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In northwest Kenya, in the tiny village of Miwani, Mama Margaret works at an AFCA-sponsored sisal project. The road to the project is dusty, but everything on either side of it is green and lush, peppered with the odd rock and piece of wood in the fields. Small houses dot the countryside where children walk to school, dressed in greens and purples and blues, depending on the schools’ uniforms. Walking among them are mothers making their way to the sisal project on Restoring Hopes Ministry land, AFCA’s partner in this part of the country. Talking amongst themselves and laughing as they walk to work, these moms look and feel [...]

An AFCA-supported community garden project in Miwani, Kenya, is hoping for an expansion. Currently the garden provides daily meals to 13 children at an orphanage and ten other vulnerable people in the community. The project also provides work for 22 women, and some 130 other children and elderly people are able to eat, go to school, and have medical care because of the work of these women. While the gardens have thus far been a success, there are many more people in the community suffering from malnutrition and food insecurity. To address this need, AFCA is planning to add 10 vegetable beds to the community garden and develop a [...]

Listen on: AnchorFM / Spotify / iTunes Podcast Homepage In this episode, Jen sits with media executive, creator, adventurer, and founder of The Edge of Adventure podcast, Adam Asher who looks to live life #beyondstatusquo Recently, Adam had Tanya on his own podcast, and you can catch that episode here! AFCA has joined other organizations and adventure travelers on Adam's new app, Rugged Compass which looks to connect those that want to travel for a higher purpose and to truly see the people of the world. If you'd like to join the community where adventure and purpose intersect, you can do that here https://ruggedcompass.com/ Additionally, [...]

By Kathy Kirk, volunteer Many times I’ve been asked what I pack to go to Africa for these trips. You will usually get some wonderful advice from your team leader – but here is my take to add to that. These are some ideas of how and what you should pack when going on a Vacation with a Purpose trip, where you might be visiting remote areas of Africa with limited access to electricity, clean water or supplies.  Personal items Take enough for the duration. You won’t have a shop nearby so make sure you have  Deodorant Sunscreen! Sun protection is very important. lip balm with SPF Shampoo, conditioner [...]

Listen on: AnchorFM / Spotify / iTunes Podcast Homepage Jen and Tanya catch up on networking to build awareness around AFCA’s programs and Jen’s goal to raise the cost of a Greenhouse from Park Ridge to Zimbabwe. Tanya talks about her volunteer teaching geography and teaching kids “Game face” when it comes to trying other cultures’ food. Jen makes a mistake on social media and learns from it. Jen is feeling fried and frustrated with technology. Good news alerts sewing machines went to the Boyebi Center in Gemena, D.R. Congo. The Boyebi center trains women in hairdressing and tailoring, creating livelihoods, and stopping the cycle [...]

The joy of taking my grandson to Africa with AFCA. Contributed by Kathy Kirk, AFCA Volunteer In my experience, seeing the world provides you with enormous benefits. By this statement, I don’t mean going to Disneyland or Cabo or Hawaii. I mean going to places where you are challenged through all your senses – you see things you would never see at home; you smell things you never smell at home; your hear accents you may never have heard before; you experience being the ‘odd one out’ be it through skin color, language or other dimensions. I have been fortunate enough to see large parts of the world in [...]

The sun is setting as my belly rumbles. Mandaba asks me if I happen to have food sitting around for dinner, leading me to pull out three of my trusty dehydrated meals. While Josue starts a small fire with coals, I walk around the semi-darkness, wanting to move after a day of sitting down. Mandaba warns me about snakes, telling me to stay away from grassy areas, which at this time, are getting harder and harder to see. Josue checks with me as to how much water should be boiled, placing the aluminum pot on the hot coals. With darkness having removed all shadows from the yard, the three [...]

The air is full of so many smells, my nose is having a hard time landing on anything specific. I smell deodorant, body odor, too much perfume, fresh fish, various fried foods that are going to Kinshasa, dust, and the random fart. Between the smell and the noise level, going through customs in Gemena is an assault to my senses. I stand against a wall, my backpack propped between my feet, noticing the grumble in my hungry belly, swaying with each bump as people push their way past. With watery diarrhea, this is not a fun way to start the day, with some stinky bodies pressing too close to me [...]

The day starts with the feeling of newness. A cool 80 degrees makes me feel like I can breathe after an afternoon that seemed to suck in the humidity. As the evening approached yesterday, the humidity increased. And increased. I lay on the floor, arms and legs stretched out, trying to bring the semi-coolness of the tile into my body. My head, laying on a cushion, can't get rid of the heat fast enough, trapped as it is my mop of thick, curling hair. If I just had scissors or a razor available, I will get rid of it, I think to myself as I pray for rain to break [...]

He gives me two yogurts for dinner four nights ago. I immediately drink the banana flavored one because it is my favorite, putting the plain one in the "kitchen" area of the guesthouse.Four days later, I return to the guesthouse after a long day of riding on the back of a motorcycle, doing site visits. I feel the sunburn on my face, neck and arms, and the grit in my hair as I get off the bike, but instead of p yogurt sitting around for four days in 95 degree heat. The stench of an exploded yogurt bottle is not great. It is good that I have a super power [...]