Last week was a very sad week for us. The health education officer, who I worked with a great deal and who was a good friend to Richard and I, was killed in a drunken driving accident over the previous weekend. The funeral was held last Sunday and over two hundred people came. Besides his family, he left behind a young son. Drunk driving is actually quite common in Botswana and the second highest reason for orphan hood after HIV/AIDS. Unfortunately, this is not an issue that receives enough attention.

The funeral was held in Ikoga, which is about thirty minutes north of Gumare. Traditionally, there are prayers every night leading up to a funeral, which can occur up to a week after the death. The evening before the funeral, the casket is picked up from the funeral parlor and mourners follow the casket to the family’s house. The mourners stay up late into the night praying. In the morning at 5AM, there is a viewing, and then the body is buried at 6AM. Women must cover their heads and wear a skirt/dress to the funeral. The family feeds everyone in the days leading up to the funeral.

Richard and I will be home for a visit in less than two weeks. We are very excited to see our families and friends. It will be interesting going from our village to NYC for those weeks we are home. Richard is already planning all his meals. I will be spending some time looking at PhD programs while I’m home, but I have to admit, I’ll also be spending a lot time planning for the next meal.

It is really starting to warm up here. June and July are the coldest months and September and October are the hottest months so we just watch the thermometer rise every day in August. We have actually been seeing quite a few elephants along the road near Gumare. Last week, when we were going to Xakao for a meeting, we saw a herd of females and babies about 30kms away.

I’ve been helping the Rehabilitation Officer, who works with people living with disabilities, write a big grant to create programming for people with disabilities. Unfortunately, people living with disabilities do not have much access to services and education and are often stigmatized due to traditional beliefs around the nature of disability. For example, many people in our area believe that disability is the result of witchcraft. Most rarely leave their houses and for those are physically handicapped; it is difficult to get around on the sandy terrain.

Richard is making progress on his basket. He is trying hard to finish before we go home. I suspect that the women at the basket co-op add on to it when he isn’t looking. Richard and I are still working on data inputting for our GIS mapping project, but we are making progress. We haven’t had too much trouble gathering the data we need. We are also planning for a health fair in Xakao, across the river, which will take place after we return in September. As a follow-up to the Employee Wellness Day I helped work on in May, I am now on the Workplace Wellness Program committee, which I really enjoy. School is out for most of August so we will resume mentoring and other school activities when we return.

It has been over a month since I last posted a blog entry. July was a very busy month. We had our mid service training in Molepolole. This was the first time I’ve seen many people in our Bots 7 group since our last training in September – it was nice to catch up with everyone. We had 3 days of training, including a language test, and a day of check-up medical/dental appointments.

After returning from Molepolole, my college friend Jen came for a visit. I took two days off of work so I could show her the Caprivi Strip in Namibia, which is very close to Gumare. Luckily, my birthday fell over a four day weekend, so this was a perfect opportunity to relax and show Jen around the area. She also got to experience village life, as she spent a few days in Gumare and I took her to a malaria event in Tsau, a village about 120km away. She was my first (and probably only) visitor and I was happy to see her and show her where I live.

The weather was very cold in July. We bundled up in layers and we were still cold, especially at night. The temperature was in the low 40’s in the early morning and mid-60s during the day. It is now starting to get warmer – actually at an alarming pace. I’m quite sure that it will be very hot again in a few weeks. Unfortunately, September and October are by far the hottest, most uncomfortable months. The good news is that my chameleon has hung around all winter and is still living in my front yard.

We continue to work on several ongoing projects. Right now, Richard and I gathering health data, such as HIV, TB, STIs, Malaria, Mother to Child Transmission, and Unavailability of Medicine for our sub-district and entering the data in excel spreadsheets. We are then going to use the data to make a GIS map, which looks at health trends in the area and where resources need to be targeted. We are also planning a health fair in Xakao and I am collaborating with a NGO in Shakawe to do a Needs Assessment of adolescent orphans. In addition, my Orphan Caregiver’s paper bead jewelry group is starting to sell to Mothers for All – they have made amazing progress.

This time next month, we will be in the United States for a visit. Looking forward to it!!!