Groundwork Overview

Before I start telling stories, I should begin with what I'm doing over here. At the IU House in Eldoret, Kenya it's a totally appropriate question to ask, "what are you doing here?" or "what's your story?", so here it is...

In my time here last year, I learned very quickly that one must be on the ground over here to get anything done. Armed with that simple bit of knowledge, but without a totally clear picture of what it was exactly I wanted to and would do while here, I went to my supervisors and the "right" people here in Kenya, telling them I wanted to return, with the vague plan of just being on the ground so I could lay groundwork for more meaningful and intelligent work in the future. Thankfully, I was supported by wonderful people both here in Kenya and at IU, and even more thankfully, in my week and a half here, I have been proven right. One must be on the ground to do meaningful work and to really learn. And thus I have, right in the thick of things, meeting with people, working in the office, working out in the field, making contacts, generating ideas, and building relationships.

The Orphans and Vulnerable Children (OVC) department at AMPATH is where I report to work each morning around 7:30. I became very interested and passionate about working for OVC's last summer, in addition to street children and the urban poor living in the slums surrounding Eldoret (OVCs and street children are sort of related issues, but in reality something needing to be addressed all on their own; but the OVC department is a great place to figure that out and a great access point to CHWs, kids on the streets, and families in the slums). The OVC department is a new initiative of AMPATH, started just earlier this year, but already with over 3,000 OVC's registered and receiving services--medical care, school fees and/or uniforms, food or agricultural assistance, shelter, and other odds and ends of basic necessities. Community Health Workers (CHWs) are on the front lines, they live and work in their communities and are on the pulse of what their community members need. They identify the AIDS orphans or vulnerable children (i.e., parents who are HIV+ but still alive), determine what services they need, fill out the appropriate forms which they then bring into the office where they are "put into the system." From there, services are distributed. Now...a lot goes on in between, and lots of organizational and accountability "stuff" is still getting worked out, but that's the jist. The program is growing at an exponential rate, a reality all at once heartwarming and heartwrenching.

So that's a very quick overview "what I'm doing here." It is so wonderful to be back to Kenya, helping and learning, enjoying the way of life I quickly grew to love last year, and racking my brain for new ideas and new solutions to problems and issues I feel we (read: humanity or we the people or we in the West) must solve. More to come...