“I want to start a hospital that has a neurosurgeon,” a
young man says in response to fellow PCV
Danielle’s question asking for the
fifty boys what their goals are.
It is Saturday morning and I am exhausted after staying up
the night before doing evening activities with the same boys. I am exhausted
but profoundly happy.
Camp BRO [Boys Respecting Others] is the male equivalent to
the Camp GLOW I co-directed in September.
Unlike in September, however, I am not in charge this time. This means that I
have the energy and enthusiasm to lead energizers and activities and to joke
around with the guys.
Nt Lebohang from the Business Economic Development Corporation leads a session on business.
Yolanda, an amazing woman that lived in my training village
back in Pre-Service Training, has done an astounding job planning the camp.
Nearly all the sessions-covering topics including goal setting, leadership,
business skills, career development, gender, and sexual reproductive
health-have at least one host country speaker or organization leading the
session. This helps the participants to connect with a number of professionals
in their community but also dramatically increases the amount of effort Yolanda
has had to invest in communicating and planning.
Danielle smiling during her HIV test.
Not long after Danielle and Adrian's session on goal
setting, a woman from the local clinic arrives to offer HIV testing throughout
the day. Since the boys are in a session on business development, Danielle and
I jump on the opportunity to take HIV tests. After the session concludes, we
skip into the hall and share the testing opportunity by showing them our
testing strips. Abuti Khotso, a sassy and fun young man, challenges me, “Would
you show us if you were HIV positive?” I surprise him by letting him know
that yes, I would in fact show them my results even if I had HIV. He notes that
HIV is a death sentence, which opens the door for Danielle and me to share that
if an HIV positive person takes anti-retrovirals correctly, HIV is now less
dangerous than other common conditions in Lesotho like high blood pressure or
diabetes.
Later in the day, I am co-facilitating the session on Sexual
Reproductive Health with some volunteers from the Lesotho Red Cross. As I
discuss the female reproductive system, I am again surprised as most of the
many questions I am asked are about the biology and genetics of reproduction,
not sex.
That night we have a bonfire with s’mores. Jamilla, another
PCV, starts doing some call and response camp songs. When Boom Chicka Boom
begins, I jump up with enthusiasm. I have not sung my favorite verses of this
camp classic in years and I am absurdly excited.
The new BRO Club president hands out certificates to his Bros.
Living in my community in rural Botha Bothe, I forget that I
am great working with youth. I keep myself busy with Grassroot Soccer programs, teaching life skills at school, and
working with the women in myorganization. This work, however, happens predominantly in Sesotho. When I
work in Sesotho, I find I lose the playfulness of my personality and I have to
work so much harder to convey my content or explain activities. At camps like
GLOW and BRO, however, I am working with high school students, who are more
accustomed to English. I find my personality returns and the work is more fun
and less work. It is a great reminder as to what had me teaching in the
classroom, on ships, and in the woods.
So that said, thanks Yolanda for all of your
efforts in planning this camp. And thanks to the rest of the camp staff-‘M’e
‘Mahlapi, Adrian, Corinne, Ryan, Jamilla, and Danielle-working with you was wonderful!
Nick hanging out with his youngest host brother Thabiso.
Within my training group, there are only fifteen of us spread throughout seven of Lesotho's ten districts. Only one person in the group lives within a few hours of me: Nick. As a result, he has become my closest PCV pal-both geographically and in actuality. Consequently, I have been to multiple special events at LASTC, his workplace, including graduation and a cultural day.
Although the youngest in our training group, Nick is possibly the most ambitious. With only four of our twenty-seven months remaining, Nick already knows his path for the next 7 to 10 years. In the fall, he will begin graduate school to earn a Masters of Public Health at one of the many schools smart enough to accept him (his acceptance rate is currently 100%!). Focusing on global health will help him prepare for medical school and a career as a traveling physician-think Doctors Without Borders.
Nick's background makes him a perfect match for a health-related role in Peace Corps Lesotho, yet, his assignment is predominately youth development. Despite studying neuroscience as an undergrad and holding his CNA license, in Lesotho, Nick has lived the life of an educator. He works for a tertiary school offering two-year certificates in agriculture and business. His work at the Agric Skills Training Center consists predominantly of teaching life skills, communication, and computers. While these subjects do not appear to be a perfect match for him, Nick has adapted his other experiences well to his current role as a PCV.
Nick with colleagues at the LASTC Cultural Day.
He uses his experiences as a founding member of his university's Toastmasters Club to enhance his public speaking classes. His passion for computers and technology have provided fodder for his computer classes and for helping the school staff improve grading programs and more. Life Skills classes have provided the most opportunities for his interest in health as it is impossible to teach life skills in Lesotho without discussing sexual and reproductive health and HIV/AIDS.
Aside from his primary assignment, which takes up a large amount of time, Nick regularly participates in Peace Corps activities. He has spent our entire service as the PC security representative for his district, which includes weekly communication between PCVs and the Peace Corps office. He is on the Information, Communication, and Technology committee, which he co-chaired last year. He also helped significantly with my Camp GLOW last year.
Luckily for the school, one of Nick's greatest flaws is also a huge asset: generosity. As the school has not computers for his computer class, Nick has spent the last two years teaching dozens of students using only his tiny, "ancient" personal laptop. This will hopefully change before he finishes his work in Lesotho as Nick and his school have recently been approved for a Peace Corps Partnership Program grant to build a computer lab with ten desktops.
As Nick prepares to head off to the University of Arizona for graduate school, it will be fun to watch his ambitions become realities.
Kathy and Nick are wild animals in the roadway after
hiking at Tsehlanyane National Park.
Yesterday, I delivered a speech for the Queen of Lesotho,
'M'e 'Masenate Mohato Seeiso, and the Deputy Minister of Gender. Yesterday, my
public speaking was broadcast on the national news. What is really important,
however, is that yesterday, Camp GLOW North 2015 concluded. Yesterday, 190
young women from four districts and 19 schools in Lesotho returned home ready
to start GLOW clubs and become positive leaders of change in their communities.
Over the last eight months or so, I have been working on Camp
GLOW. GLOW, which stands for Girls Leading Our World, is a global Peace Corps
program. Its vision is to empower young women to become leaders in their communities with six goals: gender equality, self esteem,
leadership, health, aspiration, and volunteerism.
Our camp was the largest such undertaking in Lesotho thus
far. The multi-district camp began last year with PCVs who have since completed
their service. They passed it on to us and we significantly expanded on their
successes last year. Working with three other PCVs, two representatives from
the Ministry of Gender, Youth, Sport, and Recreation, one from the Ministry of
Social Development, and one teacher from a school that participated last year,
we met regularly to ensure schools were invited to participate, the grant was
written, more local partners were found, and the school was ready to be turned
into a camp for five days. Despite years in similar programming, I had never
planned a program for a site not designed for said programming. It was
overwhelming the number of additional details required when turning a school
into a camp site for a week!
Obviously, we accomplished it. Last Friday, just over twenty
PCVs and Basotho staff arrived for our staff training. Then, before we were
ready, it was Saturday and girls began arriving. Despite being exhausted before
camp even began, it was impossible not to be energized by the enthusiasm of the
girls. As each taxi arrived, the girls would pile out with shouts, dancing, and
hugs!
In no time, camp was in full swing. The young women
participated in sessions to help them reach the six goals of GLOW. At the same
time, an advisor from each school participated in training sessions to help
them adapt to leading such a dynamic club in a manner quite different from
teaching here.
The Programming Directors and my
awaiting the Queen's arrival.
There were, of course, the usual challenges. More of my time
than I would have liked was spent running around taking care of medical issues,
discussions about food quantity with the two school cooks, and simply trying to
make sure everyone else had what they needed for the camp to be successful
while also co-leading the Advisors' sessions and trying to participate in the
regular camp activities. These girls, however, made it all worth it. Every time
they saw me passing, they greeted me with an incredible amount of love.
Career Panel speakers and organizers.
The campers participated in so many incredible sessions
throughout the week. The FLAG or Fight Like a Girl facilitators from Qacha's
Nek came and met with every girl and the staff/advisors that wanted to
participate, teaching them ways to escape should they be attacked. This was
definitely a favorite activity. There were sessions on Goal Setting,
Leadership, Tie Dye, Empowering Others, Self Esteem and Positive Body Image,
Sexual and Reproductive Health, HIV Prevention, Human Trafficking and Gender
Based Violence, Yoga, Aerobics, CV (resume for the Americans) Writing,
friendship bracelets, and much more. There was an amazing career panel with
Basotho women in a variety of careers sharing their experiences, the challenges
they had to overcome, and how to get into their field. In the evenings, we had
a movie night, a dance party complete with GLOW sticks, and an amazing
bonfire/talent show on our last evening.
The Advisors with their certificates
showing completion of their training.
During the bonfire/talent show, I sat in the school's office
with the camp leadership team. We needed to find a student speaker for the
closing ceremony, one who could handle speaking not only to the entire camp but
to a number of distinguished guests. We had five nominations from counselors so
we called each of them in to ask them to tell us about their week at camp and
what they felt they had gained from the experience. I have never had such
incredible feedback from campers or students during a program. With no time to
think, the campers each shared powerful praise for the impact camp would have
on their lives. A few of them had attended the previous year and still had
nothing but praise for how this second camp changed them. One of the girls
wrote her thoughts down before sharing, she said, “I did not know how to trust
in myself, then after that [the session on empowerment], I just told myself
that I will be who I am and do whatever I want to do as long as it is the right
thing.” She concluded her thoughts with “You showed us that you love and care
for us and you want us to have a better future.”
In all of the chaos that ensued our final morning as we
prepared to change the site from camp back to school, prepared 250 campers,
advisors, and staff for departure, and prepared for the arrival of our incredibly
distinguished guests, it was too easy for me to focus on the right now. But
this camp was not about right now. Everything we stressed with the campers and
the advisors was focused on the future. Camp was not simply about five
incredible days, it was about returning to school and starting a GLOW club to
teach the same lessons and activities to other girls. It was about young women
deciding they can determine their own future. They can set goals and achieve
them. They can serve as leaders in their communities. They can.
'M'e Masenate Mohato Seeiso bestow certificates to the
GLOW Junior Counselors.
The queen was clearly impressed by our camp and our young
women. I was standing with her assistant, who was stunned when the queen
deviated from her prepared words at the end of her speech; suggesting that next
year her daughter could be able to attend Camp GLOW and that she and her
daughter might try to visit some of the clubs the girls would be forming!
When I took all of this on a year ago, I had no idea how big
it would become. I have reached a point of exhaustion not encountered in years.
My voice is trying not to disappear entirely. I spent five nights sleeping on a
thin mattress on the cement floor of a computer lab with twenty other women.
And, I am still overwhelmed by the amount of reporting and paperwork I need to
do in order to fully close out the camp and the grant from Peace Corps that
made it all possible, but it was definitely worth it.
Campers do Grassroot Soccer Activities with Torle and her counterpart Maseru
Campers participate in a session on Sexual and Reproductive Health
Camp Staff, Junior Counselors, and distinguished guests after the closing ceremony
I must give huge thanks to the camp staff, the campers, the
schools, the principals, the advisors, the distinguished guests who helped close
camp, and especially my partners on the Camp Planning Committee. A project this
big could never have succeeded without their help!
"We must celebrate our culture," Ntate Matlakala told me. "You cannot have culture without agriculture as food is a integral part of culture."
Ntate Matlakala is a director of LASTC or Leribe Agric Skills Training Center. He said this as the performances at LASTC's Cultural Day were concluding and we transitioned to dining. I was in attendance because a fellow PCV, Nick, works at LASTC.
Like many of the Basotho there to enjoy the cultural display, we donned appropriate clothing: a Seshoeshoe (Se-shway shway) dress and scarf for me, a kobo or blanket and hat for him. Not only did the Basotho present love seeing us in their cultural dress, but they really cheered when we introduced ourselves in Sesotho during the opening of the festivities.
The event included dancing, singing, musical, and theater performances celebrating Basotho history before we dined on traditional Basotho food made primarily from food grown by the LASTC students.
Instead of sharing this experience in words, I am going to allow the pictures and eventually videos do it for me.
