We departed early Tuesday morning for Kasana in the Luweero District (approximately an hour from where we are staying in Kampala)and stayed there for the past 2 nights. Many of you have heard me speak about part of the money I was fundraising for was going towards the creation of a birthing center in Uganda. I did my research on this throughout the year (www.shantiuganda.org) and we were updated on our monthly conference calls about the progression of this project named, Shanti Uganda, but I admit I had a hard time fully grasping what this was exactly going to look like, how it would function once built, and the intention/reasoning behind it. Well, let me tell you the past 2 days has been an ubelieveable eye opening, enlightening experience and reality set it. I can promise you 150k of the money raised through this past year's Seva Challenge is 100% going towards the creation of this beautiful, needed birthing center in Kasana, Uganda. With my eyes, I saw the makings of Shanti Uganda and helped build it with my own 2 hands and feet:)!
Let me give you a quick synopsis of how Shanti Uganda came to be....as I am and continued to be so deeply inspired by this story. A lady named Natalie Angell (from Vancouver) studied Africa, particularly Uganda, while in university. She was so intrigued and invested in learning more about Uganda's history and the war in Uganda that was rarely, if ever talked about in the US and Canada, traveled there in 2007. Natalie, a doula and yoga teacher (keep in mind, she is younger than me), began teaching yoga to the women and children in Uganda inspired to bring the healing power of yoga to communities experiencing trauma. She called her vision "Shanti Uganda" (Shanti means peace). While in Uganda in 2007, Natalie's vision was becoming a reality; creating a yoga program at a local school and supported birthing at a health clinic.
Natalie expressed her future vision of Shanti Uganda - the creation of a birthing center in an area of Uganda to bring back safe, traditional birthing practices, provide prenatal and postnatal care to mothers and their babies and prenatal yoga. She shared this vision with Seane Corn (co-found of Off the Mat, Into the World - the program I am here with) a few years ago and Seane always kept Natalie's dream in the "back of her head". While Seane was researching projects in Uganda for this Seva Challenge to benefit she was watching the progression of Natalie's idea through her website. She then contacted Natalie and asked her what is her dream for Shanti Uganda if money wasn't an issue? Natalie expressed to Seane her vision, sent her 3 different proposals and before we knew it, Natalie's ultimate dream of Shanti Uganda was becoming a reality. Natalie's origninal plan for Shanti Uganda was to be one building, estimated at 50k to build....with the Seva Challenge's donation of 150k that plan was changed into an acre of land for 3 buildings (one as an office for prenatal and postnatal care, prenatal yoga, and clinic office, 2nd building for 2 separate birthing rooms, shower, bathroom, and 3rd building to serve as a community center for local women in an income generating group with HIV/AIDS to meet) and a car to transport women to a local hospital in case of medical complications during birth beyond the capability of Shanti Uganda.
An acre of land was purchased and in January 2010 the construction began - first with clearing out the bush, then creating a road into the birthing center property and now the buildings have started. When I arrived to the Shanti Uganda site (which by the way was on the back of a motorcycle - a complete adrenaline rush which I will talk about in a different blog) I was completely overwhelmed by the men of local villages working hard on laying brick, making bricks, creating the plans for the water filtration system, and the local women coming on a weekly basis to work on the gardens. I couldn't believe that a little over a month ago this land was the bush! Natalie united the people of the surrounding villages to work on this amazing project and in such sort time they have come so far. We spent the past 2 1/2 days getting our hands dirty. We were educated on how the bricks were made and how to lay them....then we got right into it. Our barefeet were stomping around in the mud to mix in the straw which was then layed between the bricks.....in the 2 days we were there the walls of the community center were half way created! I can't wait to show you pictures. We also worked on carving and sculpting in the office/prenatal care building and scooping the "dirt" into brick-making machine then pulling the heavy lever down to create interlocking bricks for the water tank. It was truly inspiring how we all worked together as one with locals of the community....and it didn't even hit me until later how much this project was impacting the community. The money funded for Shanti Uganda is yes, creating this amazing, well-needed birthing center, but it is providing jobs to the local men to create this project, providing business to the stores in the village for supplies and making the property around Shanti Uganda so much more valuable.
All of the fundraising I did over the past year has become a reality. I can't wait to show you all pictures especially of the progression of the buildings in just 2 days. The past 2 1/2 days have been 2 of the most rewarding days of my life and I know there is only more to come. Seane even taught the men yoga and man were they flexible and good!! As our bus drove away today the men came running out of the bush waving and shouting happiness after us!
The past 2 1/2 days were also filled with addititional cultural activities which I will talk about in a later blog....as I am completley exhausted and need some sleep for another big day tomorrow!! Hope this finds you all well and healthy - and those on the east coast....nice and warm with all that snow!
Peace-
Danielle
Let me give you a quick synopsis of how Shanti Uganda came to be....as I am and continued to be so deeply inspired by this story. A lady named Natalie Angell (from Vancouver) studied Africa, particularly Uganda, while in university. She was so intrigued and invested in learning more about Uganda's history and the war in Uganda that was rarely, if ever talked about in the US and Canada, traveled there in 2007. Natalie, a doula and yoga teacher (keep in mind, she is younger than me), began teaching yoga to the women and children in Uganda inspired to bring the healing power of yoga to communities experiencing trauma. She called her vision "Shanti Uganda" (Shanti means peace). While in Uganda in 2007, Natalie's vision was becoming a reality; creating a yoga program at a local school and supported birthing at a health clinic.
Natalie expressed her future vision of Shanti Uganda - the creation of a birthing center in an area of Uganda to bring back safe, traditional birthing practices, provide prenatal and postnatal care to mothers and their babies and prenatal yoga. She shared this vision with Seane Corn (co-found of Off the Mat, Into the World - the program I am here with) a few years ago and Seane always kept Natalie's dream in the "back of her head". While Seane was researching projects in Uganda for this Seva Challenge to benefit she was watching the progression of Natalie's idea through her website. She then contacted Natalie and asked her what is her dream for Shanti Uganda if money wasn't an issue? Natalie expressed to Seane her vision, sent her 3 different proposals and before we knew it, Natalie's ultimate dream of Shanti Uganda was becoming a reality. Natalie's origninal plan for Shanti Uganda was to be one building, estimated at 50k to build....with the Seva Challenge's donation of 150k that plan was changed into an acre of land for 3 buildings (one as an office for prenatal and postnatal care, prenatal yoga, and clinic office, 2nd building for 2 separate birthing rooms, shower, bathroom, and 3rd building to serve as a community center for local women in an income generating group with HIV/AIDS to meet) and a car to transport women to a local hospital in case of medical complications during birth beyond the capability of Shanti Uganda.
An acre of land was purchased and in January 2010 the construction began - first with clearing out the bush, then creating a road into the birthing center property and now the buildings have started. When I arrived to the Shanti Uganda site (which by the way was on the back of a motorcycle - a complete adrenaline rush which I will talk about in a different blog) I was completely overwhelmed by the men of local villages working hard on laying brick, making bricks, creating the plans for the water filtration system, and the local women coming on a weekly basis to work on the gardens. I couldn't believe that a little over a month ago this land was the bush! Natalie united the people of the surrounding villages to work on this amazing project and in such sort time they have come so far. We spent the past 2 1/2 days getting our hands dirty. We were educated on how the bricks were made and how to lay them....then we got right into it. Our barefeet were stomping around in the mud to mix in the straw which was then layed between the bricks.....in the 2 days we were there the walls of the community center were half way created! I can't wait to show you pictures. We also worked on carving and sculpting in the office/prenatal care building and scooping the "dirt" into brick-making machine then pulling the heavy lever down to create interlocking bricks for the water tank. It was truly inspiring how we all worked together as one with locals of the community....and it didn't even hit me until later how much this project was impacting the community. The money funded for Shanti Uganda is yes, creating this amazing, well-needed birthing center, but it is providing jobs to the local men to create this project, providing business to the stores in the village for supplies and making the property around Shanti Uganda so much more valuable.
All of the fundraising I did over the past year has become a reality. I can't wait to show you all pictures especially of the progression of the buildings in just 2 days. The past 2 1/2 days have been 2 of the most rewarding days of my life and I know there is only more to come. Seane even taught the men yoga and man were they flexible and good!! As our bus drove away today the men came running out of the bush waving and shouting happiness after us!
The past 2 1/2 days were also filled with addititional cultural activities which I will talk about in a later blog....as I am completley exhausted and need some sleep for another big day tomorrow!! Hope this finds you all well and healthy - and those on the east coast....nice and warm with all that snow!
Peace-
Danielle
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