Day 7 Uganda: Kimenyedde and Alice

No rain this morning as we left Jinja. We had decided on a later start so that we could get some rest and catch up on paperwork, photos and packing.

Liz, the wonderful woman who helps us with everything at The Nile was there to say goodbye with well wishes and hopes for our return. I gave her a MoonCatcher Kit, and she and Phoebe exchanged numbers so that they can be in contact about how Liz could make them herself. Maureen, the receptionist helped us with our luggage and bid us a farewell too. It was bittersweet leaving these wonderful people.

Ellie poses with Alice - who leads the MoonCatcher sewing cooperative in Kimenyedde, Uganda.

We drove to Kimenyedde to see Alice who runs another MoonCatcher sewing guild. She was at home with two of her tailors and plenty of children from age one month to teenagers. Her house has been expanded since last we visited, and we hung out in her new living room stuffing pads into drawstring bags and eating freshly roasted peanuts that she had grown and prepared. We devoured the entire bowl.  I think maybe I could live on just these.

MoonCatcher tailors, Fiona and Grace, had set up sewing machines on the back porch and were sewing elastic onto the shoestring belt. I was envious of them being able to sew outside. What fun that would be.

We left with a tote full of kits and headed for Ndwaddemutwe school where the building we were teaching in had been financed by our friend and Alice’s brother Fred Kakumba and his wife Dawn. About 100 girls greeted us with “You are most welcome” all said in unison. So sweet!

Then, Phoebe set to work and did her magic, reeling the girls in with stories and information about menstruation, setting goals and growing into healthy, powerful women. It’s such a joy to watch her do this work. The rest of us took photos, helped individual girls figure out plotting their cycles and distributed kits.

We are now at the Abba Hotel where we will meet the Kamugongo Rotary tomorrow to give a presentation and discuss our partnership concerning the rotary grant awarded to The MoonCatcher Project. This grant has been in the works for several years, and we are very excited that it is about to be launched. We are hoping to do some shopping tomorrow to buy supplies to make hundreds of kits for girls in the 20 schools that this grant covers.  All girls in the schools will receive kits, as well as our curriculum. Thank you so much to the Ugandan and Scotia Rotary Clubs as well as Rotary International.

Dinner outside under the stars was delightful with “heat lightening” in the distance.

Be well everyone! I’m off to bed.