June 24 Update: July trip confirmed!

Dear friends and supporters,

I apologize for not posting any updates regarding my volunteer trip to Uganda that was postponed in May. However, I knew that I would not have a final decision  regarding the status of the July trip until mid-June. The CVAP executive director has recently returned to Uganda, and after assessing the current situation in Uganda with the CVAP board of directors in Montreal and the director of operations in Gulu, it has been decided that the July-August trip will go ahead as planned!  Political unrest and violence that was seen in the country following the series of “walk to work” protests occurring in April has subsided. Though the problem of rising food and fuel costs in Uganda has not been solved, the violence surrounding this complex concern has reached a level that permits safe travel to Uganda.

After nearly two months of being unsure whether I should be preparing for this trip or not, I am officially heading to Gulu, Uganda with the Concordia Volunteers Abroad Program on July 2! My placement has remained the same and I will be working with The AIDs Support Organization (TASO) I blogged about previously.

I want to thank everyone again who has supported my volunteer efforts. This trip really would not be possible without your help. Your donations will be used as they would have been had I gone in May ($500 supporting our community partners in Uganda, and $2000 covering flight costs). If you have not donated yet, and would like to, you may deposit funds in my PayPal account by clicking the DONATE link on my blog:
http://melissaarmbruster.blogspot.com/

Or, you can donate directly to CVAP. Please include your name AND my name for these transactions. (Your name/Melissa) http://www.concordiavolunteers.org/donate/

Cheques and email money transfers are also acceptable.

Please donate whatever you can. Whether it is $5 or $500, every expression of generosity is greatly appreciated. While $10 is barely enough for a meal in Canada, in Uganda it will treat a child with malaria. $190.00 will provide the monthly salary of a full time nurse.

Despite the setbacks earlier this summer, I am thrilled to be traveling to Uganda for July and August and I look forward to sharing my experience with you through my blog  (http://melissaarmbruster.blogspot.com) and when I return to Canada in September.

Sincerely,

Melissa Armbruster

Update: Volunteering in Uganda postponed

photo from Al Jazeera

    Firstly, I would like to thank you all for your generous support of my volunteer efforts in Uganda with the Concordia Volunteers Abroad Program (CVAP). Unfortunately, due to unforeseen circumstances, the volunteer trip to Gulu, Uganda that was scheduled to leave on May 2 had to be postponed.

    Over the past couple of months under the rule of president Yoweri Musevini, Uganda has seen a dramatic rise in food and commodity prices, and opposition candidates have been organizing “Walk to Work” protests.  Recently, government response to these protests has escalated. On April 14, Norbert Mao, former Chairman of Gulu District, and presidential candidate for the democratic party was arrested.  Mao’s popularity in Gulu, his town of origin, resulted in much upset over his arrest, and a situation developed in Gulu town in which police and military response to the protesters turned violent.  On this day, three Gulu civilians were killed. The situation was not confined to Gulu town, and incidents of serious unrest and reprisal are being reported in Kampala and other districts.

    What was supposed to be a series of peaceful protests of walking to work have turned into violent events as military police are using increasingly brutal force against the protesters all over Uganda. Given this initial incident in Gulu, the multiple violent arrests of other democratic leaders, and the Ugandan government's resistance to lower the cost of food and fuel, the CVAP board of directors decided that travel to Uganda at this time was not possible.

    The CVAP Crisis Action Plan forbids travel to Uganda within 30 days of any incidences of political unrest or violence. After discussing the current situation with CVAP members in Uganda, including the Director of Operations, the board is hopeful that the situation in Uganda will be resolved soon. On April 22, the board decided that while the first trip scheduled for May and June was officially canceled, the second trip that is scheduled to leave in July would go ahead as planned. CVAP will make a final decision on June 18 as to whether travel at this time is possible. The situation in Uganda is unstable and there is a chance that this trip will be canceled as well.

    If travel to Uganda in July goes ahead as planned, your donations will be used as they would have if I had gone in May: $500 going to the community partners in Uganda and $2000 covering transportation costs. In the event that travel to Uganda in July is not possible, I will gladly return the money you have donated, or you may offer your donations to the community partners in Gulu that we would have been volunteering with. Even if the CVAP volunteers from Montreal are not able to go to Uganda, our local community partners continue their work and are very appreciative of any donations during this difficult time.

Here are a few links you can check out to monitor the situation in Uganda:

http://activists4change.blogspot.com/

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/15/world/africa/15uganda.html?_r=2&partner=rss&emc=rss

http://allafrica.com/stories/201104290698.html

http://www.monitor.co.ug/News/National/-/688334/1144774/-/c2q3svz/-/index.html

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/uganda

I will also post relevant links and updates on my blog: http://melissaarmbruster.blogspot.com/

    Once again, I would like to thank you all for your generous support and I ask that you think of the people of Uganda. If you have any questions or would like to know more about the projects we are developing to provide support from Canada, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Volunteer assignments in Uganda!

I have recently been assigned to the community partner I'll be working with in Uganda. It's called The AIDS Support Organization (TASO) and was founded by the first Ugandans to come out as HIV positive. TASO focuses on promoting living positively with AIDS. I'm not sure what exactly I'll be doing with them but apparently their volunteer program is well established. The CVAP coordinator also mentioned that volunteer work with TASO is counted as an international internship. Check out TASO's website: http://www.tasouganda.org/

On another note, today after receive an online donation from a friend and a cash donation from my uncle out west, I have almost raised $2000! Bake sales and tickets for a dance fundraiser over the past week really helped! I raised over $400 in bake sale sales alone. That's a lot of cupcakes, brownies, cookies, and banana bread. I'm now completely out of flour and sugar, so there will be no more baking until July. It's hard to believe that it has only been a month and a half since I launched the fundraising campaign. I am incredibly appreciative to everyone that has contributed and I feel very proud of my friends for supporting this good cause.
 
I am confident that together we can raise the remaining $500 by May 2! May 2 - that's when I leave for Uganda. Can you believe it?!

Melissa

Bake Sales!

Fundraising progress is going well! I've raised over $1000 thanks to all your donations, working at a conference, and our first bake sale. At the bake sale, the big sellers were cupcakes, so I made over 50 last night. I've gotten quite fancy with the decorations and I can easily justify spending my time baking for a good cause than writing papers.

We will be having more bake sales next week on the 7th floor of the Hall building and I will be bringing MORE CUPCAKES!

Also, I had a successful and relatively painless vaccine experience! I received 3 immunizations and 1 TB test (4 needles). I stayed horizontal and ate lots of candy and I DID NOT FAINT.

Vaccines and more donations!

After sending a round of emails to family friends and relatives, I have received quite a few more donations! The total is now $760, leaving $1740 to raise! I cannot thank you enough for your contributions!!

On another note, I have to get  immunizations tomorrow morning. If any of you know me well, you will know that I have an extreme phobia of anything medical, but especially of blood and needles. In grade five, I passed out on my teacher after watching an educational film about washing cuts. While getting some immunizations before traveling to Thailand a few years ago, I fainted and had a pseudo-seizure at the doctor's office. After this pseudo-seizure thing I warned the travel nurse that was giving me more needles. She had me lie down (because you can't faint with your heart above your head) and gave me candy to raise my blood sugar. This horizontal approach actually made the whole procedure a lot less traumatizing. Tomorrow, I will eat lots of candy, insist on lying down, and whatever I do, NOT look at the nurse or the needles. Wish me luck!!

Melissa

Fundraising Progress

The task of raising $2500 seemed daunting at first (especially when donations were few with the initial launch of my Facebook fund raising campaign). However, over the past two weeks I have been amazed by how fast donations add up.  I am very appreciative to everyone who has donated to our community organizations in Uganda thus far. Thank you for your generosity!

So far I have received contributions totaling $540. This means that YOUR DONATIONS have helped me successfully raise the mandatory $500 as a sign of my commitment to CVAP. This money goes directly to the community organizations I will be working with in Gulu, including The Aids Support Organization (TASO), SOS Children’s Villages,  St. Jude Children’s Home, and SOM (a local community program for agricultural, spiritual, economic, and health empowerment). 

This leaves a remaining $1960 to be raised but I am confident that with YOUR HELP I will reach my target. 

Thank you all once again!

As many of you know, I have been accepted as a volunteer with the Concordia Volunteers Abroad Program (CVAP) to participate in a two-month long volunteer program in Gulu, Uganda over the summer of 2011.


To make this trip a reality, and to contribute to our partner organizations in Gulu, I need to raise $2500, and I need your help to reach this goal. Every small contribution goes a long way in Uganda, and with your support I kno...w I will be able to reach my target.

Please donate between $5 and $50.

While $10 is barely enough for a meal in Canada, $10 in Uganda will treat a child with malaria. For the price of a coffee, you can change a child's life.

I am inviting you to join me on this quest to raise AIDS/HIV awareness, and promote community empowerment by supporting sustainable development. Together we can make a difference!
Please Donate Now

• You can send money to my PayPal account (m_armbr@live.concordia.ca) by clicking the DONATE button above.

• Or, You can donate directly to CVAP by clicking this link. Please include your name AND my name for these transactions (eg. Your Name/Melissa): Concordia Volunteers Abroad Program

• Additionally, I can accept cheques (made out to Concordia Volunteers Abroad Program), cash in person, or email money transfers. Please message me for my mailing address or to arrange a meeting in person.

More About CVAP:

The Concordia Volunteer Abroad Program is a non-profit organization operating with support from the Concordia student body. The Program supports community led development in Northern Uganda through partnerships with local NGOs. CVAP works with The Aids Support Organization (TASO), SOS Children’s Villages, The St. Jude Children’s Home, and SOM (a local community program for agricultural, spiritual, economic, and health empowerment). Over the past 5 years CVAP has made an incredible contribution to the people of Gulu; they have constructed houses, offered HIV testing and counselling to over 1,500 people, partnered to provide a clinic at the St. Jude Children’s Home, and helped to open and stock a resource center for the SOS Children’s Village, to name a few. The program provides students like me an opportunity to participate in promoting change in this community and gain invaluable academic and personal experience. To learn more about the Concordia Volunteer Abroad Program please visit their website at www.concordiavolunteers.org

I was recently moved by 11 year-old, Teddy's story:

"My mother and father died in 1996. My father died in the hospital. But I saw my mother die here. Because I was a bit older than the others, I looked after her. I used to cook food for her, wash her clothes, and boil herbs for her. She told me she was suffering from Aids, but she didn't tell me how she got it or how to avoid it. I wish she'd told me more about it...When my mother died we suffered so much. There was no food, and there was no one to look after us. We didn't even have money to buy soap and salt. We wanted to run away to our other grandparents, but we didn't have transport to go there."

Unfortunately, Teddy's experience is not uncommon in Uganda. Indeed, the community in Gulu Town faces many challenges. This region was the site of a 20 year civil war, which thankfully came to an end in 2005. This conflict resulted in abductions, death, and forced displacement. The advent of peace brings new hope and opportunity to the people of Northern Uganda. I hope to contribute to this through my work this summer in Uganda. This will be an amazing chance for me to learn about international development and expand my world view; and I hope that I will be able to support this community in this time of rebuilding and transition.

Without your help, this volunteer opportunity would not be possible.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have further questions about the projects or my travel plans for this summer. This is a unique opportunity which I am privileged to take advantage of. I look forward to sharing my stories and experiences when I return to Canada.

Sincerely,

Melissa Armbruster
m_armbr@live.concordia.ca
514-622-3586

Gulu Town - taken by former CVAPers