Tuesday, September 16

This coming Saturday, September 20, is ACT Uganda’s Thanksgiving event.  Many dignitaries from around Uganda were invited by the ACT Muko Board and Generous, ACT Uganda’s director, and are expected to attend.  More on that event later.  But we mention it because it means there is much effort this week being spent on sprucing up the Empowerment Center.  Today, we were able to get all of the windows cleaned, inside and out, and two of the five rooms painted.  Whew!  We have two days to paint three more rooms.  Unfortunately, all of the paint colors we need were gone when we stopped at the store on the way back tonight.  And that was discovered after having to use flashlights in the store to read the labels, since there are no lights in the stores.  Flexibility is key here.

While the paint crew (Dave, Karen, Diane and Bill) was working, many other activities were accomplished by the rest of the team. 

Ginny, Sue and Toni met with Alexander, MEP Manager, Lovina, MEP’s Quality Control Manager and Generous.  Over a four hour time span, many things were accomplished for the MEP program.  Product Quality Guidelines were developed, along with skill level requirements in order for someone to be part of the MEP team.  It was also decided that Lovina will live at the Empowerment Center one week each month.  She will be available to train women who are interested in improving their basket weaving skills.  She will also spend that time determining which baskets fit the quality requirements in order to be included in the next shipment to the U,S,  And a bonus is, she will also be company for Michelle … maybe Michelle will become a  basket weaver!  Ginny spent additional time with Alexander sharing ideas on inventory control processes so they can work together efficiently on keeping our shelves in Michigan well stocked for Uniquely Uganda and the many art fairs in which we participate.  We were also very excited to learn that Alexander’s sister, Barbara, is a senior tailor.  Generous and Richard Turinawe had donated a sewing machine to ACT last June in honor of Tess Waechter’s, wedding, but we didn’t have anyone in MEP that could teach sewing.  Now Barbara is going to sew for MEP and also may serve as a trainer.  Yay!

The HANDS team (agriculture) kept busy as well.  Michelle, John, Roger, along with Moses, Benson, Herbert, Sharon and Tito walked many miles today taking soil samples and surveying potential plots for commercial gardens.  As Michelle put it, they walked on many hills - and it was uphill both ways.  The US team distributed seeds to the Ugandan team and the Ugandan team explained how the labor practices work in Uganda.  One difference from US practice is that each part of the farming activities is handled by different group of people:  tilling, planting, weeding, and so on.

Later in the afternoon, Ginny and Karen headed to Muko High School for their daily violin practice.  They were happy to see that 16 enthusiastic students showed up and worked hard.  All had fun!

Toni spent time with eight individuals today, interviewing them one-on-one to learn more about their culture and daily lives. 

Speaking of culture, one big difference is the traffic.  There is no public transportation, but you see many motorbikes, sometimes carrying up to four people.  We even saw a bicycle that was being used to transport a full-sized couch! It is also the main mode of transportation, besides walking, to carry your wares.  We’ve seen bags of potatoes, chairs, bamboo, babies, cans full of water … you name it, they carry it.  There are also no traffic lights or stop signs.  And on top of that, they drive on the left side of the road and the steering wheel is on the right side of the car. 

We’ve finished another great dinner and are planning tomorrow.  We are continuing our practice of rating ourselves on our plans for the day. We earned 100% yesterday and 120% today! We give ourselves bonus points for extra things we did during the day.  Thanks for following our adventures!