Uganda - T minus 10 days

My trip is confirmed! I will be going to Gulu, Uganda on January 18. It is such a blessing that everything has worked out and I can't even describe my level of excitement to go!

A few details:

• I am going to Uganda, a landlocked country bordering Kenya to the east, Sudan to the north, the Democratic Republic of Congo to the west, and Rwanda and Tanzania to the south.


• I will be living in the town of Gulu, located in the northern part of the country. This city is the location where Invisible Children was filmed; if you've seen that, it should give you a good understanding of what's going on in that region. Northern Uganda has been through years of unrest and rebel violence which ended with the signing of a cease-fire in February 2008. I will write more on the country's history later.


• I am going through Every Child Ministries, which focuses on children in Africa.


• I will work with children from an Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) Camp in Gulu. An IDP camp is similar to a refugee camp, only they are people displaced within their native country. This means I'll be working with Ugandans, specifically Acholi people, a large ethnic group in northern Uganda.


• My focus will of course be sharing Jesus with the people in Uganda. I will be forming relationships with the orphans from the IDP camp primarily through "non-formal education" - tutoring after school.


• I will live in a house with another girl from ECM, Chrissy. Our home is complete with chickens (which we eat and get eggs from), a night guard who is armed with a bow and arrow (don't worry - I've been warned his arrows are very sharp!), and mosquito nets that will hopefully keep the malaria away!

It all seems surreal to me still and not at all like I'm leaving in a little over a week! I've been buying supplies and packing since I got home from Tennessee and am still not finished. I feel like I'm basically bringing a small pharmacy (recommendation of the CDC) AND a small library - I have to admit thought, my "small library" includes both books for me and for small Africa children. I also have to wear long skirts each day, so I have a colorful wardrobe that I'm excited to try out!

Thank you so much for keeping up with what I'm doing! I have felt incredibly covered in prayer the last couple months and have had such a peace about the trip. If you have questions, please comment here or send me an e-mail. I'll try to post again before I leave!