Just Put One Foot In Front of The Other...

I thought it was a great omen yesterday when I looked up from my starting area on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway and saw the Kenyan flag gently waving above me.

7AM came, and soon Maria and I were running. We cruised through the historic streets of Philly's Old City, then headed west over the Schuylkill River to UPENN, before heading north past the zoo. Pretty soon we were back on the east side of the river, and spent the remainder of the race on or near Kelly Drive. By mile 20, we were up in Manayunk where a sound system blasting "The Eye of the Tiger" and a thronging crowd cheered us along. Perfect! That's when the going got a little tougher: 5 miles to go, sunshine in our eyes, and a mild head wind - but I didn't let that get the better of me. Instead, I let my mind flood with words and images to drive me forward towards the finish:

"You can totally do this!" - Words of wisdom from a note my friend, Jenny B, gave me years ago when I took a new job.

"Just put one foot in front of the other" - Firm encouragement from my Grandmother Camilla, given to me on a family hike when I was 5. These words later appeared in a song I wrote in Kenya as a 21 year old, and have offered support countless times in my life when I need that little push.

Knowing I had wings on my feet from my Aunt Nawrie and cousin Meriweather that I could put to use when I started to flag.

Thoughts of my smiling friend Silvanos.

The women and children of KIBISOM!

And all of the good wishes from family and friends from your corners of the world.

~~~

And then there was the internal jukebox (no iPod for this race needed!):
Waka Waka
Shosholoza
..and some Rihanna, Madonna, and of course the Rocky Theme song!

~~~

Final Time:
3:39:21

~~~

Thank you to everyone who sent me good thoughts on Sunday morning!
You gave me wings!

Thank you also to those of you who have been able to make a donation to Kibisom!

Donations now stand at $1001.80

Just in case you were waiting to see if I survived before you made a donation ;), you can view the campaign here:
https://www.wepay.com/xs99n5/donate/105138


Thank you for all of your support!

Philly in One Week!

Map of Kenya with the Nyanza Province highlighted in red.
Kibisom is located on Rusinga Island on the shores of Lake Victoria in the Nyanza Province.

Map of Philly, where the Marathon will take place on November 20, 2011.

~~~

Sunshine this morning, but quite a chill in the air, so I decided to let the sun warm the day a bit before braving the streets and the woods for a jog.

Yellow maple leaves decorate my porch, and I know the orange beeches and the red oaks await me in the Town Forest and Borderlands. Time for the last "longish" run!
Warm thoughts of Kibisom will fuel me for the next 10 miles.

~~~

To learn about other important campaigns and projects currently running in the Kajiado District in the Rift Valley Province and Rusinga Island in the Nyanza Province in Kenya, check out the following links:

Nareto Group
&
CanAssist Africa African Relief Trust

Kibisom: Come and Learn

KIBISOM (Kiagasa Breast Feeding Single Mothers/Orphaned Child), translated from the local language, Luo, means “come and learn.”

KIBISOM, a community-based women’s organization on Rusinga Island, Kenya, aims “to mobilize global and grassroot responses to address the needs or orphans and vulnerable children, people living with HIV/AIDS, and local, neglected, illiterate women. Since 1996, KIBISOM has grown to include 150 members, empowering and educating around healthcare, HIV/AIDS, and water. They have also developed economic activities and are working toward food sufficiency.

One of the main aims of Kibisom is to help increase access to education.

"Study after study has taught us that there is no tool for development more effective than the education of girls. No other policy is as likely to raise economic productivity, lower infant and maternal mortality, improve nutrition and promote health, including the prevention of HIV/AIDS." - Kofi Annan, former UN Secretary-General

Primary school fees were eradicated in 2003, but some associated costs for uniforms and other school supplies still exist. In addition, when students excel, secondary school fees can be as high as $500/year, and prove to be a substantial obstacle to completing an education.

Esther, the founder of Kibisom, works within the community to support those in need, provides a school for orphans in the area, and also helps increase young young, promising students access to a complete primary and secondary education.

Your donations will help her with this important work.

Small Steps... Big Changes

Post run with our family dog Harken in blustery Millerton, NY today.

It is amazing how far seemingly small steps can take you when you just keep putting one foot in front of the other. When I was studying in Kenya back in 2000, I wrote a song called "Camilla" in honor of my grandmother and also of the people I was meeting and learning from as we traveled around the country.

Here are some of the lyrics that I am sure will be bouncing around in my head as the final miles of the marathon stretch out before me:

"Just put one foot in front of the other

That's the only way to go

And I'll meet you down that long and winding road."

More recently, after the earthquake in Haiti, I wrote a song called "Trust the Sky". In this song I try to identify with holding onto hope when difficult, even desperate situations present themselves.

More often than not, the small steps and small changes end up taking us the farthest and making the biggest differences. I am always reminded of this when I watch videos like Sarah McLachlan's "World is On Fire".

I like this video because it shows how seemingly small amounts of money can really make a big difference.

I am looking forward to running for Kibisom in a few short weeks. I'll be putting one foot in front of the other (if all goes well!) for 26.2 miles, and any donation you can offer will be put to use to help with school fees and associated costs in rural Kenya shortly thereafter.

Running for Kibisom!

Part of training this time of year includes dark, chilly mornings. Today is no exception as I prepare for a long run before the workday begins!

Thank you for visiting this blog and for your support of Kibisom!

Grand total: $1850! (133,399 Kenyan Shillings)

$1480 and still rising...it's a flood... must be a full moon :)

up to $1430 and counting!

$1315.00 for KIBISOM and counting...

... through your generous donations! Thank you thank you!

I will let you know how Esther intends to put these funds to use soon!

Thank you thank you!

www.bikingpserspective.blogspot.com

BIKING from Seattle to Portland...for KIBISOM!

I am biking from Seattle to Portland on July 11th and 12th.

That's right... 200 miles in 2 days!

You can support this adventure by donating a few cents per mile to KIBISOM, a women's group that I worked with on Rusinga Island, Kenya in 2007. Your donation to this group will keep me cranking when the muscles start to ache!

Please visit the donation page here: http://kibisom.eventbrite.com

Stay tuned to this site for information about the projects that your donations will support!

Last year we raised close to $2000 at a fun benefit concert in Palo Alto for KIBISOM. These funds went to purchase a water tank subsidized by CARE International ($500), and school fees for a boy named Nelson Mandela.

Funds we raise this year through this bike ride will continue to support Nelson (he has 2 more years of school), and a young woman named Irean Owino who joined Sindo Girls Secondary school this year.

Esther works hard to distribute funds equally in the community. She will inform me of the most pressing projects and you will learn about how your donations are being utilized through this blog!

School Fees for Kibisom Youth

Nelson Mandela on one of our walks on Rusinga Island.

While living on Rusinga Island, Nelson would stop by from time to time to see if I wanted to get out for a walk in the beautiful countryside. Our favorite walk took us to the top of a nearby hill where we could take in stunning 360 degree views of Lake Victoria. Nelson was full of questions on these strolls, and I did my best to answer them. Esther, the founder of Kibisom, informed me after one of these walks that Nelson is an excellent student, but it is unlikely that his grandmother will have the funds to send him to the nearby secondary school.

Funds raised at the cocktail party benefit on February 8th in Palo Alto will allow Nelson to attend high school next year!

Kibisom in "Food First"

You can access a report written in the field about Kibisom published online by "Food First" at:

http://www.foodfirst.org/node/1700

KIBISOM: Come and Learn

“To mobilize global and grassroot responses to address the needs of orphans and vulnerable children, people living with HIV/AIDS, and local, neglected, illiterate women.”

The view from the top of a hill near KIBISOM.

To the novice eye Rusinga Island looks like paradise. The hills rise majestically from the blue waters of Lake Victoria and seem to beckon one to explore and to learn about the people who call this place home.

~~~~~~~

KIBISOM (Kiagasa Breast Feeding Single Mothers/Orphaned Child), translated from the local language, Luo, means “come and learn” and is a registered women's group project and community based organization. It is located in the middle of Rusinga Island, approximately 8 kilometers from Mbita, on the shores of Lake Victoria.

Esther Evelyne Odhiambo

KIBISOM was founded by Esther Evelyne Odhiambo and her friend Elizabeth in 1996 and aims “to mobilize global and grassroot responses to address the needs or orphans and vulnerable children, people living with HIV/AIDS, and local, neglected, illiterate women.”

According to Esther, when she moved to Rusinga Island from Nairobi in 1995 deaths from AIDS were so common that up to 6 people were perishing in the community daily.

Most of the people dying from HIV/AIDS were young parents who left behind their children to be cared for by their already overlooked, food insecure and oftentimes illiterate grandmothers. KIBISOM was established to help support these grandmothers through health trainings, income generating activities, and other forms of gourp counseling.

Nelrcilla is pictured here with four of the eight grandchildren who she supports next to her outdoor kitchen where she is boiling maize.

There are a number of sources of food insecurity in this region which include: HIV/AIDS and other diseases such as malaria and TB, limited access to water, healthcare, and education, and limited economic activity to increase self-reliance.

Kibisom Making a Difference

HIV/AIDS: This illness has literally removed an entire segment of the population and has left the older generation behind to care for the young children. KIBISOM undertakes activities that check the spread of STD/HIV/AIDS among these widows, single, abandoned mothers and children who drop out of school.

THE KIBISOM RESPONSE:

1. KIBISOM provides trainings using extension workers from local and national NGOs, videos about HIV/AIDS prevention, information about condom use, natural medicines, use of bed nets to prevent malaria, and kitchen gardening to improve nutrition.
2. Recently the International Medical Corps (IMC) has created a new VCT (Voluntary Counseling and Testing) site a KIBISOM where members of the community can be tested for HIV anonymously.
3. KIBISOM provides home-based care and makes daily visits to those who are too sick to care for themselves.
4. Local and visiting volunteers are encouraged to share their knowledge and provide literacy, agricultural, and health training.

ACCESS TO WATER: The subsistence farmers in this community are highly dependent upon the long rains (March-June) for a successful crop. Unpredictable rain patterns, linked with climate change, lead to food insecurity and hunger in this region.

THE KIBISOM RESPONSE:

1. KIBISOM works with CARE Kenya to bring large rain water tanks to the community.
2. KIBISOM recently received a donkey as a donation. The donkey can be trained to carry drinking water from the lake when the rain tanks are empty.
3. Surveying for a bore hole that would located centrally for easy community access is currently underway.

ACCESS TO HEALTH CARE: Access to clinics in Kaswanga (3 km away) and Mbita (8 km away). Currently, KIBISOM must depend upon dry roads and public transport.

THE KIBISOM RESPONSE:

1. KIBISOM has a small dispensary at its main base in Kiagasa. KIBISOM provides natural medicine and other medications.
2. KIBISOM is saving money to buy a small 4 wheel drive pick-up to increase access to town.

ACCESS TO EDUCATION: Illiteracy hinders access to information regarding health, nutrition, disease prevention.

THE KIBISOM RESPONSE:

1. KIBISOM provides a kindergarten at the KIBISOM base, a school for Standard 1 and 2 aged children in Kaswanga center (KIBISOM 2), and a youth center in Loure (KIBISOM 3). These centers provide safe and structured learning environments for over 100 children. These children are exposed to Montessori and Waldorf school philosophies and are given the attention needed to become self-confident and begin to learn the values of education. Those students who score well in primary schools are then sponsored by KIBISOM to attend secondary schools.
2. KIBISOM provides school uniforms and other school supplies to children when possible to enable them to attend primary schools and encourages them to work hard and attain good grades in order to qualify for scholarships to attend secondary school.
3. When funds are available from donors KIBISOM sends teacher candidates to trainings in Nairobi, and sponsors as many children with good grades as possible so that they can attend secondary school.

ACCESS TO FOOD: KIBISOM is aware that direct food aid is only a band-aid solution, but can provide basic foods when necessary.

THE KIBISOM RESPONSE:

1. In times need, KIBISOM provides 6 kg of food to each of its members. These foods include rice, maize flour and sugar. While this is not a long-term solution, it ensures survival while the members continue to work on more sustainable projects to create lasting food security.

INCOME GENERATION: The main livelihood activity is subsistence farming. Thus, if there is a poor crop generated from the one long rainy season people will not have enough food for that year

THE KIBISOM RESPONSE:

1. Activities include soap and papermaking, tye-dying cloths, sewing school uniforms, handicraft production, tree planting, garden work, etc. Most of these activities are carried out during the dry season when there is less work at the home gardens (“shamba”).
2. KIBISOM provides small loans to start small kiosks or purchase and re-sell items from Mbita in the community.
3. KIBISOM provides fishing nets and access to a boat to trusted fishermen in the community who will report their catch and share/sell their fish.

Since 1996, Esther has worked daily with KIBISOM members, which now comprise over 150 people, to help create an empowered, educated, healthy, self-reliant, and food secure population.