Travels with Ken Prusso
I spent the last two summer vacations in Burundi, Africa. A co-worker returns home each summer, and invited my wife and me to travel with her. We stayed in her house (one in the capital, Bujumbura, and one in the Village of Kiganda where her clan resides).
We met the clan folks and we spoke with the youngsters about their lives and schooling. They are serious and desperately want to talk English with us. “Speak to us in English. You do not sound like the BBC” (British Broadcasting Co.). Their native language is Kirundi, but the language of school is French. Typically, families can count only on one meal a day and they must find ways to raise money to buy supplies for school. Without the supplies one may not attend as all class notes and homework must be written down. Books do not go home.
When we returned home to Pennsylvania, Renilde invited me to join her new organization of Harambee in Progress Project, Inc. (a new non-profit). Our mission is to raise money for purchasing notebooks, pens, and petroleum jelly (for the feet so they don’t crack and are less susceptible to infections). We’ve also added a hundred dollars a month to offset medical costs. While not much, most children cannot get medicine for stomach worms or eye infections, even when a prescription only costs $1.50. We even support three students from the Village in their University studies. While tuition is $200 a year, living expenses and books bring that up to $1000. This is impossible for most students.
We raised money all year, and returned for year two with the most purchasing power Renilde had seen for her homeland. The Village folk were overwhelmed with awe and gratitude. The children worked for three days to help the Village (by hoeing fields of sick or impoverished women, or by making bricks for a community building, or carrying water for the others). This was their way of paying-it-forward for the supplies they received in return.
We funded a project for $200 a month. We buy pre-natal medical tests which give the doctors warning if either the mother or her fetus are in medical trouble. We want to build a primary school in at least one corner of the Village so that the little children do not have to travel four miles to and from school. We contacted the University of Bujumbura and they will welcome educators to present a seminar topic of your choice, an English/writing workshop, or to just be present on campus to speak English, show pictures, or tell of experiences. The university officials can provide housing, but other expenses are beyond their current budget.
Bujumbura has electricity, but the Village does not, for the most part. In the Village we cook over charcoal, but in the city we have access to a propane stove. In both places we have the aide of cooks. Typically, beans and bananas and potatoes make up most of the foods, with some rice and some goat or beef barbecued. The Village house does not have running water, but the city house does. We filter our water to make sure not to contract any water-borne organisms. Beer, Fanta, or banana wine are typical drinks.
If you are interested in visiting, teaching, and/or aiding Burundi, please contact me and we can discuss possibility of travel and accommodations. Write me, Kenneth Prusso, C/ML for Region Ic. My email is kprusso@comcast.net |
