Amy.Gress

Reader Warning:  Parts of these blog posts may become pretty graphic, in terms of bodily functions.  Becoming very familiar with our teammates' "habits" rapidly became part of this trip, and it's not something I am going to gloss over because it's part of what made this climb so real, so raw, so meaningful. There, my PSA is done, read at your own risk.  Time to continue. And pee we had to.  I managed to hold off until about 5am, and was willing to hold it longer, but Anne got up to go and as soon as she set foot outside, she said, in a loud whisper, "Suz, you gotta see [...]

Rain.  We were woken up by Wilson knocking on our door around 6:30am and I remember hearing rain.  I thought, "Nooooooooo...it can't be raining.  It CAN'T rain on Day 1, because what does that mean for the rest of the days?".  I stumbled to the door to assure Wilson that we were in fact awake, then Anne and I got in gear.  Literally, we got in gear.  We got into pants and rain pants and fleeces and promptly both realized we were lacking rain coats. We both brought ski coats, but weren't sure how waterproof they would be in the rain in an actual rainforest.  I felt upset and it must [...]

Our flight from Amsterdam was smooth, and we connected with another teammate of ours, Kate on that flight. We landed in the dark at Kilimanjaro airport around 8:30pm and stepped onto the tarmac to feel the warm breeze on our skin; not sticky like I was expecting. Customs and Immigration was easy, and once we had our bags, drivers from AFCA were there waiting for us. We climbed into a green Land Cruiser and started the two hour drive to where we were staying, Mbahe Farm. The guide (Manase) and driver (Mohammed) poured Swahili words into us, so by the time we got to the farm, we could say things [...]

This post will be broken into many, many pieces since this trip is worthy of at least an entry per day. It truly was an experience of a lifetime, and I don't want to shortchange the experience, the people, or the mountain. Kilimanjaro is the tallest mountain in Africa, rising above the plains of East Africa to an impressive 19,341 feet. It's the world's tallest free standing mountain, and while it's climbable (is that a word?) to many, it's still a force to be reckoned with. Last summer, summer of 2014, my dear friend Anne called me one day and asked, "Want to climb Kilimanjaro with me?" Anne is always [...]

Mrs. Ndlovu is a widow from Mayezane in Matebeleland South. Mrs.Ndlovu had 10 biological children consisting of 5 boys and 5 girls who all died. In her words, her children died because of " umkhuhlane lo bantwabami" a local reference to HIV &AIDS. She buried her last child in 2010. Because of the trauma associated with the loss of all her children, she decided to relocate from one village to another within her area. Mrs. Ndlovu had no assets (cattle or goats) but was taking care of 4 orphans. In 2012, she was identified as one of the beneficiaries for our Livelihoods Project. She was then trained in small livestock [...]

TRAVEL AND OUTDOOR GEAR COMPANY SUPPORTS WORK OF ANTI-POVERTY ORGANIZATIONS. In a continuing effort to support the American Foundation for Children with AIDs (AFCA), LCI Brands™ is participating in the Live Below the Line campaign, which challenges individuals to spend less than $1.50 on food and drink per day for 5 days. The idea is for participants to experience the struggles of those who live in poverty on a daily basis, and to gather donations for organizations that strive to eliminate poverty, such as AFCA. The Live Below the Line website offers resources such as food costs and recipes; tips for fundraising, such as hosting an office cook-off or planning a dinner party that [...]

A woman in the prime of life who inspires us In this issue, Helena Persson, 54, who raised funds for aids-stricken children in Africa by climbing the Kilimanjaro. How come you decided to help children in need? - During a trip with my son to South Africa in 2012 a seed was planted that I wanted to help somehow. Many things were modern there, still we saw shelters for children suffering because of aids – either because they were ill themselves or because they had lost their parents due to the disease. They were treated like paria. One could talk about everything – but not aids. We were horrified and [...]

All girls deserve access to clean, safe feminine hygiene products. It shouldn't matter where you are, where you live, or what your income is. If you are a woman, you deserve access to these products. That's why the Ms. World Feminist Club at LaGuardia High School of Music, Art and Performing Arts in Manhattan, New York is starting a drive for clean, unopened feminine hygiene products that will be delivered to girls in Africa through the American Foundation for Children with AIDS. We want to help end the stigma about menstruation in third-world countries where girls cannot attend school due to the embarrassment, fear, and poor handling of their normal [...]

One thing that makes Martin special to me is his desire to learn.  He has little - a hovel for a house, no parents, and no means with which to get himself out of a horrible situation. But, he knows that education can get him out of that hovel and that if he studies hard and does well, he can continue on to college and to a good job one day. When I first met Martin, it was 7 years ago and I asked him what he wanted to be when he grew up.  He looked at me blankly,not able to comprehend that one day, with the right medicine and good food, he'd make it to [...]

Every girl in the world deserves education, safety, and dignity. I don’t care where they live, these are basics every girl should count on.  Yet, in some places of the world, girls simply cannot obtain an education.  It is not because her father demands that she stay at home and work.  It is not because she doesn’t want to receive an education.  It is something more basic – her period.  Yes, this is something we don’t usually think about and much less, talk about.  No one wants to discuss something like a girl’s “time of the month”, yet this basic biological function is what stops girls from becoming educated, time [...]