Introducing ’60 at 60′

A year after her last journey to Africa, Lynne has joined several other friends and formed a new effort to build a maternity clinic in Gulu for the Acholi people.

Lynne turned 60 years young in 2011, and she started asking herself what she could do that would affect others’ lives in this time of economic and political volatility and uncertainty.  Her mind and heart roamed, as they often do, to Africa and the Acholi people there.  She did a little researching and discovered that for just $60,000, the Sisters of St. Joseph in Gulu could build a brand new maternity clinic to provide rest, care and education for expecting and current mothers as well as their children.  Lynne discussed it with her friends Susan Kohl and Frank Haase, who were also turning 60 in 2011.  Together they agreed that there was a nice ring to $60,000 at 60 years of age, and they decided to use the coming year to raise the money for the clinic.  Thus, 60 at 60 was born.

Click on over to 60 at 60 to follow their journey and join their efforts!

#35 – Bring it on home

The travel section of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (a local newspaper here in St. Louis) collects and prints photos of St. Louisans wearing St. Louis items of clothing around the world.  This blog’s photo of Lynne and Jim with the Archbishop Odama has been published with them.

Click here to view the photo and click the box next to “vote as best” to get Lynne and Doorways a little recognition!

#28 – I’m coming home!

From Lynne:

One thing I have not motioned: we have all been sick…in some cases sicker than we had ever been.  It turns out three of us had bugs and recovered in a couple of days, but of course, JoAnn, show-off that she is, has Typhoid Fever!  So, needless to say, we are not hanging around with her anymore!  🙂  She is recovering well.  The last three days we have walked into town and taken bota-botas home.

Love to all who have read and commented here. I have not kept up with the questions, but appreciate each of them. Hopefully the additional photos will compensate. It has been a wonderful trip, and I am grateful for the opportunity and for my gracious and generous hosts, the Sisters of St. Joseph.  Thanks especially to Kyle Kratky, who is the production manager for this blog, and to the staff and board of Doorways, who told me everything was going great whenever I called.

Tomorrow I come home to the states.  I will take a jeep ride to Entebbe, where I will fly to London then Chicago and on to St. Louis, and then I’m home again.

#25 – The Camboni sisters

From Lynne:

These are two of the Camboni sisters.  They are across the road and have been very supportive of our friends here.

Left to right: Sister Cypriana, Jo Ann, Sister Agnes

They have a magnificent garden and raise rabbits, fowl, and a few acres of vegetables, bananas, citrus, etc.

The Camboni sisters have some beautiful mango trees!

Sister Cypriana is from Sudan. She is just learning to drive.  Sister Agnes, who is in charge of the garden and animals, is from Italy, and has been in Africa most of her adult life. She has a turkey, and  she says it is gay.

A gay turkey?

She had its partner last Thanksgiving. I am being my most restrained self.

Daniel Camboni was a Verona (Italy) priest late 1800’s who evangelized much of eastern Africa. As a result, this area is mostly catholic and VERY devotional. I have been to mass many mornings, but it is in Acholi. I have been working on my abs.

#23 – Life in Uganda: baby Sonja and more

From Lynne:

This is baby Sonja. She is 7 months old and usually rides in a wrap on her mom’s back. It is common to see African women with a baby, two or three little kids and a very large load on her head. Population is a huge issue here.

Sonja in a sling on Esther's (her mother's) back

This was an agrarian society before all the conflict. Families grew large, took care of their land, which was passed generation to generation, and were self-sufficient. Now many people have been in the camps for safety, and when they return, others have taken up residence on the land.  Having a title or deed is completely unknown, and government officials are not knowledgeable.

Busy times in Kampala, the capitol of Uganda

There is no industry for jobs, and so few are used to working for someone else. This contributes to the aimlessness many experience.

Asleep on the job.

A lot of people have guns here – big ones.  The man above is a private security employee who couldn’t stay awake on the job.

#22 – Our last day of work

From Lynne:

It was a lot of work, but Jim (my brother-in-law) and I recently wrapped up our part of the crude labor for the construction here with the Sisters of St. Joseph.

Covered in dust!

On our last day at work, Jim and I gave co-workers gifts of various tools and clothing we had brought from home, as well as a snack of boiled eggs and cipati (a fried flat bread) to go with their tea. They loved the gifts!

All the lovely people who have been building with us

It also happened that they caught a bush rat that day and cooked it.

Jim has, by now, returned to the states, and I’m here for another week until I fly back on Monday, March 8.

#18 – The end

From Lynne:

I came out of our door to discover a goat meeting his demise.  Warning: photos may not be for the squeamish.

#17 – Food: you are what you eat, and you eat what you can get

From Lynne:

Some have asked me about food. The first day I ate 2 peanut butter sandwiches and half an avocado. The fruit here is great. Right now we are getting pineapple, papaya, avocado, tomato, bananas.

I also love the beans and rice, green peas, ground nuts, potatoes (white and sweet), a root called casaba and green beans.

Meat is another story. I previously sent pictures of a goat that met its end a few feet from our door, and with no refrigeration, pigs, chickens, goats, beef are slaughtered and handled under conditions we find unsanitary. And very few people can afford them anyway.

We eat eggs, some canned tuna and other meats and a type of ground meat they call mincemeat. Fresh meats, and occasionally fish, are served at the archbishop’s table and the homes of others, and our folks here eat modest portions of these things if well done. A chicken here is not like a chicken at home, and JoAnn had eaten it several times without recognizing it. There is a brown heavy spongy bread made from millet, which local people love and eat at every meal, but it is very hard to eat. Fried flat bread made in homes are bought at stands are very tasty. We can get good wheat bread, yogurt and packaged foods people send. Cheese is available once in a great while. So, when in doubt, I rely on the ubiquitous peanut butter.

#16 – Welcome to St. Moritz

From Lynne:

Welcome to the kitchen of the primary school at St. Moritz, and meet some of the children who study there.

Bridget is the imp on the front left

The nursery school and playground at St. Moritz

The children are delighted to have their pictures taken and want to see the result on the digital screen. As school terms begin now, everyone is scrambling for school fees, and people ask us on the road to help send their children. My brother-in-law received a letter from the gateman where we stay passionately requesting help.

The schools were started by missionaries who still staff some of them. Yet control has been taken over by the government which does everything but provide funding. Teachers have not been paid for months, and understandably, some show up and some do not.  The cooks bake cupcakes and are very proud of their stove which is a charcoal fire box. They drag limbs and pieces of trees in and chop them themselves to make charcoal.

The sisters we stay with sponsor about 30 children at an average of $200 US each, often including room and board. We are well  in a district with lots of schools, so we see the children, all in bright uniforms identifying their school, everywhere. Day students go home for lunch, carrying their shoes for the journey to avoid wearing them out. Resident students wash their clothes in plastic tubs (just like we do!) and lay them across bushes  and off of small trees to dry. No books, no paper, no pens, so everything is by memorization.

Here is the scale for weighing babies and toddlers  at the entrance to JoAnn’s clinic at St Moritz:

This place has no electric and no running water. They did have lights once, but the solar panels were stolen, and they do have a bore hole (well), but the water is bad—they are not sure why. So, like everyone else, they work during the day and carry water when they need it.

Jim, Sister Helen and JoAnn smiling together at St. Moritz

Sister Helen is a midwife, and they are hoping to build a birthing center. (Frank, this may be the one!) JoAnn sees up to 50 patients a day, usually pediatrics and adult onset diabetes. Everybody, including us, eats too many carbs to fill up. And yes, JoAnn has discussed the diabetes with Sister Helen.

#15 – Moving day around town

From Lynne:

It is not uncommon to see lots of stuff piled on one little vehicle. Here it is moving day.

A precarious balancing act!

Our friends here have a Toyota Landcruiser  which is very capable on the deeply rutted roads.

On the way in, we saw baboons along the road. We hope to have a Safari day next week, but so far the Big 5 for us have included donkeys, pigs, goats, chickens and mosquitoes.