The house build in Mochudi

Hello everyone! We are home from Mochudi after an intense weekend. I don't think I have ever worked so hard in my life. The strength that goes into building these homes here in Botswana is unbelievable. I was so proud of all the girls for all the effort that we put into this project. When we got to the plot there was literally nothing done - we started from the ground up. We dug the trench, which was 10.5 m long by 3.5 m wide and about 2.5 ft deep. We filled the trench with cement and then laid the bricks for an entire day. It was such hard work, but with the help of the professional builders and positive attitudes we did it! The last day we compacted the soil and filled the rest of the trench in with dirt before covering the foundation with cement. Absolutely everything was done by hand, even the mixing of the cement, which was a combination of sand, stones, cement and water. We wheelbarrowed all of the materials from separate piles into one, then mixed with shovels and wheelbarrowed the cement over to the trench. It was back breaking work and we are covered in cuts and bruises, but it was amazing to see how much these people value hard work. The family and professional builders were so grateful for our help and we were just as grateful to be there. It was an eye opening weekend. One I think everyone should experience. If young adults had to work like this to earn a living our country would be a lot different than it is now. The work ethic and value for hard work would be different and we would definitely be more grateful and appreciative for what we have and just how good we have it!
I will try to upload photos of the house build, and was able to email some to some of you (mom, please pass those on I didn't know everyones email off hand). I am missing everyone and these past four weeks have flown by! I know it will be sad to leave Botswana because the relationships we are building here are incredible. The children, teachers and people we meet on a daily basis are so warm and welcoming. It is such a positive and loving place - it will be difficult to leave, but I know I will bring it all back with me. Next weekend we are back in Mochudi on Saturday and Sunday to hopefully help complete the house. More to come soon!
Miss you all and love you xoxo

Thinking About HIV...

As we approach this weekend and start to think about the house build, the group held a reflection on Tuesday night about HIV and AIDS. Since we’ve been here and had the excitement and opportunity to experience this country, we have been busy seeing new things and learning more and more about the culture every day. This being said, Botswana has the second highest prevalence for HIV and AIDS in the world. You would think upon coming to such a country you would see evidence of the virus everywhere, but here in Botswana you really don’t. The people are so unbelievably friendly and happy to be here – they live without showing any signs or distress related to HIV, if they are infected. In fact, during reflection we even discussed how difficult it is to tell people who are HIV positive apart from those who are negative. At SOS I wonder which children could be positive, if passed on from their mothers. It breaks my heart to think that some of these children may be on ARV’s for the rest of their lives and may one day develop AIDS. Not only would they live with the medical condition, but also face the harsh stigma that comes along with it. Unfortunately, here in Botswana as I’m sure is similar in other countries, HIV and AIDS carry heavily negative social and cultural implications with it. For those who are positive disclosure can be difficult enough, but then having to face the negative treatment and discrimination of others is unthinkable. Some are isolated from their families and even abandoned – this is so even for children who were infected by their mothers during childbirth or breastfeeding. Breastfeeding is also such an important tradition in Botswana that if a woman is seen bottle feeding a baby, she is automatically deemed ill with HIV. In order to prevent the stigma of HIV, positive mothers will breast feed their children anyways, passing on the virus to their child. This may seem like such an unloving act for a mother to do, but until we are faced with such unimaginable stigma we will never know what they go through. Family, friends and community can be such important networks to have, but with the social stigma attached to HIV many of these networks and relationships vanish. We see HIV and AIDS as such medical issues, but we often forget how those infected can be affected mentally and emotionally. The medical, social and cultural implications of HIV and AIDS, along with stigma all contribute to the issue as a whole here in Botswana. All of which are important to keep in mind this weekend as we build a house for a family who has been largely affected by the virus. The daughters are orphans of HIV – their parents died of AIDS, which means it is possible they may be positive. If they are positive, their children could also be positive. You can now see how complex the issue becomes. I am hoping that this weekend opens up my eyes to the reality of HIV, orphans and vulnerable children, poverty and the reality faced by Botswana and its people. The build will be challenging physically, but also mentally and emotionally and I am hoping that the experience will be a lasting reminder of just how fortunate I am for my health, my education, my family, my friends and also to be born in a country where we can live such worry free lives. We often find ourselves stressing about time and money, but in Canada, both these come as luxuries. We really have nothing to be worried about…..

3 Days, 3 Countries, 3 Adventures

I can't believe we are already half way through our trip! Time is flying here in Gabs and lots of exciting things have been happening. To celebrate our half way point, the group left Thursday night and travelled north to Kasane for a safari in Chobe National Park. What an amazing experience! We camped out in the park overnight admist the lions and elephants and saw lots of wildlife on both the river and on-land safari tours. Saturday morning we crossed the border into Zimbabwe to head to our backpackers lodge. The next day we woke up to go see Victoria Falls. The falls - being one of the seven wonders of the world, was just that! I can't even explain to you how soaking wet we were. The mist was unreal and the view (when the sun shone through the mist) was breathtaking.
After being drenched by the falls and having only a few hours left before our departure back to Gaborone, my friend Jess and I literally ran out of Zimbabwe and crossed over the Zambia border by foot. We reached the Zim-Zam bridge where we BUNGIED!! I was so nervous but have always wanted to bungi jump. The drop off the bridge was 111 metres and it was absolutely nuts! I would do it all again in a heart beat. This weekend was definitely the most amazing weekend of my life, and I was so happy to be able to see such amazing things while here in southern Africa.

More about the family...

Dumelang (hello everyone). I would thank to thank those who have donated and are supporting our efforts to build a home for this family! We recently recieved a bit of information about the family that I would like to share with you. The family is made up of seven individuals, all of whom have been orphaned by HIV and AIDS. There are two sisters, one of whom has two children, the other has one child, and two cousins who will be living in the house. Right now we are not sure of where they are living, but hope to be able to put a roof over their heads. We are so looking forward to next weekend and extremely grateful to be a part of something so meaningful for this family. Please continue to pass on the message of our project, as we are still not quite at our goal.

I look forward to sharing photos and stories from this adventure of a lifetime! Thank you for all your posts and comments, I love reading them and sharing my excitement with you.

Love always, Claire xo

Please read :)

I would like to take the opportunity to share a potential project with everyone. Some of you may know that over the weekend of May 20 – 23 we will be helping (though physical labour and through 100% of the financing) to build a house for a family in a community outside of Gaborone. The group that came on this program last year did the same thing, so we will be able to visit last years house (and the deserving family), as well as put our blood, sweat and tears into another house. This is all done through a local organization called Stepping Stones (http://www.steppingstonesintl.org). Lisa (the founder/director) has been in contact with us for many months and Nicole, our team leader will be heading out there soon to see the site and the family for whom the house is being build. Tinny, a local community member who has been with the organization for several years, will be taking Nicole around the community so she can purchase some of the building supplies we need. So far we have raised just over $5500, however we are still short $2000. With eight girls here, we have made a pact to each raise $250, in hopes of gaining the required amount of money to fully finish the home. I understand that each and every one of you reading this have contributed tremendous amounts of money to me already, allowing me to be here, but if you or someone you know has just $5 or $10 to spare, I know it will add up quickly and we’ll be able to reach our goal. Please spread the word about this project, visit the website and please, please, PLEASE tell all your family and friends! The money will go to Nicole directly so that she can buy the supplies for the organization. The best part is that absolutely 100% of the money goes directly to the house build and we will be there to help it happen and have lots of photos to share. For all of you who have sponsored me and helped me get to Botswana, I am forever grateful! I would love to be able to do something here to give back to the community who has been so welcoming to us. I would love to give them something very meaningful and important, just as all of you have done for me. Please do not feel obligated in any way, shape or form to contribute, all that I ask is that you could please pass this message on to others. If you would like to help out and send some money my way, please email me at cgemmill@uoguelph.ca, or you can also send it through online banking (if you know how to do this). Also, feel free to get in touch with my mom, if you are around and perhaps work out something with her.
Again, I am so grateful to all of you who have already helped me, do not feel obligated, but please pass this on.
I love you and miss you all! Happy mothers day mom and Kate and happy 20th birthday Jess. I am thinking of you always xoxoxo

SOS!

Alex and I just completed our first week of placement at SOS in Tlokweng! We have been helping with the kindergarden in the SOS Village that the children living there attend, as well as children from around the community. The kids are so unbelievably cute and all so excited that we’ve been there to play with them. We are in the kindergarden from about 8:30-2:30 and then we sometimes go with the combi (bus) driver to take the kids home who are from outside SOS. This gives Alex and I the opportunity to see where some of the kids are coming from, as well as see Tlokweng. There are some very nice houses and there are also some mud huts, or shacks. The shacks are basically sheet metal and whatever other materials can be found and put together. It is tough to see where some of these kids are coming from, but also very easy to forget because these children are so loving and filled with joy. They are always smiling and never complain. Every day Alex and I arrive at SOS there are multiple hugs and high fives to be shared. These kids come from some very different backgrounds and who knows what goes on in their homes, but one thing is for sure and that is that they are just kids, they deserve all the love and affection that anyone would expect from a family or a community. I am so grateful to be able to share their love and laughter, even if it is only for a small time. I often think about (and worry) where some of the kids living in SOS will end up... if they will one day have a family of their own... Who knows maybe I will be able to come back one day to visit.