Back in Uganda

Hello again! I have been back in Uganda for almost a month now, but for about 2 weeks I was traveling in South Africa. I went down to Nelspruit, South Africa, for a retreat with an organization called Princeton in Africa. My dad started this organization a few years ago placing Princeton alums in various fellowships throughout Africa, and was helping run the mid-year retreat so I was given an honorary invitation. The retreat was great, and a wonderful forum for sharing experiences. On one of the days we also went to a chimpanzee sanctuary, and on the last day I went on a day trip to Swaziland with a smaller group of people to visit a cultural village and see some dancing.

After the retreat, I went with my dad to Cape Town for a few days. I hadn't been back to Cape Town since I was 6 years old, and it was wonderful to re-visit some of the places I didn't remember as well. We went to Cape Point and the Cape of Good Hope, which were both incredibly beautiful. Lots of wind and good surf, and we got to check out some pretty awesome windsurfing while we were there. We also went to Boulder's Beach where we were able to swim with penguins! They were very cute and quite friendly.

All in all it was a great trip, though I'm happy to be back home in Iganga now (even without the beautiful views and great seafood). Love to everyone!

-Hilary

More adorable children

And finally, because I can't get enough of them, more pics of the children at Musana... Things have been going well, the children have been on holiday for about a month and are returning as we speak. They will be starting a new term at school, and are all progressing well and loving their new home. We recently put in a goat shelter and bought two pregnant goats, so soon we will be able to provide goat's milk and possible even cheese for the children. We are still working on getting sponsors for some of the 80 children, and donations are always appreciated for general support (i.e. food, medical supplies, teacher and staff salaries, clothing, etc.). Hope you enjoy the new pics, and I'll be sure to update you soon about my trip to South Africa and Mozambique in the beginning of February...

Trip to Kenya

The next set of pictures is from a 3-week long trip I took to Kenya with my friends Heidi and Chris. As you can see from the first picture, the Kenyans were about as excited about the upcoming election as we were! We spent 4-5 days climbing Mt. Kenya, led by our guide Edyphus and our porter/chef Loyford. Then we traveled over to the coast for some serious relaxation on Diani Beach. We met some Massai warriors, went snorkeling with dolphins, and even rode camels! Really beautiful country, and we met all kinds of interesting people along the way.

Time for an Update...Safari

Hello Everyone! I hope you all had a happy holiday season and new year. I have been home in the states for about 6 weeks and will be heading back to Uganda for another 5 months on Tuesday, which means…yes, I’m FINALLY going to update my blog. I apologize for how belated this is, but I have time and high speed internet right now so hopefully I can get eve rything up to speed now.

To start, here are some very belated pictures from the safari I went on in late July. We saw all kinds of amazing animals and got to take a boat down the Nile and hike up to the top of Murchison Falls for our last night. Really incredible trip all in all!

Welcome to Musana Children's Home

Hey everyone! The kids have moved into Musana and they are having a blast there! They spend their days running around in the beautiful fields and playing games, or having lessons in the classrooms next door to the dormitories. They love being able to play outside in something besides a trash heap, and sleeping in beds instead of on the dirt. They really are totally new children, children who are finally able to experience what childhood should be like.

The kids will officially start school this week at Musana with 3 hired teachers and a headmaster, who will teach Primary 3-6. Volunteers, such as myself, will be teaching Nursery, Primary 1 and 2. Many of them are very behind in their schooling, mostly because the schooling they received at Maranatha was insufficient, but we are working hard to catch them up and allow them to have brighter futures.

It has been really incredible being with these kids in their new environment, and seeing them thrive in an atmosphere with people that support and love them. We still need a lot of help in order to bring in the last 30 kids, provide beds and rooms for them to sleep in, pay teachers and matrons salaries, and everything else that goes into caring for these kids. But thank you so much to everyone who has already contributed to this cause, I wish you could all see how happy these kids are now…we've really given them their lives back.

-Hilary


Boys dormitory


Girls dormitory


Sunrays of Hope mural


Some of the girls


Boys eating outside


The Kitchen

Update on Musana

Hi everyone. Hilary is currently traveling in Tanzania but I thought I would pass along this update from the woman Hilary has been working with to get the Musana orphanage up and running. As you can see, the impact your support has on these children is very real. Just a reminder, you can still donate to Musana by clicking the picture to the right of this post.

-Justin (Hilary's brother in NYC)

Hey Everyone!
Musana has officially began! The children are finally sleeping in their very own beds under mosquito nets! On Tuesday, the 16th of September, we moved the first 40 children into Musana. Seeing the looks on the kids faces when they walked into their bedrooms and found their name tags on their double decker beds, made every struggle SOOO worth it. When they first walked into their rooms with only one plastic bag of the few possessions they own, they stood still in shock. They couldn't believe that this was all for them. When I gave them the demand to go find their names they all took off in excitement. When they found their beds they began screaming. It took hours for them to calm down. They all stayed on their beds singing and dancing. It was a priceless moment. When it came time to sleep many of the kids didn't understand that they were supposed to get under the sheet and blanket. We had to go around and explain how to sleep in a bed. I tucked every single one of the 40 in and gave them a huge hug and kiss on the cheek. It was by far the best and most rewarding moment in my entire life. I pray to God that these kids will never sleep another night on the rocky dirt floors they have spent their entire lives on.

Today, Wednesday, the kids played ALL day long with the jump ropes, soccer balls, art supplies, and books. After lunch I gave each child a piece of paper and colored pencils. I told them to close their eyes and imagine their futures. I then told them to draw what they see themselves being or achieving. Most drew houses with televisions, beds, and sofa sets. Some drew professions like doctors, soccer players, lawyers, and pilots. A few of the girls drew pictures of Musana. I hung their drawings up by their name tags in their rooms. They are so proud of their work… they have never been given a plain white piece of paper to just draw on. Some of the littlest things that we so easily take advantage of in America, like beds, tooth brushes, paper, and even soap, are acting as a paradise here in Iganga.

As joyful as the past few days have been, there is one thing that pains the kids as well as me about Musana. That is the fact that there are still 110 children left at Maranatha (their previous orphanage.) When we were picking the 40 kids up to transfer them, the others were sobbing because they weren't picked for this opportunity. I had to stay in the car because I couldn't look at their faces. It makes me physically sick knowing that we can't help all 150 but I know we can only take what we can manage and for now that number doesn't exceed 80. So we will move in the next 40 in the upcoming weeks and pray for the ones left. I have to keep reminding myself of a quote by Mother Teresa, "If you can't feed one hundred people, then just feed one." So we may not be able to include all 150 into Musana but we can include 80 and that is all thanks to you back in the states. Without your support none of this would be happening. So I sincerely thank all of you for your efforts. Whether it is finances, prayer, or spreading the word, we are all doing this together.

Love always, Andrea

Whistle While You Work

Hi everyone! It’s been awhile since my last update, but it’s been very busy here. The biggest news I have to share is that while I will be going home in December, I will only be home for about a month and then will be returning to Iganga until June to help get Musana up and running. I am on the Board of Directors now as Overseer of Offices, and am also in charge of the nursery school, which will be at Musana and will have 19 kids in it to start. So it’s all really exciting, and I’m looking forward to being here long enough to really get involved in the process. We finally got Musana registered, and now we are in the process of opening a bank account so we can buy beds, build a kitchen area at the new site, and move the kids in. This past week we have been cleaning the new permanent houses and painting the rooms with some of the kids, which has been hard work but a lot of fun. They are really excited about being part of the process of getting their new home ready, as you can see from the pictures I sent along. Hopefully within the next few weeks we’ll actually get the kids moved in and be able to officially start the orphanage.

My friend Andy turned 21 last week so we took her bunji jumping, which for my mother’s benefit I will not put up more pictures of, but it was a great time. Besides that everything has been pretty normal here. My school is on holiday until late September, so I will be taking a three week trip through Kenya and Tanzania with my friend Heidi, leaving on September 7, so I’m looking forward to that.

Because of my large leadership role at Musana, I will be less involved with the orphanage I was originally affiliated with here, Self Reliance, and because of that any mail you wish to send me, or any donations you wish to send to Musana (i.e. clothes, shoes, books, toys) should be sent to:

Hilary Strasburger

Musana Children’s Home

P.O. Box 35

Iganga, Uganda East Africa

Monetary donations, or any interest in sponsoring children, are still going through ELI for now until we get a Musana NGO set up, and anything you can give is hugely appreciated by us as well as the kids. Hope everyone is doing well and enjoying the final days of summer. I miss you all tons!

Love,

Hilary