Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Volunteers Focus on Foundations at Humble School Africa

Crossrods UMC Mission Team at Humble School

Clearing the Way


The volunteers of Crossroads UMC Mission Team spend their first day at Humble School in Uganda Africa. The team worked with North Georgia Interns and others on clearing brush and debris from around the footings of the foundation for the new girls dorm.

















Tuesday, June 28, 2011

A Happy Reunion at Humble School in Africa

The Mission Team Arrives in Africa


Reuniting with the Children of Humble School



We touched down safely in Africa late Sunday night. Eight of our bags didn't make it so we were at the hotel for quite a while trying to sort that out. we finally got to our first hotel around 2 Monday morning. On Monday, we were picked up in the morning, and we headed to the airport to pick up our bags. once we got there, we discovered they sent 6 to the hotel, so after a lot of red tape, we collected the two bags they did have, and went back to the hotel to get the rest.

It was now after 1:00pm, so we went to Kampala to exchange money and have lunch. We made our way across town to the hotel around 7:00pm that night.

Today we went over the Humble School around 10:00am. We got to spend just a little time with the kids in the morning.

We met up with Dave Bennett, he has been here for about a week. The project was well under way, so we spent some time clearing brush and debris from around the footings of the foundation. We went back to the hotel for lunch, and then back to the school. We spent a little time reviewing the plans for the project. The kids were finishing up their school day, so we had an opportunity to spend more time with them. Many of the children remembered me from last year and I remembered them. They asked about you and wanted to know where you are. I spent most of my time with Joshua, David's little brother. David has graduated and is now attending Secondary School. Cody seemed to enjoy working with the mission team. During the afternoon he played volleyball, soccer, and frisbee with the children. He then played guitar for the kids for a while. They loved that! They are also fascinated with all the red, orange, pink, and purple colors in his hair. We will have new photos available soon.

Jennifer


Washington DC to Uganda Africa


Here is a quick map represents the Mission Team's journey from the Washington DC area to Uganda Africa.



This map was created using Google's API. You can quickly and easily create all kinds of maps for your blog or web site using Google's map and charts APIs.

Helping Children in Africa Enjoy Their Next Meal

A Mission of Reducing Health Risks


Hazards of Cooking Over Open Fires


Greg and Austin travel to Northern Kenya Africa and experience a "day in the life" of Gabbra women as they collect wood for cooking over their traditional open fires. They travel around the world to help kids enjoy their next meal by reducing the health risks associated with preparing food over open fires. They are on a mission of reducing the number of deaths caused by respiratory diseases and preserving natural resources. Makes me think more about how small things make a big difference. You can learn more about this project by watching the Stove Man Videos.

Episode 1: Woodwalk from The Paradigm Project on Vimeo.

Follow Greg and Austin around the world on their mission to 5 million stoves. In this episode they travel to Northern Kenya to experience a "day in the life" of Gabbra women as they collect wood for cooking over their traditional open fires.

Sharing Smiles Across the Miles with Video Chat

Talk face-to-face with live video for Free

Skype Video Calling is a Great Way to Stay Connected


People traveling around the world can find it difficult to stay in touch with family and friends. Mobile phones don't always work everywhere. The few mobile phone that do work in foreign lands usually change a significant extra fee for the service. Paying this premium fee usually does not include video calls. A video call is a fantastic experience compared to an audio call. Why not have a video call, especially when its free?

Our Mission Team from the Washington, DC Metro area and other parts of the United States arrived in Uganda Africa and it was good to see their smiling faces during our video call. We did not talk long, because the team had been traveling for about 24 hours and it was 2:00am in Africa. A few pieces of luggage did not yet make it to their destination from their multiple flights. The missing bags are expected to arrive the next day. The team is looking forward to seeing the children at Humble School.

Video calling is free between Skpe users and is incredibly easy to use. You can download this video calling tool from Skype's web site. The video below demonstrates how easy it is to keep in touch with people across the miles.

Saturday, June 25, 2011

About Humble School Mukono Uganda Africa

Humble School Uganda Africa


About Humble School and it's Students



Humble School is located in Lukojjo village, Mpoma parish, Nama sub-county, in Mukono District in Uganda, 6Km along Mukono-Kayunga Road.

The school opened it's doors in February 2004 as a Day and Boarding Primary School, with an initial enrollment of 116 pupils and 9 teaching staff. In 2007 the first class of Primary grade 7, 16 in number, sat for the Primary Leaving Examinations. The results were exceptional as all the 7 boys and 9 girls passed in Division 1 (One) which allowed them to proceed to the secondary level.

In 2007 the school was inaugurated by Bishop Mike B. Watson, as a ministry of the United Methodist Church to the needy and vulnerable children in East Africa. The school goal is to offer quality education, medical care, spiritual care, food, clothing and shelter to orphaned and vulnerable children. You can learn more at the official web site for Humble School.

I included a few pictures taken at the school during my mission trip there last year. Several more photos are available from this Yahoo Flickr web album of Humble School.














































Mission Team Leaves for Africa from Dulles Airport Washington, DC

Another Team Doing Good Takes Flight
Humble School Mission Team on Their Way
About 10 years ago people from around the world joined others in the Washington DC Metro area to support education for children in Africa. A diverse team consisting of moms, dads, sisters, brothers, grandparents, teachers, nurses, programmers, students, and members of Crossroads Community Church in Ashburn, Virgina traveled to Africa to visit the children of Humble School.

Today, over 10 years and dozens of mission trips to Humble School later, another team of amazing individuals departed from Dulles Airport Washington DC on a flight to Africa. This team will work with other teams in Africa to support students, teachers, and staff at Humble School in Uganda Africa. This team of people from Virginia, New York, Hawaii, and other place around the world have joined together to share their skills and knowledge and are looking forward to what they will learn from this exciting experience.



Cody, Jennifer, and Marie arriving at Dulles Airport Washington DC



Dave Norman (Crossroads United Methodist Church, Ashburn, Virginia) with Mission Team


Cody and Drew talking about all the sports equipment the children will now have, thanks to the generous donations from people in the Washington DC Metro Area.

There are many other team members in these pictures, but I do not have written permission to use their names on the web. I hope they will share a little bit about themselves in the comments here and I invite their family and friends to share their stories here too.

I hope people reading this blog will share their words of encouragement and thoughts about social good. Fans of Twitter can use hashtag #Africa2011 in tweets about Social Good in Africa, we will monitor that hashtag and share your tweets! We are seeking to connect with others and encourage you to share these stories by using the Facebook Share button below.

Thursday, June 23, 2011