Update 1

Alicia is settling back into life in Canada, and is happy to have secured a summer job at Garry's Garden Centre.  Congratulations, Alicia!  Our rashes have resolved.  The craziness of returning to work is beginning to wane, and I am making plans to meet again with the Fleming College faculty and dean to further discuss plans for sending a contingent of student volunteers in January 2014.

Sue and I are also arranging to meet with Pauline & Lou, board members of the BKU foundation and very active supporters, and also Martin & Marie Pinto.  Manuel Pinto was the co-founder of Bright Kids with Victoria.  They met through Scouting, and the idea of a children's home (originally called Sunshine) was born.  Lou had met Manuel while teaching in Uganda during his time in the Peace Corps.  Manuel unfortunately died in a freak accident, but his son Martin is a doctor in St. Catherines, about a 2 1/2 hour drive from our home in Lindsay.

We will discuss BKU in general, our recent experience, and plans to increase exposure and support for BKU in Canada.

Sue and I met with our good friends Leslie and Marylou yesterday, and their husbands Maurice & John.  The ladies are connected with Fleming College, and the guys are keen to promote fundraising efforts locally, so we did lots of brainstorming.

Victoria has taken Justine to the optometrist and she soon will be modelling her new glasses.

I have updated the portraits page and there will be more to follow.  Please check them out.

Rose in the upstairs clinic doctor's office before the new desk & chair are installed

View from the upstairs balcony at the clinic.  Centre is the field where boys play soccer.  The big house compound is behind the field.  A small neighbourhood road on the left, and the piggery on the right.

Again from the upstairs balcony.  Central is the carpenter's shop, with the church under construction behind that, and Sister Immaculate's quarters further back.  To the left is Rose's & Richard's quarters.  The little one's dorm is just out of the frame on the left.  In the right foreground is a neighbour's place & yard, with the boys who love to joke & pose for me.  

One follows the road between Rose's quarters and Sister's place (heading right & away) to get to the small village centre, and beyond that to the Entebbe-Kampala highway.  Coming back towards us, the road turns 90 degrees to the left of the picture and continues on to the brickworks (quarry), past Banana Village and eventually to the neighbourhood of the big kids' dorm.

The clinic building was erected with materials & labour donated by University of Florida volunteers, hence the American flag on Rose's desk.  I'm thinking we'll have to balance it off with a Canada flag on our next visit.

natural-born hams

Fundraising

Alicia has arrived back safely and seems to be adjusting to Canadian living again.

The roads and paths around BKU are very dusty with a red sand reminiscent of Prince Edward Island.  In the latter part of my stay, I developed an eczema-type itchy rash on the inner folds of my knees and elbows.  It is resolving since I returned home.  Alicia likewise has broken out in a similar eruption since returning home.  I think our sensitive skin is reacting to something in the combination of the red dust, sweat and heat.  Mild issues that are settling well with some cortisone cream.

Our friends and aquaintances are most thrilled to hear about our adventure and help out if they can.  Several folks have expressed an interest in sponsoring a BKU child, and we have had good success selling T-shirts and beads that Victoria sent back with us.  Alicia also brought back some sewn bags which apparently Sister Immaculate produces, and those are a very popular item.

attractive sewn bags

closeup detail of beadwork

Neighbour lady tends her produce stand

school on the outskirts of Kampala

chicken vendor

just happy to be here at your service, sir

Awaiting Alicia's return

It's been 10 days since I left Alicia at BKU.  She's currently in Brussels (I think - the little turd didn't get on the internet to reassure us she made it that far).  Sue's trying to catch some sleep and hopes to pick her up later today in Toronto.

Victoria is joking that Arnold couldn't be consoled, so Alicia's suitcase is now heavier than when she arrived in Africa.

Some more images for your viewing pleasure.

Jovan

Alicia & Obama

Gloria & Janat

kids on the way to school

livestock can be stubborn

typical neighbourhood home

Vicky

Epilogue

The trip back to Canada is long but uneventful. It is strange being immersed in a multicultural society so suddenly, with in-flight movies and €3.50 Starbucks coffees purchased with a credit card.

The experience of the past two weeks seems already mystical and other worldly. How quickly will this amazing time fade into the pale pastel shades of memory? I know I can never forget the wonderful people I have met and the visceral stimulus of Uganda. I know too that I will want badly to return and greet the older versions of the children that Alicia and I have come to know and love.

Supplies needed would include children's clothing, durable toys, craft items, vitamins, medications and probably more soccer balls.

Alicia now has just two days remaining before she will tackle the long journey home.  I have sent her detailed instructions about airport terminal transfers and negotiating Canadian immigration and customs.  She is resourceful, so I am confident she will manage well.  She hasn't been wanting to spend much time on the computer, but has messaged us that she would like to get a hot shower and a few good meals, then return to Uganda.  I am thrilled she has made such a strong positive connection to these wonderful people.  Victoria emailed me that Arnold took to sleeping with Alicia when thunderstorms and a leaky roof kept him up at night, and the two are now inseparable.  I hope the separation is not too traumatic for him.

I have edited some of the existing photos on this blog, and added more below.  I am also updating and adding to the portrait page.  Check the links on the home page for new Youtube videos.  I will blog a little bit, but mostly will add pictures over the next few days.  I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

Alicia snuggles with Don

the kids enjoy sucker treats

everyone's head is shaved to minimize care and problems with lice

happy music makers

Sandra

Lydia, Arnold & Sandra

little ones' dorm

Victoria has donated a small space to an enterprising young carpenter who does work for BKU at a discount, with the understanding he will start paying rent after six months if his business thrives

Day 14 - Sweet sorrow

I waken early and check my flight details. It is showing on time and Alicia completes the online application for residence at Georgian College in September. Arnold scoots up to the table for a snuggle.

A farmer in southwest Uganda, near the Rwanda border went to his field one morning a couple of years ago and noticed some blood on the soil by his gate. Thinking perhaps one of his livestock had squeezed through and injured itself, he followed the blood trail and was shocked to find a newborn infant on the ground, long umbilical cord still attached. That is the story of Arnold. As Victoria says, he is a fighter.

The Arnold: fighter and stealer of hearts

I drop by to chat with Rose a few times during the day and we check over baby Don who's struggling with a cough but we only find evidence of an upper respiratory infection. I have been trying to gently temper Rose's enthusiasm for starting antibiotics early. I reassure her she has a rare opportunity to recheck the kids twice a day or more and watch how an illness progresses, rather than feeling pressured to treat the worst case scenario off the hop.

I speak with Alicia several times again about safety and caution once I have left. I am very reassured she will be responsible and careful, and I know that everyone at BKU will watch out for her.

Auntie Esther, the matron for the little ones, leaves today. She's been with BKU three months and says she has learned a lot and will miss the kids, but her parents want her to accept a preschool teaching position more in line with her training. She is close in age to my daughter Sarah, and says she very much enjoyed their chat on Skype. Unfortunately, Skype seems to drain data like crazy from our prepaid Internet stick, so we have been curtailing its use.

Auntie has purchased little banana-flavoured pancakes from a vendor up the road which she gave to her little ones as treats.  She offers a snack to Alicia & I.  We marvel at the beauty of Vicky, who is daughter of the older ones' matron.

Vicky

Alicia enjoys a hot pancake

Janat shows us the fearsome cow can be really quite docile

Auntie Esther with breakfast gifts

Salima will act as Auntie's temporary replacement

The little ones have been brought to the front of the big house to allow Auntie to pack up in piece, so I grab the opportunity for a few last day snuggles and hugs while Alicia snaps a few pictures. There is a road race scheduled today on the busier road a couple of blocks away, and some of the toddlers startle when some loud engines pass by the gate.

Robert & Alicia - good buddies

Gloria & Robert enjoy a pancake

too beautiful for words

Pauline will help mind the little ones

Salima overcomes her shyness and shows off her baby bump

Faith

Sue was agreeable to us sponsoring a child when I raised the issue a couple of days ago. I have spent the most time with the little ones, and I would love to take them all home, but when I reviewed the stories of the kids for my portrait work, Victoria mentioned that Justine was the longest standing  unsponsored BKU child and tended to be overlooked because she's shy. I am sure that the darling babies will all secure supporters eventually, so Justine is my choice.

Lydia

Faith

Jovan, Sanyu & Robert

Jovan models my cap

Rona

Don

I recruit Alicia and Kato to accompany me to the older kids' compound to grab some more portraits. We take Justine aside to announce our intention to sponsor her, but she misunderstands and keeps nervously saying "no". She comes around and jumps for joy when Victoria explains the situation to her in Lugandan after choir practice at the big house. Being sponsored means Victoria can afford more choices for this child's schooling, including boarding school for her upper grades.

smoke from burning dead brush at the big ones' compound

I recall how downcast this girl was, fighting back tears a few days ago, when I tried to explain that her vision is low and she will need to be tested for glasses. I make a mental note to research the timing of the next Rotary Club vision clinic near Entebbe.

Justine

After dinner and a shower, I have a few minutes for chatting with the adults and one last long Arnold snuggle before the car arrives. Alicia and Victoria ride with me and I remark on how quiet Entebbe is compared to the villages which are a hubbub of activity at 10 o'clock this Saturday night.

Obama and little Esther (hair unleashed)

Jovan & Sanyu

Isaac, Gloria & Dan

Lydia & Sandra

Big hugs and fond farewells to the ladies and I'm off through security at the small terminal building.

I will continue posting photos as I edit them, but no longer daily.  I also plan to add to the portraits page, so check back from time to time.  Thanks for all the good wishes and kind comments!