One Busy (read: Crazy) Week... Pt. I

It’s been just over a week since I last posted, but so much has happened since then that I’m not sure where to start. Briefly, Tim and Richard came up to Kasese to view the potential projects that we have identified, Chris returned to Canada until January, I visited a refugee camp and then stayed at Asaph’s house. Oh yea, our truck got a very much needed tuneup/overhaul that included a new clutch... As well, the DRC, just a few hours west of where I am working, has erupted into violence, and thousands of Congolese refugees have already fled into Uganda, across the same border that I crossed just a short month ago... so I forewarn you now that this may be quite a lengthy post. Hopefully, I’ll be able to break it up into a few portions for ease of reading.

On Monday, Tim, ACTS’ In-country Director, and Richard, the ACTS construction team foreman, drove out to Kasese with the goal of reviewing and prioritizing the potential projects. We based the decisions on the potential benefit to the community (in comparison to their current situation), expected community involvement and support for a project, accessibility of area (for transportation and construction purposes), and the overall feasibility of a project. In short, Kahindangoma, the three hour hike from the road to the source (re: Oct. 21 blog), was deemed unfeasible, at least until the community is able to extend the road closer to the source. Similarly, Kyrumba was relegated to the bottom of the list because of the accessibility problem as well (re: Oct. 23 blog). We will be focusing on the remaining three potential projects this upcoming month. Oh yes, as a result of these projects, we will be staying in the Kasese area for at least the following month.

Wednesday, we headed back to Mbarara with Tim and Richard for our month end break. But me and Mike first had to attend a District Council coordination meeting on Thursday morning, as the representatives for ACTS. In hindsight, most of the items discussed during the meeting were not actually relevant to ACTS; however, we were invited by the district and thus, had an obligation to attend. It was not all for waste, though, as the highlight of the meeting came at the end when we each received a 14,000 Ug Sh meal and travel allowance for our attendance. Needless to say, I won’t mind if I’m asked to attend the next meeting as well! Also Thursday morning, Chris left to return to Canada. He found out earlier in the week that his grandfather had been diagnosed with stomach cancer and is already in the late stages of the process. Thus, Chris made the difficult decision to leave Uganda in order to spend some time with his grandfather while he can, but will be returning in mid January. This means that our intern group is now down to five girls and two guys, and Andrea will also be heading home soon following the completion of her three month co-op term as water quality officer. So please pray for Chris and his family, that they would be able to cherish the time that they still have together with his grandfather.