Chalice: Notes from the field...

This morning we travelled by bus for about 1/2 hour to the Chalice Ogwedi-Rafiki Sponsor Site, located in Asembo.  The plan here was to present, in separate groups, sex and hygiene education to approximately 100 boys and 100 girls.   Following the education the boys were given a personal hygiene kit containing a pair of underwear, a facecloth, a Canadian flag and a pencil.*   After their training, the girls each received a Days for Girls reusable menstrual kit.   The reaction from both the boys and the girls was of sincere gratitude, with lots of smiles and giggles!  While the groups attended their appropriate session, the remaining team members entertained the others with relay and other running games.   All the children and young adults - especially the boys (even our Site Director, Jastus) - thoroughly enjoyed the games. The small children received hand-washing lessons with the aid of glitter to demonstrate how easily germs are pas...

I'm sitting here and really struggling to put into words all of what we have shared and experienced in the past few days. The women received training about marketing and finance from our three Enactus team members. They also received training in order to make liners requiring surging, TNT liners that are done without surgers, and the decorative bags. They have soared with all of this information and are so smart! There was a morning session of health education to ensure we can equip the with basic knowledge to empower them in other ways. Yesterday afternoon the women and the team went to a local market and community health centre in order to get out there and sell their product or at least create awareness. They made a few sales, but more importantly, they created interest and awareness and potential for future partnerships. That's the place to begin! We have been so enjoying the warm up games, meals, and formal workshop times with these women - we have definitely bonded even...

Hello world! Our team finally has internet access via a USB drive and so can begin with our first long awaited update from the field here near Asembo, Kenya! Yesterday (Tuesday, February 16) was our first day meeting with the women who are attending our education sessions - what an incredible experience! We began with a fun icebreaker where we were all to choose a feeling word off of the table and explain why we were feeling that way that morning. From both the Canadians and Kenyans, there was an overwhelming sense of inspiration, hopefulness, safety, and eagerness. We were definitely both excited to learn from one another.  We then split the women up into two groups so one half could receive the Days for Girls shield sewing workshop and the other half would attend an introductory business/entrepreneurship workshop with our three representatives from Enactus St. Mary's University. They would switch after we enjoyed lunch together.    The...

It’s awfully difficult to believe it has now been just over a month since we’ve returned to Canada from Haiti. The week was so vibrant and visceral that returning to our respective, chilly, grey homes made the whole trip seem like a colorful dream. But although we’re back to our jobs, families and commitments, the spirit of the trip has been burning on. We gathered for a virtual meeting to discuss how we were all feeling after we’d had time to settle. Many of us think about an aspect of the trip every day. Some reflect on our solidarity hike up to Plingue, and the hope that Chalice has brought to that community. Some of us are catching ourselves noticing the conveniences we have in our lives, in our homes, and how our children get to school. Coming up to the holidays, many of us are re-evaluating how we spend our money, and how we prioritize our time. Most of us take comfort knowing that the children we, or our friends, have sponsored are continuing to receive care -- which ...

There is a distinction between ‘pain’ and ‘suffering.’ Put very simply, pain is what we experience during times of physical or emotional trials – suffering is the same, but without hope. As part of this Mission, we have been seeking to be a relief to both pain – as in the case of young Frankel – and to shine a light of hope that alleviates the despair of those who are in a state of suffering. It’s not for us to say whether any person is suffering or “just” enduring a very challenging set of circumstances, but each person we have met have made sacrifices and faced emptyhandedness that most Canadians could not begin to understand. In our time here we have had the opportunity to learn more about their hardships by taking baby-steps towards it ourselves. We ourselves have encountered challenges that are so completely foreign to our own daily lives that often all we can do is just laugh. And it is in these encounters that we have a choice to make: we could take the default ...