A Scattered, Somewhat "Logical" Posting

Looking back at my previous entries, I realized little is written about our Ingram project for EAC. In this entry, I will connect creating logic models to some of the amazing experiences I have yet to write about.

Until the arrival of EAC's US visitors, Nick and I spent our days in the office conducting interviews every so often and producing drafts of our models. Days were full of conversations about phrases, what boxes arrows should be connected to, and whether outcomes were truly measurable. The arrival of visitors changed the structure of our days for the better. Each day until about noon was spent in the office working on drafts. Then, in the afternoons, we would join the visitors in activities when relevant to our project. These experiences helped me to process the flow of our model. Seeing where EAC children start is essential to understanding what the outcomes of EAC's programming should be.

Two of our afternoons were spent visiting the homes of EAC children. For me, the impact of these visits came from knowing the children on a personal level before seeing their homes. The first home we visited was Maureen's. She is friendly, and a wonderful conversationalist. When we were picking up the Mack's from the airport, we had a discussion about the United States, Luganda, and how I felt when I first arrived to Africa.

The next day as we approached her home a swarm of children wearing mix matched clothes and shoes of the wrong size with missing straps ran toward us. Some of the visitors brought candy to hand out to them. I bought out the mangos at a fruit stand to give to the children. Seeing a 2 or 3 year old girl biting through and finishing a whole mango was pretty amazing.

We were invited into Maureen's one-room home two at a time. There were beds shared by the children and one for the mother. Limited storage led to stacking of items and light was limited. Maureen smiled as she showed us a picture of her younger brother. Her mother was appreciative of our visit. She was gracious and provided us with "Obama Chipatti," which is by default of its name the best in Kampala. Chipatti is an Indian flavorful tortilla-like bread, which is sold on the streets. My favorite way to eat chapatti is with a tomato and sometimes green pepper omelet in the middle. This delicious street food is known as a rolex. Maureen's mother told us about her typical day, which begins early and ends late. She cooks pork for one of Kampala's best pork joints. On most days, she does not return home until around 9 or 10 so when Maureen comes to visit she spends little time with her. Her hard work allows for her children to attend school.

As we drove away, I wanted to hug Maureen for being so strong and supportive of her family. The contrast between her home and the amenities provided by EAC are vast; yet, she returns to her mother with such love and remains proud of her family. This is a reflection of one of EAC's missions - to keep children connected to their communities. Their is no doubt in my mind Maureen will take advantage of her opportunities and assist her community. My job is to figure out how to measure this variable. Two days later, we visited the home of Sharon, which Nick discussed in one of his postings. I felt many of the same emotions as we walked through Sharon's home two by two.

WIth the EAC visitors, we also had the opportunity to visit two other NGOs, which gave me insight into some of the challenges faced by Ugandan children. The Sanyu Babies Home is an orphanage for 50 abandoned babies. During our time there, I played with many of the children. A few were very funny. Arnold reminded me of myself. He loved pineapple, and would go to great lengths for the fruit. He stole from the other babies and ate their extras from the dirty ground. Another child was mean. He found a water bottle on the ground and began chasing and hitting me with it. A third child, Edith, sat on my lap for 10 minutes while she ate a whole egg.

The second NGO we visited was Retrak, which provides a place for street children, mostly male, to find safety. There is a place for them to stay, play soccer, and learning opportunities. We spent from midday until 4 at Retrak one Friday. The visitors, some of EAC students and US visitors played the children in a game of soccer, which was dubbed "Ghana vs. USA." Indeed, the outcome was the same! Next, we danced, ate, and had a dance competition. Peter- an EAC US Scholarship student - served as the DJ, a reflection of the mission of the program to have students come back to their communities. I wondered how Peter contributing to Retrak could be measured in our model. After lunch, a dance off between the children provided everyone with laughs and fun. Jengo, Brian, Noel, and Faith - EAC students - also danced. Nick and I connected with one of the children . He really wished he could attend school, but he did not have the money for school fees. He was well spoken and clearly very intelligent. To think his potential may be be squandered by his circumstance is still hard for me to grapple.

In conclusion, visiting homes and NGOs may seem disconnected from our project, but the experiences I had at each of those places assisted me more than a conversation about arrows.

- Feldman