motivational???

This is one of many 'motivational sayings' that are painted outside a local highschool. Others include 'have a goal' and 'develop the ability to think' but this was my favourite.

OVC progress continues

The OVC centre continues to look better and better each day. The study room is almost complete and we have had a lot of kids come by to check it out. They are really enjoying the puzzles, games, colouring books etc. that we have out for them. Our hope is that when we are totally open, we will have lots of kids visiting every day and using the resources to their full potential.

OVC progress continues

The OVC centre continues to look better and better each day. The study room is almost complete and we have had a lot of kids come by to check it out. They are really enjoying the puzzles, games, colouring books etc. that we have out for them. Our hope is that when we are totally open, we will have lots of kids visiting every day and using the resources to their full potential.

Handing out Blankets

This past Saturday we handed out blankets to the kids as the winter season is starting and while the days are still quite hot, at night it can get down to 4-5 degrees.

Mercy

Hi everyone! I thought that I would start telling some individual stories of some of the kids so that you know a bit about the people that I'm working with. This is Mercy - she's around 8 years old and has a little brother. Mercy's mom just came back a couple of weeks ago after leaving Mercy and her brother at home alone for over a month. This picture is of her singing her heart out at Isubilo on Saturday.

South Luangwa

Julia and I just got back from a fantastic stay in South Luangwa National Park where we saw zebra, giraffe, lions, elephants, monkeys, baboons and so much more. It was such fantastic weekend. I was about 1 metre away from a pride of lions. Scary but also pretty cool!!!!

Check out my first iVideo!

Labour Day Update

May 1st is labour day here is zambia and its been great to have a day off to relax. We have been busy sorting supplies and books (and sadly cleaning off rat poop in some cases...) to go in the new library. The office is almost done - Oswald is just putting the desk top on and then we'll start working out of our new office!! Yeah! We have been able to start using some of the new toys and equipment and the kids have been having a blast!!

Julia and I had the opportunity to go to church with Charity who is the woman who looks after the shelter house and 10 orphans. She is amazing and had us over for yummy nshima after church. The choir at the church were just amazing and the people were so kind and welcoming.

We continue to try to visit orphan street every week and it seems like each time we come more and more kids come out!! It's so fun to turn onto the street and to see and hear the kids start running and yelling musungo!!! The smiles are the best!!

We have booked our trip to South Luangwa National Park which is called one of the last untouched areas in Africa - we're pretty excited. I can't believe that my stay here is over half way over. It has already been such a memorable experience and I'm already thinking about when I'll be able to return!!!

Me and Rachel

Millie, Rachel and Emelda make brownies!

We had the girls over to our place and made brownies - it was such a blast and they LOVED them!

Yummy Grasshoppers

Well - the kids and Priya convinced me to finally try one of the fried grasshoppers. The kids love to catch them - those who have seen my other pictures, I had some of them catching them and stringing them on a piece of grass and wearing it as a bracelet or necklace. Anyways, we fried them up and the kids had a blast watching me eat it - I must admit that I had to rip off the head first but it actually tasted ok - mostly like anything fried.

Moving in...

Yeah!!! The painting is done and we have started clearing out the old ovc center and are into the new one. It was a challenge to convince the rats that they were not allowed in the new center but we did it!! We have been busy sorting all the stuff from the old center and clearing out the container of all the new stuff that has been sent over the past year. Its so exciting to see all the awesome stuff that's in there. The kids are SO excited to start using all of it!!!

Ben Katende

Ben is 18 years old and is part of the OVC program here at Isubilo. Ben is fantastic at making different crafts with beads and wire. He can make a wide variety of thing - geckos ($10) , coasters ($5), bookmarks ($5), bowls ($20), wire cars ($20) to name a few. The amazing thing is that Ben

supports his entire family (rent, food, school fees, charcoal etc.) by selling these items.

I have included pictures of some of the items that he makes. If anyone is interested in purchasing anything to support Ben, please email me your order (item and colour preference) and I can get Ben to make it. I will deliver it in July when I get home and you can reimburse me at that time. You can email your order to me at klockyer@hotmail.com.

OVC Centre Progress

Here’s an update on the OVC centre - I’ve included some pictures of what it looked like when I first got here and the progress up to this point. We have been busy painting - so much painting... It’s challenging because the walls are

concrete so they absorb a ton of paint so we have had to start with white washing the walls (2 coats), white washing the ceilings (3 coats - this is by far the most painful part) and now we are putting on the colour. It’s so exciting because its actually starting to look like a center for the kids now that the colour is on.


The doors are going up which is great because that means that we can start moving some of the office stuff in next week. There was a bit of a delay on this because the carpenter, Oswald, got malaria last week and so was off for a bit. Thankfully, he is feeling better and was able to finish the doors last week. This week, he will be building a desk for the office, some supply carts and then the bookshelves for in the library.

Moving the existing office into the new centre is going to be interesting - we need to sort through a lot of stuff and do some purging of stuff that really is garbage. Those of you who know me know that I love to purge and I’m kind of looking forward to it - although it may be a tough sell to throw some of the stuff out. They love to keep everything here... The part that I’m not looking forward to it the fact that there are rats in the existing storage area. These residents will NOT be moving to the new centre!!!!

New OVC Volunteer Training

Over the last 2 weeks we have been training our second batch of OVC volunteers. The volunteers will be responsible for specific children and will visit them regularly and help to monitor their needs (food, school, home life etc.) I was part of the training of the original group when I was here in 2006 so it was exciting to be here for the second round as well. I helped to lead a lot of team building activities which is really fun - most Zambians have not done any activities like this and its great to see how much they enjoy them. The debriefs are so interesting because they don’t give any of the typical answers. The training ended with a graduation/ celebration ceremony which was a blast.

Check out Tracey's Blog!!!

Hello everyone - it has been very difficult to get the internet so sorry about the large gaps in between postings. My friend Tracey who is also here has just posted some information on what I'm doing and some great pics on her blog at http://traceysafricawork.blogspot.com/2008/03/welcome-back-kristi.html - check it out also for information on what she is doing at Lifespring Farm!

I am so excited because Tracey has decided to end her 9 month stay in Zambia by coming and working with me at Isubilo for her last 5 weeks. She will be a huge help in getting the center up and running. We are just about done the painting and will be starting to move over the OVC office this week!!! Its so exciting as the existing office is a bit of a dungeon - no windows and very dark and depressing. The staff and volunteers are so excited to make the move and to start to set up programs and the library that will have such a significant impact on the children here.

Tracey, Julia and I were able to spend the weekend at Nsobe game park and had a wonderful time - it has been a busy couple of weeks and it was so nice to have some relaxing down time. We saw a family of giraffe which was amazing and I even swam in the lake (it was hard not to thing of snakes and other strange things that could be in there but I made it!!!)

I hope that everyone is well at home and that you are enjoying my adventures. I can't tell you how much your support means to me. XO Kristi

Back at Isubilo

After an amazing trip to Livingstone - we are back at Isubilo still busy painting the OVC center. On saturday, when the kids were here I found a childrens book and started reading to a few kids. By the time I was finished the story I had a huge crowd around me. I passed the book to some kids when I was done and about 10 of them sat for around 45 minutes working together to read the story on your own. It really impacted me - the desire in the children to learn and the lack of resources for the most basic learning to take place. AND it got me really excited for the amazing things that can happen once the OVC center is complete. It's so great to think of the impact that we can have on the community here and especially the kids. Thanks to everyone for your support - you have made a huge difference in the lives of many Zambians!!! I miss you all!!!

Jessica and I

Here's Jess and I going to zip line across the Victoria Falls gorge! It was amazing!!

Victoria Falls

Here we are in Victoria falls - we hiked around the falls and got absolutely drenched! The fourth person is Julia - another volunteer at Isubilo from the UK. We had an amzing time!

Back on Orphan Street

Jess, Liam and I spent an amazing afternoon playing with the kids on orphan street - you can't help but smile when you're with these amazing kids!!!

New Pics!!

Anita's last day at Isubilo - Anita is a former OVC who was accepted at a college in Lusaka. She is studying business. Way to go Anita!!!

Victoria Falls!!!

Hello everyone - so sorry for the large gaps in between updates but the internet has been crazy! After Jessica and Liam said their goodbyes to everyone at Isubilo, we came to Victoria Falls. Its been amazing - we hiked around the falls and went to the Knife's Edge - a walking bridge that is right beside the falls. We basically all looked like drowned rats but the time we left but it was a ton of fun. Went on the African Queen and tomorrow Liam and Julia are going bungee jumping and Jessica and I are going to zip line across the gorge!!! We fly back to Lusaka tomorrow night and then Jessica and Liam fly home bright and early Thursday morning and I head back to Isubilo. I promise when I get back to Ndola to upload more pictures - I forgot to pack my camera cable here!!! We miss you all!!! Keep the comments coming!! Oh yeah - Shannon and Claudia - We are using the same cab driver (Dango) as we used last year and he remembered me - how crazy!!!

Try again... oh the power outages!!

Hi everyone - The internet has been a little crazy here due to the power shortages. Things are going great at Isubilo - we have been busy painting and have finished the storage area, the counseling room and the main office. Still lots to do but we are trying to set up an area to work from. Once this area is complete we can start to move the OVC office and sort and organize supplies and donations. It’s so exciting to talk to the staff and OVC volunteers about the possibilities that the OVC center will be able to provide for the children. I’m so lucky to be a part of the amazing things that are happening here!

Jessica and Liam have gone on several home visits in the compounds with Jimmy and have visited the new Isubilo farm several times. They are both starting to master the Bemba language - with a little help from their new friends. We have all been loving Wednesdays and Saturdays as that’s when the kids come and we spend the time playing keep away, practicing football, building things with lego and generally having a great time. Liam’s skateboard was a huge hit!! The kids here are as amazing as always - their endless joy is awesome! Claudia and Shannon - everyone is asking about you and wishing you were here. They all want to know when you’re going to return!

FINALLY!!!

We're here! After 2 very long days of travelling we've made it and just completed our first week here. Its been amazing seeing everyone again and we've been able to make some progress on the OVC center. Liam and Jessica are loving painting as we paint the councilling room, the storage room and the lobby. They have also had the opportunity to go on some home visits with Jimmy. I'm really excited to start seeing the OVC center come together - its going to be amazing what we'll be able to do for the kids when its done. Please keep in touch - either on here or at klockyer@hotmail.com. Miss you all!!!

On my way...

Hello everyone,

I'm getting ready to head back to Ndola, Zambia for the third time. It's so crazy!!! I leave on February 10th and will be there for around 6 months. Please check my blog for updates on what's happening!

What will I be doing???? Well, I will be helping with the new OVC (orphan and vulnerable children) centre. We will be setting up the resource centre and library and I will be working with the team to develop new programs for the kids. Our hope is that we can supplement their education and offer a variety of activities for them to participate in. I'm very excited to return and work with the amazing team at Isubilo and see all my kids again!

It is so amazing to get messages from home so I hope that all of you will keep in touch!!!

Thanks for all your support. For more information on Isubilo go to www.isubilo.org.