Where We Travel
Each year we travel to different destinations. 2012 destinations and dates will be posted soon.
2012 Mombasa, Kenya - Team is full
Possible Destinations:
KENYA
Kenya has long been a favorite travel destination in Africa. Revered by many anthropologists as the 'cradle of humanity', Kenya has magnificent wildlife parks, unsullied beaches, thriving coral reefs, memorable mountainscapes and ancient Swahili cities. But Kenya is also a country with substantial needs.
The Need
Although Kenya has seen some success in their HIV response, it is still home to one of the world’s harshest HIV and AIDS pandemics. In a country plagued by drought and a history of civil unrest, HIV/AIDS remains a significant problem for the country in its efforts for social and economic development.
The estimated number of people living with HIV/AIDS in Kenya is estimated to be over 1.5 million, with 76,300 new HIV infections in 2009 alone. Here are some other alarming statistics:
· 1.2 million children have been orphaned by AIDS
· Approximately 100,000 children are living with the virus, having acquired it from their mothers before birth, at birth, or during breastfeeding
· One-third of all infant deaths can be attributed to AIDS
· Only 1 in 3 children needing treatment are receiving it. In the absence of treatment, 50% of HIV-infected children will die before their second birthday.
This demonstrates just how far Kenya still needs to go in providing universal access to HIV treatment, prevention and care.
Our Kenyan Partner: Mombasa Community-Based Health Care and AIDS Relief Project
The Mombasa CBHC and AIDS Relief Project was initiated in 1996 through the Archdiocese of Mombasa. The program provides free medical care to people infected and affected by HIV/AIDS, as well as to other impoverished individuals in their community in need of medical care.
The Mombasa CBHC offers a holistic approach to the healthcare of their clients, offering HIV testing, treating for opportunistic diseases as well as managing anti-retroviral treatments. The project also includes counseling services, which is especially important when patients learn that they are HIV+. Beginning in one parish, the project has gradually expanded to 11 parishes in Mombasa. Currently, they are serving 2170 clients, the majority of whom live in the large slums areas of Mombasa and Kilindini districts.
Knowing that patients respond very well to home visits and to continued care outside of hospital settings, the program has grown to include 350 home care volunteers. These trained CHWs visit families in their neighborhoods, provide basic health counseling, and refer more serious cases to the nurses. They also work hard to keep clients committed to taking their medications, creating HIV awareness within the community, providing a linkage between patients and clinic, and identifying those in need of nutritional support. CHWs care for about 5,900 sick persons living in great poverty.
Mombasa CBHC also operates an orphanage program for 300 children. They provide education, medical treatment and clothing support. They also offer two HIV prevention programs, specifically suited for children of different ages. One hundred twenty mothers have been trained to lead these groups.
Work Projects
Previous AFCA volunteer teams have participated in a variety of projects in Mombasa. Some of these projects included:
· Helping to build a house for a family of four children who were orphaned when their father died of AIDS and their mother was killed in a traffic accident several months later. Without this help, these children would have had to continue living in an orphanage.
· Repairing a dilapidated home of two orphaned children who are HIV+ themselves. The home was left to them by their mother, and their financial situation was so dire that they could not afford to make repairs to keep the rains from coming through the roof and walls.
· Inventorying antiretroviral and other medicines and medical supplies at AFCA partner hospitals and clinics, as well as completing general maintenance projects in these facilities.
Future projects will include the continuation of repairing the homes of clients of the clinic. These clients are at risk of worsening their illnesses because their homes are in such unsafe and unsanitary conditions. We may also help with painting and other miscellaneous renovation projects in local clinics as well as playing with children served by AFCA.
Other Trip Highlights
Teams stay at a Catholic community center in Mombasa. Rooms will be shared, two per room. The rooms have their own bathrooms (although the water is not hot in the showers), a balcony and electricity. Breakfasts will be served at the guest house each morning. Lunches and dinners will be taken in local restaurants.
Current Open Teams
To Be Determined…
NEPAL
This volunteer trip will be a part of AFCA’s “Climb Up So Kids Can Grow Up” annual fund-raising campaign. It also provides financial support for Nepal Orphans Home, a 501(c) 3 public charity that offers care to orphaned and abandoned children in Nepal. While not an AIDS organization or an AFCA partner, Nepal Orphans Home serves to improve the dire situation of children in their country. AFCA is proud to provide a unique travel experience to Nepal that also helps further their work.
For this volunteer vacation, we will be working and staying at the Tashi Chime Gatsal monastery in the remote Sherpa village of Bigu, Nepal. The Rinpoche (head monk) and nuns of the monastery invite us to participate in almost every aspect of their daily lives during our stay – sharing meals, attending sunrise prayers and helping with their chores around the monastery – making for many memorable experiences.
This is a somewhat physical volunteer opportunity. Bigu is situated at 8200 feet in elevation, and there is currently no usable road that takes you all the way to the village. We will travel several hours in a jeep on very rough roads before we begin the hike to the village. We will have porters available to carry the majority of our luggage, so all you’ll need to carry yourself are items you’ll need during the hike.
Don’t let the physical challenges discourage you from considering this opportunity. You certainly do not need to be a super-athlete to participate, but you need to be prepared for a long trek. And your reward for your efforts will be repaid immeasurably by the amazing experience you will have once you get there!
The Need
Despite its beauty, Nepal ranks among the poorest and least developed nations in the world. Nepal’s remote location, security concerns, and lack of technology have hindered the economy. Recent severe drought and unreliable monsoon rains have led to acute food shortages and the highest levels of hunger in 40 years. Nearly 70% of the population lives on less than $2 a day. About two thirds of female adults and one third of male adults are illiterate.
The situation for children in Nepal is especially alarming. One infant in every 10 dies before the age of five. There are an estimated 1 million orphans in Nepal. Even a basic school education is too expensive for many families.
Child labor is another growing problem facing Nepal. It is estimated that there are approximately 2.6 million child workers in the country. Some children are trafficked into India and sold there to work in the carpet making industry or the sex industry. Every year, a staggering 7,000 to 10,000 Nepalese girls are trafficked against their will across the open border with India.
Our Nepal Partner: Nepal Orphans Home
Nepal Orphans Home (NOH) rescues children from abject poverty, providing their basic needs of food, shelter, and clothing. They also enable these children to develop and realize their potential by providing schooling, health care and administering to their emotional needs. In addition to taking in orphaned or abandoned children, NOH collaborates with Society Welfare Action Nepal (SWAN), a local nongovernmental organization that rescues girls from indentured servitude.
What began with 12 children in one building in 2005, has now expanded to providing for 130 children in four houses. Three of the homes provide for girls of which over 70 were rescued from indentured servitude. The fourth home cares for boys. The children range in age from 6 to 19.
NOH also supports two schools in remote villages in the Ramechhap district, funding hot lunch programs and contributing to teacher salaries and school supplies for over 140 children, most of whom are Dalits (untouchables).
To learn more about NOH, visit their webpage at: http://www.nepalorphanshome.org
Work Projects
In the past, volunteers have helped with:
· Planting gardens and offering suggestions for seed harvesting and cultivation
· Minor construction projects
· Repainting decorative panels in the temple
· Teaching English at the monastery as well as the village school
· Teaching the nuns to knit and sew
· Helping to cook meals
One of the future projects will be improvements to the monastery kitchen. Currently, the nuns have to work on the floor and cook over open fires, which creates health issues for them.
This is a very self-directed volunteer experience – it’s up to you to make yourself as useful as you want to be. You decide where you can best help, and work at your own pace. And you are free to take time to explore the village, hike, share pictures with local visitors to the monastery, meditate, read, or relax.
Other Trip Highlights
The team will be staying inside the monastery compound. Accommodations are rustic, but comfortable. We will be sleeping on single beds with four to six people per room. Restroom facilities are Asian-style squat toilets that are located across the compound from the sleeping rooms. We will have all meals at the monastery, prepared by the nuns with help from team members.
The monastery does not have hot water for showers. Heating water for a team is a considerable burden for the nuns, as it must be done over open fires. There is a guest house within a 5-minute walk where hot showers are available for a nominal fee – but the guest house hours are unpredictable and there are often more people wanting hot showers than there is hot water available. At the very least, we will make every attempt to heat water for bucket baths at least every other day.
Electricity is minimal and is limited to a few solar panels providing basic lighting for the buildings. For a small fee, we are sometimes able to recharge small electronic devices at the small monastery store (the store also sells snacks and drinks).
Current Open Teams
To be determined…