives and those in the birthing center.
     Yesterday I received an email from the founder and executive director of Shanti Uganda, with a request to bring prenatal vitamins.   She had just found out that she is about two months pregnant!   Natalie and I met her last September for the first time as I traveled to Kampala and scouted out land with her for the center.  We were in an existing birthing center when I got to witness a C-section and help with two natural deliveries.   I am so excited to go back and to be part of a new birthing center.
     The school we are building is in partnership with a fellow Indianapolis person.  George Scour is in his late twenties and is founder/executive director of Building Tomorrow.  Building Tomorrow, an international non-profit organization, empowers people to raise funds and awareness to build and support educational infrastructure projects for underserved children in sub-Saharan Africa.   George is amazing and making a huge difference in rural areas of Uganda with his schools.
     It is time to take off on my second leg of my flight.  Stay tuned.  I promise to give you more of an insight into Africa as the days go by.