Meet our Volunteers, 3rd Quarter 2008 Newsletter

Kat, Alesder and Eri, Bulenga Taxi, originally uploaded by amanda.milholland.

Photo of Kat, Alasdair and Eri in the Back of a Public Taxi

We expanded our volunteer program this quarter with a new partnership with A Broader View Volunteer Corps. A Broader View is a US based non-profit organization offering short term placements for volunteers to work with international social projects in many countries. In September we received two volunteers from A Broader View, Alasdair Cross and Genevieve Parker. We are looking forward to growing more as an organization with a greater volunteer base.

Beth Pagan is from Gainesville, Florida, USA. She is a student at Florida State University and is studying International Affairs, Political Science and Leadership. She volunteered with KACCAD for two months, from May 15th – July 15th 2008. She taught about leadership skills, health and life skills at Kikaaya College, Bbira Vocational and Hajji Kiyemba Memorial Institute. She also helped with the second teacher training, creation of a volunteer handbook and assisted with organization of the student mural project.

Eri Tamura is from Nagano, Japan. She studies International Development Studies at the University of East Anglia in the UK. She volunteered with KACCAD for 3 months, from 15th June to 15th September. In her time with KACCAD she taught health and life skills at Kawempe Royal College, Kikaaya College, Bbira Vocational School and Hajji Kiyemba Memorial Institute. She helped paint the student HIV/AIDS mural at Kikaaya College and participated in the home visit program.

Kylie Cherpes is from Lyons, MI, USA. This fall she will be finishing up her final year at Grand Valley State University in Grand Rapids, MI, where she will complete her degree with a Liberal Studies major. Her emphasis is on Global Social Justice with a Political Science minor. During her two month stay with KACCAD she worked with our Empowerment Education program, helped with the student mural project and participated in home visits to families affected by HIV/AIDS. Kylie, Eri and Beth also helped make bricks at the KACCAD community/volunteer center site.

Fardin Chadorshabchi worked with KACCAD during the month of August. He is Iranian born living in Toronto, Canada. Fardin is currently completing his final year studying Criminology at York University. His previous volunteer work has been with groups including the Economic Club of Toronto (ECOT), Canadian International Council (CIC), Iranian Canadian Network (ICN) and Association in Defense of the Wrongfully Convicted (AIDWYC). Fardin worked with the Empowerment Education program and did home visits to people living with HIV/AIDS during his time with KACCAD. He also helped on the Kikaaya Student HIV/AIDS Mural project.

Kat Gordon is from London, England. She graduated from Oxford University in English Literature. She is preparing to pursue a Masters in creative writing in the fall. She volunteered with KACCAD for one month from 15th August to 15th September. During this time she was involved in home visits to families affected by HIV/AIDS and taught at Bbira Vocational School, Kawempe Royal College and Kikaaya College. She also started a gymnastics program for a local boys’ football team to help build strength, agility, teamwork and confidence.

Joanna Williamson, who is half-Scottish, half New Zealander and lives in Switzerland, stayed with us during the month of September, celebrating her 28th birthday here in Kikaaya. In Geneva, Joanna works for the Corporate Learning EMEA office of the business school Thunderbird School of Global Management (the main campus is in Phoenix, Arizona). Joanna taught Small Business Skills with a focus on Budget Management to vocational students, young women who had dropped out of school early, women’s group members and the general community.

Alasdair Cross, from Scotland, worked with KACCAD for two weeks in August. He is a student at the University of Dundee with a focus on neuroscience. He is also studying to be a pilot. During his time with KACCAD he worked with our education program and helped Kat teach gymnastics.

Genevieve Parker from Washington D.C will be working with KACCAD for 3 months. She started her service at the beginning of September. She is a high school graduate from The Potomac School, a small school just outside of Washington D.C. She plans to attend Hofstra University on Long Island, NY starting the fall of next year. At The Potomac School, she did some African studies which initially excited her for travel and life in Uganda. Her previous volunteer experience is in child tutoring and mentoring with children aged 5-13, work she has been doing for the past four years. This past summer she worked with The Potomac School Summer Day Camp as a counselor for Chorus, Arts and Crafts and Theatre. Gennie is currently working with the KACCAD education and home visit programs. She and Sarah are also working to design water and hygiene programs for the school and communities we work with that we will be carrying out in October.

Sarah Beal is from Upper Arlington, Ohio. Sarah graduated from Miami University of Ohio in 2006 and has been working in the areas of nonprofit management and fundraising ever since. She began working for CMT Entertainment in 2006 where she managed the "Music Drives Us" foundation as well as helped with event planning and fundraising efforts for corporate and non-profit partners. Most recently Sarah worked for the Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund as a part of the fundraising team. Although, this is her first time traveling to Uganda, Sarah volunteered in Ghana during the summer months of 2005 and has been planning to return to Africa ever since. During her time spent in Ghana she assisted patients in their travel to medical facilities to ensure proper care and treatment were administered, as well as sought out those in need of medical attention. Sarah also worked alongside community volunteers to build a new community center for Abrafo Odumasi. Lastly, she was able to travel to various school sites to observe the classroom setting as well as provide tuition assistance to sponsored students. Sarah will be working with KACCAD for 3 months supporting our Empowerment Education and HIV/AIDS home visit programs.