A lot has happened since my last blog update. Last I wrote was when I had site visitors from the new volunteer training group. Since then in mid-July I’ve been to the COS conference, so I’ve been closing out my service, saying goodbye, and reflecting on the past two years.
The last weekend of July was the COS Conference, and it was nice. COS stands for “close-of-service”, so the conference was specifically for all the volunteers in the group I arrived with two years ago. All 70 of us were brought to spend the weekend at a nice hotel in Maputo and we had sessions about out-processing on our given COS dates (mine is November 10th!), we also discussed RPCV benefits, and re-adjusting to American life and saying farewell to Mozambique. What was most helpful was talking about re-integrating into American life. Here’s some of the stuff we discussed during over the weekend.
It’s a strange feeling knowing I’m going home soon. I’m excited to go home and be with my family and friends again, but it’s also sad having to say goodbye to the people I’ve grown to love here. I’ve never felt so many different emotions about a transition like this.
I’ve adjusted to Mozambican life, even the way I speak English has changed a bit. I’ve had to learn Portuguese, so when speaking to other PCVs here during our conversations we’ll throw in Portuguese words and phrases to express ourselves. For example, if an American friend says to me here, “I’m going to go do this, so wait for me.” I would reply, “Ok, well are you going to demorar?” And sometimes I accidentally shoosh my S’s like Mozambicans… I won’t be able to do that when I go home. I might accidentally come out with that and then it will just be awkward.
I’ve missed a lot since I’ve been here. I’ve missed holidays, weddings, graduations, birthdays, anniversaries, current events, a funeral, my sister’s baby shower and the birth of my first nephew. For the rest of my life I feel like there will always be a gap when talking to friends and family about things that happened during this time.
What else will change in my life? I’m going to lose my rock star status. It may sound conceited to say, but it’s totally true that I’m a celebrity in my community. Everyone knows who I am. Other PCVs would understand what I’m talking about. Along with that status you receive a lot of unwanted attention, which has been a constant annoyance throughout my service, so I’m REALLY looking forward to fitting in again.
One of the best things to come out of this experience are the friendships I’ve made. I feel like after this it will be hard to relate to people back home about certain things. When I go back home and people ask me about my Peace Corps service, there’s only so much I can say while I have someone’s attention to share with them. How do I briefly describe over two years of experiences? During COS conference we talked about creating an “elevator speech”, which is how to describe all of your Peace Corps service in a matter of minutes before the person loses interest. I’m still working on mine, but y’all be ready for that!
Amidst the feelings about coming home, excitement is the most prevalent! I’m REALLY looking forward to being around my friends and family again. I’m sure I won’t have much of a hard time re-adjusting to running water, air conditioning, hot showers, Mexican food, fresh coffee, big comfy couches and malls. The list goes on…
I’m so grateful for this experience it’s helped me personally and professionally. So, what’s next for me? I’m not 100% sure yet and I’d be lying if I said that doesn’t scare me. But, I’m confident that I will get into grad school, that I’ll get into nursing school if I pursue that, that I’ll graduate with excellent grades, that I’ll find a good job that I like, that I’ll always be in the right place at the right time, and that I will forever appreciate the people and the things in my life. I feel like there’s nothing I can’t do and like nothing can bring me down.
My Peace Corps service is actually coming to an end. I’M COMING HOME, AMERICA!!!!!!!!!
October 18, 2011
July 15, 2011
No longer a rookie!
I got a puppy a few months ago, his name is Chance. He’s the third dog I’m attempting to raise. The other two puppies disappeared. I only have a few months left here, so he’s my last Chance to raise a dog. Yesterday I was making dinner for Naa and me at my house as she was getting her hair braided. Chance is still small and I bought a collar for him that is way too big. The collar is a belt, and I had to poke an extra hole so it’d fit, and so the slack of the belt hangs and drags across the ground as he walks around. It’s a pretty funny sight. Chance is a “hot mess” as Naa would say because he is always barking and chasing something; his tail, a pig, a kid, whatever. In the midst of our conversation I heard Chance outside the kitchen window barking bloody murder. I look out and he’s in the entrance of our yard watching the kids walk home from school. He was in “downward dog” position with his butt in the air and his head to the ground, barking at this one little boy who was about five feet away from him, tantalizing him in the local language. The kid would run up to Chance, then run back, and yell something. Chance did not like that, it was drawing the attention of other children and they’d stop and join in. Then Chance would run from side to side and just keep barking. I guess he barked long enough because then I heard the other grown dog from our yard start barking and howling at the kids. Then he came charging in the direction of the kids, they immediately started screaming and running away, and on his way out he trampled Chance. Literally. Chance was trying to run in front of him but the dog literally ran over him, knocked him over and Chance flipped forward. He got up, shook himself off, and came back inside. The scene was really funny to watch. “Oh the ways we find to entertain ourselves in Peace Corps.” I said to Naa.
I have been in Peace Corps Mozambique for about a year and ten months now. One of the first blogs I wrote was about “site visit” in October 2009 I was sent to the Tete province to visit two PCVs to see what it’s really like being a volunteer here. I’m proud to say that I’ve been here long enough to be on the other end of that spectrum. The new group of health volunteers arrived last month and they are currently in training in Namaacha, living with host families, learning Portuguese and culture and health tech stuff. This past week Peace Corps sent two trainees to come stay with me for a few days to show them the area, show them my work, and talk to them about life as a PCV.
Last Saturday was preparation day. Naa and I ventured into the city and bought a ton of food. Not really, but to me it was. We bought enough to feed three people for a week or two. We stocked up on vegetables, pasta, cheese, baking supplies, and ground beef-such a treat considering I hardly ever eat meat here. (Side note: people ask me what I eat here. Those few days our menu at my house consisted of eggplant parmesan and spaghetti, taco salad, quesadillas, pizza, and eggs & pancakes...without syrup.) It was good that we ran those errands then because it’s rainy season and it was not easy carrying everything while trudging through all the mud and traffic and cold weather, not something fun for people new to here to have to do.
They arrived Sunday. We volunteers took our trainees to the Indian Restaurant in Xai Xai. It was nice until I started getting sick from something I ate and spent the rest of the evening in bed with a stomach ache from hell and vomiting. No worries, things like that happen here often and they go as quick as they come.
Monday I took my two trainees to the small hospital where I work. I had scheduled a meeting with the women (activistas) I work with to fall on that day, and surprisingly the majority showed up. Late as usual, but they showed up. After giving them a tour, the trainees asked me what I did there and I explained how I’ve been going on home visits with the activistas visiting patients living with HIV/AIDS to monitor their treatment adherence. As we were waiting for more activistas to arrive, I thought it’d be a good idea for them to get an idea of what it’s been like for me working with these women in the community. So, I sent them on their way. I paired each trainee up with two activistas, and I told them to go on a home visit in the near area. My only a criterion for them was to invite the person they visit to come to the hospital to take an HIV test and to learn one phrase in the local language, Chengana. They didn’t look too thrilled for this activity; they were concerned about their role and language. “Just stick to the goal of the visit, and get used to the feeling about being worried about your role and language, because that’s Peace Corps.” Upon arrival, one of the trainees was sprinting back to the hospital with the women I sent her along with. She was saying something in Chengana that I had no idea what; she said she learned how to say “RUN!” They told me how their visits went. I gave them suggestions and shared my experiences. The meeting with the group started. It was my opportunity to talk to the activistas about them starting an income generation project, building a garden in the hospital, and about home visits. They decided that for their income generation project, they want to run an estaleiro, selling firewood and coal- the most used materials that people use to cook here. Those are on my list of things-to-do before I COS (close-of-service) aka before I LEAVE.
After lunch we went to Dona Angela’s house. Dona Angela is an activista at the hospital. She is my co-worker, my friend, someone I really look up to. She has taught me a lot about life and I will miss her dearly after I leave. I’ll have to write a whole other blog entry in tribute to her. Anyway, we went to her house because Angela and I started a REDES group. REDES, once translated to English, stands for Teenage girls In Development, Education, and Health. Angela and I have a group of local teenage girls we meet with on a weekly basis to do activities such as crafts and theater and use them as opportunities to talk about health and self-esteem. The trainees met some of the girls from the group; most of them were at school. They asked one of the girls that came what she liked about REDES and she said, “I like that we learn new things, it’s fun, and I’m around my friends.”
Tuesday I took the trainees to the orphanage and to two CBOs (community-based-organizations). We toured the orphanage and played games with the kids, and I discussed my book project with one of the administrators. After that I took them to one CBO near the hospital where we have monthly nutrition support groups with HIV+ women and their children. The other CBO I took them to is located in the city of Xai Xai, so we traveled there and unfortunately they were closed. But I still told them about what they do and about what I’ve done with them for the past year: a permaculture project, establishing a relationship with another organization in Maputo that might need their support, etc. After those two days of hard work, we hit the beach.
During their stay the trainees were able to give me some recent films that I’ve missed out on over the past 2 years, and they also filled me in on technology, fashion and politics. I now know the difference between an Android, an iPhone, and a tablet. My response to them about “Blockbuster” going out of business was, “I don’t understand.”
Apparently American women like to sew feathers into their hair now? They told me child obesity continues to rise and its predicted that by 2015 50% (I think that was the percentage, don’t quote me) of American children will be diagnosed with Type II diabetes. What I took away from that conversation was that our population continues to grow older, fatter, technologically advanced, and unique. With all of your inventions, issues, and controversies, I love you, America.
Besides me showing them my site and work, the trainees asked me about my coping skills, what’s been the hardest, when was the hardest, and if I wish I had been given specific advice when I was a trainee. I told them I journal, talk to other PCVs, email friends, take the dog for a walk, and of course listening to music has all helped me cope. I told them everything has been hard for me here: being away from home, my role as a volunteer, staying motivated and productive, loneliness, receiving unwanted attention, being broke all the time. I told them that for me, the hardest throughout this journey has been homesickness; because that is constant. I miss the people I love to a degree that I can’t even describe. I told them that all of those things are hard, and that by far the most difficult point in my service was my first two months at site. I said then it’s really hard because you’re really alone, you don’t know anybody and you don’t speak the language well yet, and I was sick a lot during that time due to stress. I told them that I wish that as a trainee that I had been told to enjoy training. Many of the PCVs that visited us during training told us that “things are so much better after training; life is so much easier once you get to your site.” I told them that’s not true and that it’s all hard in its own way, but it’s totally worth it. I’m thankful for this experience. It has made me better and I’ve grown a lot as an individual.
After those questions, we shared experiences here. One of the trainees reminded me of myself in the beginning when I heard her say to the other, “Ummmm, there are cockroaches in the latrine, covering the inside!” The trainees left on Wednesday to return to Namaacha. They have their final interviews this week with our PC supervisor. They will find out next week where their sites will be, so I will soon know who will be replacing me- picking up my work and living with me during my last 3 months here. It was a good site visit, especially since I was the host and not the rookie!
I have been in Peace Corps Mozambique for about a year and ten months now. One of the first blogs I wrote was about “site visit” in October 2009 I was sent to the Tete province to visit two PCVs to see what it’s really like being a volunteer here. I’m proud to say that I’ve been here long enough to be on the other end of that spectrum. The new group of health volunteers arrived last month and they are currently in training in Namaacha, living with host families, learning Portuguese and culture and health tech stuff. This past week Peace Corps sent two trainees to come stay with me for a few days to show them the area, show them my work, and talk to them about life as a PCV.
Last Saturday was preparation day. Naa and I ventured into the city and bought a ton of food. Not really, but to me it was. We bought enough to feed three people for a week or two. We stocked up on vegetables, pasta, cheese, baking supplies, and ground beef-such a treat considering I hardly ever eat meat here. (Side note: people ask me what I eat here. Those few days our menu at my house consisted of eggplant parmesan and spaghetti, taco salad, quesadillas, pizza, and eggs & pancakes...without syrup.) It was good that we ran those errands then because it’s rainy season and it was not easy carrying everything while trudging through all the mud and traffic and cold weather, not something fun for people new to here to have to do.
They arrived Sunday. We volunteers took our trainees to the Indian Restaurant in Xai Xai. It was nice until I started getting sick from something I ate and spent the rest of the evening in bed with a stomach ache from hell and vomiting. No worries, things like that happen here often and they go as quick as they come.
Monday I took my two trainees to the small hospital where I work. I had scheduled a meeting with the women (activistas) I work with to fall on that day, and surprisingly the majority showed up. Late as usual, but they showed up. After giving them a tour, the trainees asked me what I did there and I explained how I’ve been going on home visits with the activistas visiting patients living with HIV/AIDS to monitor their treatment adherence. As we were waiting for more activistas to arrive, I thought it’d be a good idea for them to get an idea of what it’s been like for me working with these women in the community. So, I sent them on their way. I paired each trainee up with two activistas, and I told them to go on a home visit in the near area. My only a criterion for them was to invite the person they visit to come to the hospital to take an HIV test and to learn one phrase in the local language, Chengana. They didn’t look too thrilled for this activity; they were concerned about their role and language. “Just stick to the goal of the visit, and get used to the feeling about being worried about your role and language, because that’s Peace Corps.” Upon arrival, one of the trainees was sprinting back to the hospital with the women I sent her along with. She was saying something in Chengana that I had no idea what; she said she learned how to say “RUN!” They told me how their visits went. I gave them suggestions and shared my experiences. The meeting with the group started. It was my opportunity to talk to the activistas about them starting an income generation project, building a garden in the hospital, and about home visits. They decided that for their income generation project, they want to run an estaleiro, selling firewood and coal- the most used materials that people use to cook here. Those are on my list of things-to-do before I COS (close-of-service) aka before I LEAVE.
After lunch we went to Dona Angela’s house. Dona Angela is an activista at the hospital. She is my co-worker, my friend, someone I really look up to. She has taught me a lot about life and I will miss her dearly after I leave. I’ll have to write a whole other blog entry in tribute to her. Anyway, we went to her house because Angela and I started a REDES group. REDES, once translated to English, stands for Teenage girls In Development, Education, and Health. Angela and I have a group of local teenage girls we meet with on a weekly basis to do activities such as crafts and theater and use them as opportunities to talk about health and self-esteem. The trainees met some of the girls from the group; most of them were at school. They asked one of the girls that came what she liked about REDES and she said, “I like that we learn new things, it’s fun, and I’m around my friends.”
Tuesday I took the trainees to the orphanage and to two CBOs (community-based-organizations). We toured the orphanage and played games with the kids, and I discussed my book project with one of the administrators. After that I took them to one CBO near the hospital where we have monthly nutrition support groups with HIV+ women and their children. The other CBO I took them to is located in the city of Xai Xai, so we traveled there and unfortunately they were closed. But I still told them about what they do and about what I’ve done with them for the past year: a permaculture project, establishing a relationship with another organization in Maputo that might need their support, etc. After those two days of hard work, we hit the beach.
During their stay the trainees were able to give me some recent films that I’ve missed out on over the past 2 years, and they also filled me in on technology, fashion and politics. I now know the difference between an Android, an iPhone, and a tablet. My response to them about “Blockbuster” going out of business was, “I don’t understand.”
Apparently American women like to sew feathers into their hair now? They told me child obesity continues to rise and its predicted that by 2015 50% (I think that was the percentage, don’t quote me) of American children will be diagnosed with Type II diabetes. What I took away from that conversation was that our population continues to grow older, fatter, technologically advanced, and unique. With all of your inventions, issues, and controversies, I love you, America.
Besides me showing them my site and work, the trainees asked me about my coping skills, what’s been the hardest, when was the hardest, and if I wish I had been given specific advice when I was a trainee. I told them I journal, talk to other PCVs, email friends, take the dog for a walk, and of course listening to music has all helped me cope. I told them everything has been hard for me here: being away from home, my role as a volunteer, staying motivated and productive, loneliness, receiving unwanted attention, being broke all the time. I told them that for me, the hardest throughout this journey has been homesickness; because that is constant. I miss the people I love to a degree that I can’t even describe. I told them that all of those things are hard, and that by far the most difficult point in my service was my first two months at site. I said then it’s really hard because you’re really alone, you don’t know anybody and you don’t speak the language well yet, and I was sick a lot during that time due to stress. I told them that I wish that as a trainee that I had been told to enjoy training. Many of the PCVs that visited us during training told us that “things are so much better after training; life is so much easier once you get to your site.” I told them that’s not true and that it’s all hard in its own way, but it’s totally worth it. I’m thankful for this experience. It has made me better and I’ve grown a lot as an individual.
After those questions, we shared experiences here. One of the trainees reminded me of myself in the beginning when I heard her say to the other, “Ummmm, there are cockroaches in the latrine, covering the inside!” The trainees left on Wednesday to return to Namaacha. They have their final interviews this week with our PC supervisor. They will find out next week where their sites will be, so I will soon know who will be replacing me- picking up my work and living with me during my last 3 months here. It was a good site visit, especially since I was the host and not the rookie!
Books For Kids
Dear America,
My time here is getting shorter. I will be ending my service in November. I have about a month left to raise the rest of the money for the Books for Kids project for the orphanage before the month of August ends. I think I have about a thousand dollars or so left to raise. I thank you for any contributions made or to be made.
I’m asking that you donate only $2 today. That’s half of what you’ll spend for a drink at Starbucks. If everyone I know donated two dollars, I’d raise the rest of the money soon enough.
The books are for the kids, it’s a great opportunity. I need you to help me to make this project come true. Every little bit helps. Click on the link below to do so.
https://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=donate.contribute.donatenow&keyword=mozambique
Thank you and God Bless,
Mallory
My time here is getting shorter. I will be ending my service in November. I have about a month left to raise the rest of the money for the Books for Kids project for the orphanage before the month of August ends. I think I have about a thousand dollars or so left to raise. I thank you for any contributions made or to be made.
I’m asking that you donate only $2 today. That’s half of what you’ll spend for a drink at Starbucks. If everyone I know donated two dollars, I’d raise the rest of the money soon enough.
The books are for the kids, it’s a great opportunity. I need you to help me to make this project come true. Every little bit helps. Click on the link below to do so.
https://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=donate.contribute.donatenow&keyword=mozambique
Thank you and God Bless,
Mallory
June 17, 2011
Books for Kids
Earlier this year, I posted that I was trying to write a grant to receive books for an orphanage located near my house in Xai Xai. I’m pleased to say that I finished and submitted the grant and the fundraiser is now online where YOU can go and make a contribution to this cause. Ok so here’s a quick description of the project…
There’s an organization called “Books for Kids”. They are able to deliver educational children’s books written in Portuguese (the national language in Mozambique) along with a shelving unit and then they send someone to facilitate a local training to teach local counterparts librarian skills and how to facilitate group reading with children. The only thing they lack is FUNDING. So, as a PCV I had the opportunity to write a Peace Corps Partnership Program grant. Once approved, a fundraiser is set up online through the Peace Corps website (link posted below). Once you click on the link there you will find a more detailed description of this project.
I wrote a grant to implement this project at the provincial orphanage of Gaza, located here in Xai Xai not too far from my house. Here are some frequently asked questions I’ve been receiving:
1. What are the books about that the orphanage will be receiving?
-There are 200 children’s books to be delivered. The books are simple children’s books, picture books, and some have health related material. Unfortunately, I don’t have a list of the books that will be sent, but from my understanding, the books are wholesome and some teach the importance of a healthy lifestyle, respecting others, etc.
2. Are any of the books religious?
-No.
3. What is the community contribution part of the project?
-The orphanage’s contribution is the actual sustainability of the project.
4. How is it that there are only fifty orphans at an orphanage for a whole province?
-In Mozambique, children whose parents have died may not be considered orphans as long as they have other family members to take care of them. The provincial orphanage of Gaza “only” has fifty orphans because they really have no one else to care for them and they were brought here.
5. How can you tell how much money has been raised so far?
-The initial project cost was $3,093. When you click on the link and see the option of where to donate money, it will tell you how much money is currently needed. You can subtract that from the initial cost.
Next week I’ll try to post some pictures of the orphanage. Thank you all ahead of time for any contribution.
Click here to go and make a contribution to my project:
https://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=donate.contribute.donatenow&keyword=mozambique
There’s an organization called “Books for Kids”. They are able to deliver educational children’s books written in Portuguese (the national language in Mozambique) along with a shelving unit and then they send someone to facilitate a local training to teach local counterparts librarian skills and how to facilitate group reading with children. The only thing they lack is FUNDING. So, as a PCV I had the opportunity to write a Peace Corps Partnership Program grant. Once approved, a fundraiser is set up online through the Peace Corps website (link posted below). Once you click on the link there you will find a more detailed description of this project.
I wrote a grant to implement this project at the provincial orphanage of Gaza, located here in Xai Xai not too far from my house. Here are some frequently asked questions I’ve been receiving:
1. What are the books about that the orphanage will be receiving?
-There are 200 children’s books to be delivered. The books are simple children’s books, picture books, and some have health related material. Unfortunately, I don’t have a list of the books that will be sent, but from my understanding, the books are wholesome and some teach the importance of a healthy lifestyle, respecting others, etc.
2. Are any of the books religious?
-No.
3. What is the community contribution part of the project?
-The orphanage’s contribution is the actual sustainability of the project.
4. How is it that there are only fifty orphans at an orphanage for a whole province?
-In Mozambique, children whose parents have died may not be considered orphans as long as they have other family members to take care of them. The provincial orphanage of Gaza “only” has fifty orphans because they really have no one else to care for them and they were brought here.
5. How can you tell how much money has been raised so far?
-The initial project cost was $3,093. When you click on the link and see the option of where to donate money, it will tell you how much money is currently needed. You can subtract that from the initial cost.
Next week I’ll try to post some pictures of the orphanage. Thank you all ahead of time for any contribution.
Click here to go and make a contribution to my project:
https://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=donate.contribute.donatenow&keyword=mozambique
May 16, 2011
Shout Outs
Being in Peace Corps is not all fun and games. It's tough. It's tough being far from home and not talking to friends & family on a regular basis and it's constantly tough defining your role as a Volunteer. I appreciate all the support I've gotten from back home since I've been here. It keeps me sane. Real quick, I just wanted to take a minute to give some shout outs and say a few thank yous to:
Mom & Dad- My greatest supporters. Though it's been difficult, thank you for supporting me unconditionally with cards and care packages and being available to call me when I need to talk. I love you and miss you
My Sister, Alison- thank you for the cards and updates on my beautiful new nephew :) and for being there to talk to me.
My granny, aunts, and uncles and other relatives- Thank you ALL for the endless cards and occasional packages of love
Ms. Jill- Thank you SO much for donating your old BB to me! I haven't gotten it yet but I will let you know as soon as I do. I REALLY appreciate it and the timing is perfect considering my other phone recently quit working. I miss you and love you and I'm looking forward to us all catching up at the end of the year.
Karissa- my best friend on the planet. I love you girl and I miss you SO much. I know your busy back home but thank you for being able to text me and email me on a regular basis. Thank you for going shopping for me for when my parents need to send me something. (My mom would be lost in the mall lookin for what I need!) You are such an amazing friend. Give your family hugs for me and tell them I'll be there for dinner in November.
Sara- Thank you so much for the care packages, you have NO idea how much they mean to me and how much I enjoy them. They always make my day/week/month. Such a sweet heart!
ALL my close girl friends, including: Kristyn, Karissa, Brandy, Sara, Taylor & Lindsey...Thank you girls for being there to listen and give good advice and feedback, from across the world. I miss you all!
Pete- Thanks for the lil package of goodies, it made my day! I miss you and I must say, my Peace Corps experience just isn't the same without you. I miss you buddy, see ya on tha other side someday :)
Thank you to all of my other friends who make themselves available to skype with me occasionally. It means so much!
All of my mom's students and our family friends- thank you for the occasional letters and care packages.
If I forgot ANYBODY at the moment, I apologize, I have not forgotten I'm just pressured right now to be quick because I'm paying by the minute and I'm on a budget...Thank you to all again, for your support and love.
XOXO
Mom & Dad- My greatest supporters. Though it's been difficult, thank you for supporting me unconditionally with cards and care packages and being available to call me when I need to talk. I love you and miss you
My Sister, Alison- thank you for the cards and updates on my beautiful new nephew :) and for being there to talk to me.
My granny, aunts, and uncles and other relatives- Thank you ALL for the endless cards and occasional packages of love
Ms. Jill- Thank you SO much for donating your old BB to me! I haven't gotten it yet but I will let you know as soon as I do. I REALLY appreciate it and the timing is perfect considering my other phone recently quit working. I miss you and love you and I'm looking forward to us all catching up at the end of the year.
Karissa- my best friend on the planet. I love you girl and I miss you SO much. I know your busy back home but thank you for being able to text me and email me on a regular basis. Thank you for going shopping for me for when my parents need to send me something. (My mom would be lost in the mall lookin for what I need!) You are such an amazing friend. Give your family hugs for me and tell them I'll be there for dinner in November.
Sara- Thank you so much for the care packages, you have NO idea how much they mean to me and how much I enjoy them. They always make my day/week/month. Such a sweet heart!
ALL my close girl friends, including: Kristyn, Karissa, Brandy, Sara, Taylor & Lindsey...Thank you girls for being there to listen and give good advice and feedback, from across the world. I miss you all!
Pete- Thanks for the lil package of goodies, it made my day! I miss you and I must say, my Peace Corps experience just isn't the same without you. I miss you buddy, see ya on tha other side someday :)
Thank you to all of my other friends who make themselves available to skype with me occasionally. It means so much!
All of my mom's students and our family friends- thank you for the occasional letters and care packages.
If I forgot ANYBODY at the moment, I apologize, I have not forgotten I'm just pressured right now to be quick because I'm paying by the minute and I'm on a budget...Thank you to all again, for your support and love.
XOXO
Tests & Trials
The month of April was a rough month. I spent all my monthly allowance too soon, and so the rest of the month I only had a hundred meticais to get me through. A hundred meticais is equal to about three US dollars. Sadly, I’m really not exaggerating. The same thing happened with Naa. We struggled together. During that month, we really learned how to stretch a dollar and how to stay positive while doing it.
I really dislike not having the money to buy the things I want or to go places I’d like to see. I live in a beautiful region in the world, and I don’t even have the money to travel to places here that I’d like to see. Peace Corps recently gave us our W-2 for 2010, which, I believe showed that I earned less than $3,000 for all of last year. But then again, that’s not why I joined Peace Corps and I don’t really think of myself as poor. I have options, through Peace Corps and back home. I was never truly worried about what I was going to eat. I trust my neighbors wouldn’t let me go hungry, nor would my parents if it came to that. I’ve seen suffering in the eyes of patients in the hospital, children without family, people dying from AIDS. And so I know I have not truly suffered.
With that being said, being broke is not really fun. But somehow, being so broke and waiting for our next paycheck every day gave Naa and me the opportunity to be a bit dramatic and we had fun while doing it.
I talk to Naa every morning. We call each other and talk about our plans for the day and encourage each other. I called her one morning to see how she was hanging in there, because the day before she was unable to come to Xai Xai. When I called her she said she was making oatmeal for breakfast and was going to come to Xai Xai today to go to the bank. I heard her cat meowing loudly in the back ground. She was talking about something and I had to interrupt her to ask,
“OMG Naa, what is Sadie fussin over?”
“Girl, this cat is TOO much right now. She’s fussin because I gave her a little bit of oatmeal for breakfast and now she’s lookin at me like ‘You expect me to eat this? Woman where are those eggs you used to give me or that canned cat food at?’ “
Naa cracks me up. I wish I could record the things she says and put it in this blog.
In response to her cat, laughing at the same time, Naa said to her, “LOOK Sadie, we goin through HARD TIMES right now. PROLLY cause I was buyin you eggs and canned cat food in the FIRST place. I don’t know WHERE you think those things come from, cat, but those things cost money and are NOT cheap. And now part of the reason we strugglin is cause of your high cost meals so don’t you look at me like that and just EAT what is given to you!”
After laughing about that for a minute, she asked me how my puppy is doing. I said he’s ok, ridden with fleas but ok and energetic and thankfully he eats whatever I give him. He’s not picky so he’s gonna make it.
We met in the city later that afternoon. I wanted to mail a letter but couldn’t. I wanted to go to use the internet but couldn’t. I wanted to buy more credit to talk on my phone but couldn’t. So rough. We met at a gas station across the street from KFC. It still wasn’t open at that point, which is probably a good thing. Just one less temptation. We decided to go to the bank first. The bank here requires that your account always has at least 500 meticais. We went to the ATM and both of our statements were not too far from that. We decided to go inside and ask if we could withdraw a portion of the little money we had. Our game plan was to sweet talk the bank lady and butter her up so she might cut us some slack. Our game plan was to compliment her and engage in small talk. Mozambicans love small talk.
As usual, the lobby was full and lines don’t exist here so there were about fifty people crowding the counter. Naa and I pushed our way through until we were right in front of the lady we needed to talk to. We both said good afternoon. I asked her how she was doing. Naa complimented her hair. I asked her how is your work going, how is your health and family and do you like this weather outside? Naa complimented something she was wearing. After this 3 minute exchange of sucking up and using our best charm, the lady asked how could she help us today.
Naa and I looked at each other and smiled. She went on to ask her if she could withdraw money from her account. “Of course,” the lady said, and handed her a blue withdrawal slip. Naa started to fill it out. Knowing that we wouldn’t be able to withdraw the small amount we wanted, I decided to take one step forward before Naa finishes filling out that slip only for the lady to tell us it’s not possible to do so.
In Portuguese, my only chance to convince her, I said, “Ma’am, my friend and I understand that to hold an account here, you must maintain a minimum of X amount of meticais in your account. We understand that, but right now we are really without money until next month. We are requesting that we may be able to withdraw all or part of that X amount, because it’s really all we have right now and it would help us a lot.” I impressed myself after I said it. SURELY she would say yes.
She said no. She said she can’t do that. She apologized. Then Naa went on and told her how she has X amount of meticais in her account and that she would like to withdraw an X amount above the minimum X amount that has to stay in the account. The lady looked at her and said, “You really want to withdraw this X amount of meticais?” Naa said yes, and continued to fill out the blue slip. Then she looked at me with her eyebrows raised and with a joking tone in her voice, in English she said, “Did I stutter? YOU KNOW HOW MANY PIECES OF BREAD that X amount of meticais will get me?! That’s a week o’ food, girl! Actually, screw this let’s just go. We’ll figure somethin’ out.”
We thanked the lady and left. We decided to go to my house because I remembered my empregada (maid) cooked for me. The meal she made cost about 10 meticais. While we were eating we made a budget for next month and decided we must manage the little money that we earn each month better because we can’t keep struggling like this. It’s already hard enough here and even more so when you’re broke! Naa tried to make a phone call but couldn’t because she didn’t have any credit. “Man Mal, the Lord is TESTIN us right now. Girl these are hard times…I hope we get paid soon cause I been havin to go visit my neighbors more often to eat dinner with them and the lady I been buyin bread and bagias from is gettin to know me pretty well…” Bagias are fried bean patties. Mozambicans are very caring people, they always feed their visitors. One of my Mozambican friends told me it’s because they just don’t know where their visitor is coming from and whether or not they’ve eaten or what, so they must offer them food.
After we ate we decided to walk to the city from my house for Naa to catch a ride home. As we were walking we ran into one of my friends, Viegas, who was also a good friend of a former PCV. We stopped to talk to him and he told Naa he had a Portuguese Bible for her. Then he ran into his house and Naa told me she didn’t know what he was talking about, she couldn’t remember how she met him or why he wanted to give her a Bible. He soon skipped his way back to us and handed Naa a green Bible wrapped in plastic.
“Sweet, this’ll help my Portuguese…thanks!” and off we went. We walked quite a way not saying anything for a minute so I asked her if she was alright.
Grabbing her purse, she said, “Yeah I’m good it’s just that I’m tired and this Bible is kind of heavy!”
“Dang girl, it sounds like the Lord is really weighin on you right now!” I said jokingly
Her jaw dropped and we both started laughing, “True that, God is TESTIN US right now during these hard times!”
We made it through the month with as little as we had. We made a budget and have been sticking to it pretty well. Though I didn’t write specific examples, we tried to help each other out as much as we could with what we did have. Other people also helped us along the way by giving us rides and food. And so I learned: When I am going through something difficult, I just need to be patient and reach out.
Now, whenever something or somebody annoys us, or when we’re out of money, or when we’re frustrated or sad or angry, Naa and I are able to laugh and say to each other,
“GOD MUST BE TESTING ME RIGHT NOW!”
I really dislike not having the money to buy the things I want or to go places I’d like to see. I live in a beautiful region in the world, and I don’t even have the money to travel to places here that I’d like to see. Peace Corps recently gave us our W-2 for 2010, which, I believe showed that I earned less than $3,000 for all of last year. But then again, that’s not why I joined Peace Corps and I don’t really think of myself as poor. I have options, through Peace Corps and back home. I was never truly worried about what I was going to eat. I trust my neighbors wouldn’t let me go hungry, nor would my parents if it came to that. I’ve seen suffering in the eyes of patients in the hospital, children without family, people dying from AIDS. And so I know I have not truly suffered.
With that being said, being broke is not really fun. But somehow, being so broke and waiting for our next paycheck every day gave Naa and me the opportunity to be a bit dramatic and we had fun while doing it.
I talk to Naa every morning. We call each other and talk about our plans for the day and encourage each other. I called her one morning to see how she was hanging in there, because the day before she was unable to come to Xai Xai. When I called her she said she was making oatmeal for breakfast and was going to come to Xai Xai today to go to the bank. I heard her cat meowing loudly in the back ground. She was talking about something and I had to interrupt her to ask,
“OMG Naa, what is Sadie fussin over?”
“Girl, this cat is TOO much right now. She’s fussin because I gave her a little bit of oatmeal for breakfast and now she’s lookin at me like ‘You expect me to eat this? Woman where are those eggs you used to give me or that canned cat food at?’ “
Naa cracks me up. I wish I could record the things she says and put it in this blog.
In response to her cat, laughing at the same time, Naa said to her, “LOOK Sadie, we goin through HARD TIMES right now. PROLLY cause I was buyin you eggs and canned cat food in the FIRST place. I don’t know WHERE you think those things come from, cat, but those things cost money and are NOT cheap. And now part of the reason we strugglin is cause of your high cost meals so don’t you look at me like that and just EAT what is given to you!”
After laughing about that for a minute, she asked me how my puppy is doing. I said he’s ok, ridden with fleas but ok and energetic and thankfully he eats whatever I give him. He’s not picky so he’s gonna make it.
We met in the city later that afternoon. I wanted to mail a letter but couldn’t. I wanted to go to use the internet but couldn’t. I wanted to buy more credit to talk on my phone but couldn’t. So rough. We met at a gas station across the street from KFC. It still wasn’t open at that point, which is probably a good thing. Just one less temptation. We decided to go to the bank first. The bank here requires that your account always has at least 500 meticais. We went to the ATM and both of our statements were not too far from that. We decided to go inside and ask if we could withdraw a portion of the little money we had. Our game plan was to sweet talk the bank lady and butter her up so she might cut us some slack. Our game plan was to compliment her and engage in small talk. Mozambicans love small talk.
As usual, the lobby was full and lines don’t exist here so there were about fifty people crowding the counter. Naa and I pushed our way through until we were right in front of the lady we needed to talk to. We both said good afternoon. I asked her how she was doing. Naa complimented her hair. I asked her how is your work going, how is your health and family and do you like this weather outside? Naa complimented something she was wearing. After this 3 minute exchange of sucking up and using our best charm, the lady asked how could she help us today.
Naa and I looked at each other and smiled. She went on to ask her if she could withdraw money from her account. “Of course,” the lady said, and handed her a blue withdrawal slip. Naa started to fill it out. Knowing that we wouldn’t be able to withdraw the small amount we wanted, I decided to take one step forward before Naa finishes filling out that slip only for the lady to tell us it’s not possible to do so.
In Portuguese, my only chance to convince her, I said, “Ma’am, my friend and I understand that to hold an account here, you must maintain a minimum of X amount of meticais in your account. We understand that, but right now we are really without money until next month. We are requesting that we may be able to withdraw all or part of that X amount, because it’s really all we have right now and it would help us a lot.” I impressed myself after I said it. SURELY she would say yes.
She said no. She said she can’t do that. She apologized. Then Naa went on and told her how she has X amount of meticais in her account and that she would like to withdraw an X amount above the minimum X amount that has to stay in the account. The lady looked at her and said, “You really want to withdraw this X amount of meticais?” Naa said yes, and continued to fill out the blue slip. Then she looked at me with her eyebrows raised and with a joking tone in her voice, in English she said, “Did I stutter? YOU KNOW HOW MANY PIECES OF BREAD that X amount of meticais will get me?! That’s a week o’ food, girl! Actually, screw this let’s just go. We’ll figure somethin’ out.”
We thanked the lady and left. We decided to go to my house because I remembered my empregada (maid) cooked for me. The meal she made cost about 10 meticais. While we were eating we made a budget for next month and decided we must manage the little money that we earn each month better because we can’t keep struggling like this. It’s already hard enough here and even more so when you’re broke! Naa tried to make a phone call but couldn’t because she didn’t have any credit. “Man Mal, the Lord is TESTIN us right now. Girl these are hard times…I hope we get paid soon cause I been havin to go visit my neighbors more often to eat dinner with them and the lady I been buyin bread and bagias from is gettin to know me pretty well…” Bagias are fried bean patties. Mozambicans are very caring people, they always feed their visitors. One of my Mozambican friends told me it’s because they just don’t know where their visitor is coming from and whether or not they’ve eaten or what, so they must offer them food.
After we ate we decided to walk to the city from my house for Naa to catch a ride home. As we were walking we ran into one of my friends, Viegas, who was also a good friend of a former PCV. We stopped to talk to him and he told Naa he had a Portuguese Bible for her. Then he ran into his house and Naa told me she didn’t know what he was talking about, she couldn’t remember how she met him or why he wanted to give her a Bible. He soon skipped his way back to us and handed Naa a green Bible wrapped in plastic.
“Sweet, this’ll help my Portuguese…thanks!” and off we went. We walked quite a way not saying anything for a minute so I asked her if she was alright.
Grabbing her purse, she said, “Yeah I’m good it’s just that I’m tired and this Bible is kind of heavy!”
“Dang girl, it sounds like the Lord is really weighin on you right now!” I said jokingly
Her jaw dropped and we both started laughing, “True that, God is TESTIN US right now during these hard times!”
We made it through the month with as little as we had. We made a budget and have been sticking to it pretty well. Though I didn’t write specific examples, we tried to help each other out as much as we could with what we did have. Other people also helped us along the way by giving us rides and food. And so I learned: When I am going through something difficult, I just need to be patient and reach out.
Now, whenever something or somebody annoys us, or when we’re out of money, or when we’re frustrated or sad or angry, Naa and I are able to laugh and say to each other,
“GOD MUST BE TESTING ME RIGHT NOW!”
Kentucky Fried Chicken
Last week, Kentucky Fried Chicken made its way and opened up in Xai Xai. It’s just as nice if not nicer than the KFCs in the States. Naa and I went for the first time last week. Naa is a fellow PCV and a dear friend of mine. The drive thru signs are in English, so we assumed this KFC is owned by South Africans. We wanted to find out.
As soon as we walked in, we felt like we were back in America. We needed a quick reality check so we had to look back outside to see the sand and kids on the street and women in kapulanas to remind us yes, we ARE in an American fast food chain restaurant in Xai Xai. In Mozambique. In Africa. Before I joined Peace Corps, I never thought that would be possible. When we walked in, we immediately spotted the ice cream machine and the fryers in the back. Unfortunately they don’t have fountain drinks or biscuits, just fridges full of canned sodas and shelves full of rolls stored in plastic bags. The workers were in uniform at the cash registers. We go to the cash register guy on the left, he was the first to see us and give us a big kool-aid smile and say “Welcome to KFC”. We look up and the menu is limited and in Portuguese. No problem, it was still a big deal for us to take a break from rice and beans!
Before we ordered, Naa wanted to ask the guy who owned the place.
So she asked, “Who owns this place?”
“Sorry?”
“I mean, who owns this KFC? Is it owned by South Africans?”
“This is Mozambique.” he answered.
He didn’t understand her. I asked him, “Where is the owner of this KFC from?” He gave us a puzzled look.
Naa tried one more time. “Is the owner of this KFC South African?”
“Oh. I understand your question. No.” he said.
The look on his face changed, got a little serious looking. He looked as though he had a secret. His voice changed and leaned towards us.
He spoke softly and said, “The owner is not South African…”
Naa and I looked at each other and started laughing because of the miscommunication and because such a simple question led to such confusion and we weren’t expecting the owner to be so mysterious. We laughed even harder when we realized he was still serious. For a second I thought he was going to tell us something really cool and shocking. The way he was acting, I was thinking maybe he is about to tell us Oprah Winfrey is the owner and SURPRISE she’s in the back of the store right now and is going to make your dreams come true for all of your hard work and sacrifice. Or not. Wishful thinking.
He started again and said, “There is only one owner of all KFCs…”
Naa, laughing, asked, “Oh my gosh, WHO? Do you know him?!”
With notable disappointment, he said “No…I do not know him personally…”
He picked up a packet of ketchup and smiled as he held it in his hands looking at it like he still had something to say. Naa and I were laughing pretty hard now. I cry when I laugh so tears were streaming down my face and I’m sure my mascara was running but I didn’t care. We were on a high at this point. We were in KFC in Africa and we’re about to get surprised by Oprah Winfrey, the way this guy’s acting! Anything’s possible, right? Look where we are!
After a minute we regained our composure. Naa let out a big sigh and an “OOOOHHHHHH” while shaking her head and with her hand on her hip she slapped her other hand down on the counter and looked at the guy.
“So…who is it?”
He was quiet. Still looking down at the packet of ketchup in his hands. He picked it up and held it in front of us.
He smiled and said, “This guy right here.” And pointed to the little black and white picture of Colonel Sanders.
As soon as we walked in, we felt like we were back in America. We needed a quick reality check so we had to look back outside to see the sand and kids on the street and women in kapulanas to remind us yes, we ARE in an American fast food chain restaurant in Xai Xai. In Mozambique. In Africa. Before I joined Peace Corps, I never thought that would be possible. When we walked in, we immediately spotted the ice cream machine and the fryers in the back. Unfortunately they don’t have fountain drinks or biscuits, just fridges full of canned sodas and shelves full of rolls stored in plastic bags. The workers were in uniform at the cash registers. We go to the cash register guy on the left, he was the first to see us and give us a big kool-aid smile and say “Welcome to KFC”. We look up and the menu is limited and in Portuguese. No problem, it was still a big deal for us to take a break from rice and beans!
Before we ordered, Naa wanted to ask the guy who owned the place.
So she asked, “Who owns this place?”
“Sorry?”
“I mean, who owns this KFC? Is it owned by South Africans?”
“This is Mozambique.” he answered.
He didn’t understand her. I asked him, “Where is the owner of this KFC from?” He gave us a puzzled look.
Naa tried one more time. “Is the owner of this KFC South African?”
“Oh. I understand your question. No.” he said.
The look on his face changed, got a little serious looking. He looked as though he had a secret. His voice changed and leaned towards us.
He spoke softly and said, “The owner is not South African…”
Naa and I looked at each other and started laughing because of the miscommunication and because such a simple question led to such confusion and we weren’t expecting the owner to be so mysterious. We laughed even harder when we realized he was still serious. For a second I thought he was going to tell us something really cool and shocking. The way he was acting, I was thinking maybe he is about to tell us Oprah Winfrey is the owner and SURPRISE she’s in the back of the store right now and is going to make your dreams come true for all of your hard work and sacrifice. Or not. Wishful thinking.
He started again and said, “There is only one owner of all KFCs…”
Naa, laughing, asked, “Oh my gosh, WHO? Do you know him?!”
With notable disappointment, he said “No…I do not know him personally…”
He picked up a packet of ketchup and smiled as he held it in his hands looking at it like he still had something to say. Naa and I were laughing pretty hard now. I cry when I laugh so tears were streaming down my face and I’m sure my mascara was running but I didn’t care. We were on a high at this point. We were in KFC in Africa and we’re about to get surprised by Oprah Winfrey, the way this guy’s acting! Anything’s possible, right? Look where we are!
After a minute we regained our composure. Naa let out a big sigh and an “OOOOHHHHHH” while shaking her head and with her hand on her hip she slapped her other hand down on the counter and looked at the guy.
“So…who is it?”
He was quiet. Still looking down at the packet of ketchup in his hands. He picked it up and held it in front of us.
He smiled and said, “This guy right here.” And pointed to the little black and white picture of Colonel Sanders.
March 10, 2011
Books for Children
Dear Readers,
I'm sorry I haven't written lately. I don't really have any excuse but to say that things that others might find interesting have just become normal to me and therefore I have fallen off the bandwagon of blogging regularly. I'll try to be better about it. I'm in my second year of service now (8 months left!). I do have many new experiences to share with everyone but I'm sorry, right now I'm short for time. I'm writing this entry to ask those back home for your support. I'm just going to cut to the chase and fill y'all in.
The literacy rate in Mozambique is 50%. One in two people cannot read or write. Mozambique is also very affected by HIV/AIDS. About one in five people is living with the disease. Both of these stats include children. Also, there happens to be an orphanage near me in my community. Mozambique's national language is Portuguese. Few countries in the world share it as a national language, about less than five and the majority of those are underdeveloped countries as well. So, books in Portuguese are hard to come by, including children's books. That leads me to explain...
There is an organization called Livros Para Criancas aka Books For Children. They are an organization willing to provide children's books in Portuguese, they just need funding to ship the books to Moz. Some of the books that will be sent include books that teach healthy livestyle practices. The organization will also provide a book case and a training for the orphanage staff on how to care for the books and also how to facilitate children's reading groups. This is to ensure the sustainability of the project.
So, as a Peace Corps Volunteer, I have the opportunity to write a grant to make this happen. Through Peace Corps, I can write a Peace Corps Partnership grant, where people back home can donate money for the project funds. The cost of the project is $3,000 USD. However, part of this particular grant requires that the community being benefitted contributes a certain amount. So, the community is to donate $750 and $2,250 from outside donors.
This is one of my goals before my time is up in November. After I submit the grant application, the project will be posted online where people can go to submit donations.
OK so I will be honest, I have been putting off this grant for about a month now because it's kind of complicated, I can't open the application on my computer so I have to come to an internet cafe, and I've been busy with a few other work things lately. Anyways, no more excuses. I'm telling the world about this for 2 reasons:
1. Encourage me to get this grant done. It's really important to me but it's getting harder to complete. I am publicly announcing this because now I have said I'm going to do something, so I have to do it.
2. The grant asks for contact information for donors. Even though the project will eventually be online for everyone to donate money to, it asks for contact info in order to mail the project info directly to donors. Donors can be businesses, organizations, churches or individuals. You can e-mail me this information if you'd like.
That's what's up, everyone! Here's some more information I copy/pasted from Peace Corps FAQ's sheet about donating money to PC projects.
I miss you all and love you all back home soooo much. I thank you all for the support you've given me and I thank you all for continuing your support. I am forever grateful!
XOXO,
MAL
FAQ’S
Is my donation to the Peace Corps tax-deductible?
Yes. All gifts or bequests to the Peace Corps are gifts to the United States for exclusively public purposes within the meaning of section 170(c)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code and are deductible as charitable contributions under section 170(a) of the Code. Once the donation has been processed a thank you letter will be sent, which can be used as a tax receipt. The name on the tax receipt will reflect the account owner on the credit card or check.
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Will I get a receipt to use for my taxes?
Yes. You will receive an official thank you letter, stating the amount you donated, which can be used as a receipt for tax purposes.
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How much of my donation will go to a Volunteer Project?
Every penny! Your entire donation to the Partnership Program will be directed to a Volunteer project. No part of your donation will be used to cover staff or overhead costs of running the Partnership Program, as the office is supported by congressionally appropriated funds to the Peace Corps.
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Why isn't the project showing up when I search for it?
There are a couple reasons a project may not be online. In most cases, when a project is no longer online, it has been fully funded. Occasionally, projects have not yet been received by the Partnership Program and are not yet online. In rare cases, the system may be undergoing maintenance, and as a result some projects may not show up. Please check the website the next day to see if the project is online. If it is not there or if you need any additional information call our office (1-800-424-8580 x2170) or e-mail (pcpp@peacecorps.gov) and a staff member would be glad to confirm the status of the project.
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I would like to search for a specific project. How do I do that?
If you have received a letter or e-mail about donating and you have the Volunteer's name and/or project number, use the search to:
Enter only the Volunteer's last name.
-or-
Enter the project number. Make sure to add the hyphen: 555-555 (example)
-or-
Search by the Volunteer's country of service.
If the project does not show up - most likely it has already been fully funded. In rare cases, the system may be undergoing maintenance, and as a result a project will not show up. Please check the website the next day to see if the project is online. If you would like verification or any additional information, please call our office at 1-800-424-8580 x2170 or e-mail at pcpp@peacecorps.gov and a staff member would be glad to confirm the status of the project.
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My child/friend/relative has a project that was funded. Why haven't they received their money yet?
After a project has been fully funded, Partnership Program staff work with the Peace Corps Budget Office to obligate the funds. Once this is complete, funds must be transferred to the Volunteer by check or Electronic Funds Transfer. The whole process may take between two weeks to one month for money to be received by a Volunteer.
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I just donated, but the website didn't update the amount raised. Why?
The Partnership Program uses Pay.gov to securely process donations. Once a donation has been entered on-line, it can take up to three business days before it will be reflected on the website.
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I donated to a project and would like to know the results. How can I find out more?
If you donated to a Volunteer project, you may request a copy of the Final Report submitted by the Volunteer once the project is completed. Send an e-mail to pcpp@peacecorps.gov with your name, address, the Volunteer's name, and the project number that you donated to and we will provide you with further information. Or, you may give us a call at 1-800-424-8580 x2170 and a staff member would be happy to take your information.
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I would like to donate, but I don't live in the United States. How can I donate?
Yes, you may donate if you are outside of the United States. When you decide what project, Special Fund, or Country Fund that you would like to donate to, you will be asked to provide your contact information. Unfortunately, it will ask you to provide a State (in the United States). If you do not fill in a State, the website will not allow you to continue donating. In this case, we ask that you fill in any State, to allow the donation to continue. Once you have been transferred to the Pay.gov site, you will be allowed to update your contact information.
IMPORTANT NOTE: The Pay.gov website only accepts Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover, and Diner's Club cards.
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I don't want to donate online - how else can I donate?
Although donating on-line is the fastest way for Volunteer projects to get funded, you may also donate by mail or over the phone:
Send a check to:
Peace Corps Headquarters
Office of Private Sector Initiatives
1111 20th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20526
Please make check payable to Peace Corps Partnership Program
Please also note the project number, Special Fund name, or Country Fund name in the memo section of the check.
(Please print and mail this donation form with your check, so we may contact you with information regarding your donation, if necessary.)
-or-
Call the office and we can take credit card information over the phone (1-800-424-8580 x2170)
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I'd like to make a donation in honor of/in memory of someone. Is that possible?
Yes. If you are donating on-line, please enter this information in the "comments" box. You will receive a thank you letter for your donation. However, if you would like us to send a letter to the person (or family of the person) that you are honoring, please include their name and address in the "comments" box as well. Or if you are going to mail a check you may fill in this information on the donation form. Of course, you may also give us this information over the phone (1-800-424-8580 x2170).
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What happens if a project receives more than the requested amount?
We are only able to fund a project up to the amount that a Volunteer requests. Once a project becomes fully funded, any extra funds will be allocated to the Global Fund where they will be used to support Partnership Program projects Worldwide.
I'm sorry I haven't written lately. I don't really have any excuse but to say that things that others might find interesting have just become normal to me and therefore I have fallen off the bandwagon of blogging regularly. I'll try to be better about it. I'm in my second year of service now (8 months left!). I do have many new experiences to share with everyone but I'm sorry, right now I'm short for time. I'm writing this entry to ask those back home for your support. I'm just going to cut to the chase and fill y'all in.
The literacy rate in Mozambique is 50%. One in two people cannot read or write. Mozambique is also very affected by HIV/AIDS. About one in five people is living with the disease. Both of these stats include children. Also, there happens to be an orphanage near me in my community. Mozambique's national language is Portuguese. Few countries in the world share it as a national language, about less than five and the majority of those are underdeveloped countries as well. So, books in Portuguese are hard to come by, including children's books. That leads me to explain...
There is an organization called Livros Para Criancas aka Books For Children. They are an organization willing to provide children's books in Portuguese, they just need funding to ship the books to Moz. Some of the books that will be sent include books that teach healthy livestyle practices. The organization will also provide a book case and a training for the orphanage staff on how to care for the books and also how to facilitate children's reading groups. This is to ensure the sustainability of the project.
So, as a Peace Corps Volunteer, I have the opportunity to write a grant to make this happen. Through Peace Corps, I can write a Peace Corps Partnership grant, where people back home can donate money for the project funds. The cost of the project is $3,000 USD. However, part of this particular grant requires that the community being benefitted contributes a certain amount. So, the community is to donate $750 and $2,250 from outside donors.
This is one of my goals before my time is up in November. After I submit the grant application, the project will be posted online where people can go to submit donations.
OK so I will be honest, I have been putting off this grant for about a month now because it's kind of complicated, I can't open the application on my computer so I have to come to an internet cafe, and I've been busy with a few other work things lately. Anyways, no more excuses. I'm telling the world about this for 2 reasons:
1. Encourage me to get this grant done. It's really important to me but it's getting harder to complete. I am publicly announcing this because now I have said I'm going to do something, so I have to do it.
2. The grant asks for contact information for donors. Even though the project will eventually be online for everyone to donate money to, it asks for contact info in order to mail the project info directly to donors. Donors can be businesses, organizations, churches or individuals. You can e-mail me this information if you'd like.
That's what's up, everyone! Here's some more information I copy/pasted from Peace Corps FAQ's sheet about donating money to PC projects.
I miss you all and love you all back home soooo much. I thank you all for the support you've given me and I thank you all for continuing your support. I am forever grateful!
XOXO,
MAL
FAQ’S
Is my donation to the Peace Corps tax-deductible?
Yes. All gifts or bequests to the Peace Corps are gifts to the United States for exclusively public purposes within the meaning of section 170(c)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code and are deductible as charitable contributions under section 170(a) of the Code. Once the donation has been processed a thank you letter will be sent, which can be used as a tax receipt. The name on the tax receipt will reflect the account owner on the credit card or check.
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Will I get a receipt to use for my taxes?
Yes. You will receive an official thank you letter, stating the amount you donated, which can be used as a receipt for tax purposes.
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How much of my donation will go to a Volunteer Project?
Every penny! Your entire donation to the Partnership Program will be directed to a Volunteer project. No part of your donation will be used to cover staff or overhead costs of running the Partnership Program, as the office is supported by congressionally appropriated funds to the Peace Corps.
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Why isn't the project showing up when I search for it?
There are a couple reasons a project may not be online. In most cases, when a project is no longer online, it has been fully funded. Occasionally, projects have not yet been received by the Partnership Program and are not yet online. In rare cases, the system may be undergoing maintenance, and as a result some projects may not show up. Please check the website the next day to see if the project is online. If it is not there or if you need any additional information call our office (1-800-424-8580 x2170) or e-mail (pcpp@peacecorps.gov) and a staff member would be glad to confirm the status of the project.
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I would like to search for a specific project. How do I do that?
If you have received a letter or e-mail about donating and you have the Volunteer's name and/or project number, use the search to:
Enter only the Volunteer's last name.
-or-
Enter the project number. Make sure to add the hyphen: 555-555 (example)
-or-
Search by the Volunteer's country of service.
If the project does not show up - most likely it has already been fully funded. In rare cases, the system may be undergoing maintenance, and as a result a project will not show up. Please check the website the next day to see if the project is online. If you would like verification or any additional information, please call our office at 1-800-424-8580 x2170 or e-mail at pcpp@peacecorps.gov and a staff member would be glad to confirm the status of the project.
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My child/friend/relative has a project that was funded. Why haven't they received their money yet?
After a project has been fully funded, Partnership Program staff work with the Peace Corps Budget Office to obligate the funds. Once this is complete, funds must be transferred to the Volunteer by check or Electronic Funds Transfer. The whole process may take between two weeks to one month for money to be received by a Volunteer.
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I just donated, but the website didn't update the amount raised. Why?
The Partnership Program uses Pay.gov to securely process donations. Once a donation has been entered on-line, it can take up to three business days before it will be reflected on the website.
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I donated to a project and would like to know the results. How can I find out more?
If you donated to a Volunteer project, you may request a copy of the Final Report submitted by the Volunteer once the project is completed. Send an e-mail to pcpp@peacecorps.gov with your name, address, the Volunteer's name, and the project number that you donated to and we will provide you with further information. Or, you may give us a call at 1-800-424-8580 x2170 and a staff member would be happy to take your information.
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I would like to donate, but I don't live in the United States. How can I donate?
Yes, you may donate if you are outside of the United States. When you decide what project, Special Fund, or Country Fund that you would like to donate to, you will be asked to provide your contact information. Unfortunately, it will ask you to provide a State (in the United States). If you do not fill in a State, the website will not allow you to continue donating. In this case, we ask that you fill in any State, to allow the donation to continue. Once you have been transferred to the Pay.gov site, you will be allowed to update your contact information.
IMPORTANT NOTE: The Pay.gov website only accepts Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover, and Diner's Club cards.
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I don't want to donate online - how else can I donate?
Although donating on-line is the fastest way for Volunteer projects to get funded, you may also donate by mail or over the phone:
Send a check to:
Peace Corps Headquarters
Office of Private Sector Initiatives
1111 20th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20526
Please make check payable to Peace Corps Partnership Program
Please also note the project number, Special Fund name, or Country Fund name in the memo section of the check.
(Please print and mail this donation form with your check, so we may contact you with information regarding your donation, if necessary.)
-or-
Call the office and we can take credit card information over the phone (1-800-424-8580 x2170)
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I'd like to make a donation in honor of/in memory of someone. Is that possible?
Yes. If you are donating on-line, please enter this information in the "comments" box. You will receive a thank you letter for your donation. However, if you would like us to send a letter to the person (or family of the person) that you are honoring, please include their name and address in the "comments" box as well. Or if you are going to mail a check you may fill in this information on the donation form. Of course, you may also give us this information over the phone (1-800-424-8580 x2170).
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What happens if a project receives more than the requested amount?
We are only able to fund a project up to the amount that a Volunteer requests. Once a project becomes fully funded, any extra funds will be allocated to the Global Fund where they will be used to support Partnership Program projects Worldwide.
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