0 to 60, then 60 to 0...Kenya Week 21: February 21-27

If I went from 0 to 60 the moment I landed on United States soil, I went from 60 to 0 the second I stepped off the plane in Nairobi. Talk about whiplash…

I got back to Karungu on Wednesday and I expected to hit the ground running once I got back to work on Thursday. But I forget that I’m in Africa…where…everything…happens…just…a…bit…slower…

Restarting the Karungu Jiggers Eradication Campaign has to wait till Tuesday when I can meet with Tom, Barnabas, and Teresa- the other leaders in the Campaign. I guess that’s one of the realities, benefits, and disadvantages of working at the community level. I depend on so many other people that sometimes I have to wait patiently. I’ve often heard, “They’ve had jiggers for years. They can wait a few more days.” While that sentiment nearly drives me nuts, I understand the deeper reality behind the seemingly heartless words. I can’t eradicate every jigger this week and we have to plan well to make the Campaign lasting and effective. Luckily my co-workers have told me that many lists have been compiled of individuals with jiggers, so that’s a great start. Its happening slower than my “go get ‘em” attitude prefers, but I’m excited to see what we can do!

In the mean time, just a few reminders that I’m back in Kenya:

1. We took a shuttle, a bus, a pseudo-taxi, and a motorbike to get back to Karungu. Luckily the nine hours of horribly uncomfortable traveling conditions passed in a jiffy as I slept away my jet lag!

2. I was greeted by cheers and hugs by my precious neighbor kids the moment I stepped into the gate of the Staff Compound.

3. I've finished my book, started another, updated my photos, returned all my emails, and had free time to take a nap, go for a run, and play with the kids. This is Africa.

4. Two of my co-workers had family members pass away while I was gone. Both were middle aged men who had been battling AIDS for about 4 years.

5. The interesting tragedy of the week: a man was attacked and killed by a hippopotamus in a nearby village. Fantasia lies…turns out hippos aren’t sweet and nimble like ballerinas.

Thank You, From the Bottom of My Heart...Kenya Week 20: February 14-20

Fourteen days ago I endured 28 hours of cross continental travel while anxious excitement coursed through my veins. I knew I had two weeks to cherish my sister’s wedding, pull off a fundraiser presentation at my church, and complete as many tasks as possible on my endless, “TO DO WHILE HOME” list.

Today my deep sighs and droopy eye-lids merely hint at the whirlwind of activity, fun, and hard work that dominated my two week “vacation” back home. My flight back to Nairobi leaves in a few short hours and I’m desperately trying to process everything that just happened.

I can’t express my deep gratitude for the love, encouragement, and support I received from family, friends, neighbors, and strangers alike while I was home. My 1.5 Minutes of Fame was just enough to gather some excitement about my presentation at St. Marks. Over 85 people came to hear my story, ask probing questions, and become a vital part of the project. Many others that couldn’t make it out asked how they could also contribute.
So for those of you following along on this crazy “Kayla in Kenya” that to help me continue fighting jiggers, here’s how:

Checks can be written to St. Marks Mission with “Kayla in Kenya” in the memo.

Please mail the checks to:
St. Marks Catholic Church
c/o Hilda Beck
3736 S. Lee’s Summit Rd.
Independence, MO 64055

100% of your donation will go to projects to assist the poorest of the poor afflicted by jiggers in Karungu. I’ll continue to write about the people we help and the efforts we make to educate and mobilize the community against these parasites.

In the faithful irony of life, I’m looking forward to getting back to Karungu for some much needed rest. At the same time, I know I have a busy few months ahead of me establishing the Eradication Campaign. Thankfully Kenyan live by the mantra: “Haraka haraka ahinya Baraka” roughly translated into English: “Hurry hurry has no blessing”. i.e. I can recover from my lightening speed two weeks in America while eradicating a devastating public health burden one pesky jigger at a time.

Kayla in Kansas City talking about Kenya...Week 19: February 7-13

Going from Karungu (where the most exciting event is when the white lady comes to remove jiggers) to Kansas City has been overwhelming to say the least. More has happened in one week than I can wrap my brain around: the Saints won the Super Bowl, my sister got married, and apparently people are really interested in what I’m doing in Kenya.

Turns out the Independence Examiner caught wind of what I’m up to and decided to write an article about me. I talked the reporter’s ear off and on Saturday, all of Independence got to read about Kenya, jiggers, and what I’m trying to do... http://www.examiner.net/features/x626055883/Shes-finding-her-mission-in-the-great-unknown#comments

NBC 41 read the article and before I knew it, my photos of Kenya and my story about the Parasite Eradication Campaign are neatly tucked between traffic and the weather! http://www.nbcactionnews.com/news/local/story/Metro-Woman-Makes-a-Difference-in-Kenya/QHqoKIyL9EaSceo98nop-g.cspx

And to top it all off, the Lee’s Summit Journal front page shows the photo below the heading, "Lee's Summit North grad working in Kenya".
http://www.lsjournal.com/100/story/44259.html

With all this publicity, I’m humbled...and slightly embarrassed. While the attention seems silly, I appreciate the uniqueness of my experience and I hope it can inspire someone to do something more. And it’s great publicity for people to come to my presentation at St. Marks on Thursday!

Speaking of that...if you’re in town, come hear my story first hand!

Kayla in Kenya Presentation
Date: Thursday, February 18th
Time: 7 pm
Location: St. Marks Catholic Church, the Upper Room
3736 S. Lee's Summit Road
Independence, MO 64055

Leaving...Kenya Week 18: February 1-6

As I pack my bags to fly back to the States, I can’t help but think about what I’m leaving and what I’m going home to. I’m leaving my summer clothes and perfect weather for winter coats and snow storms. I’m leaving my mosquito-netted bunk bed for my mosquito-free bed in my own room. I’m leaving my co-workers, patients, and beautiful neighborhood kids for my real family and friends. I’m leaving relaxing weekends of reading and exploring for fun filled weekends of weddings and festivities. And I’m leaving my work of eradicating parasites to raise money to eradicate more parasites.

Thankfully even though I’m leaving Karungu for a few weeks, the Jigger Eradication Campaign will continue. Tom the Public Health Officer is continuing to organize Removal Days at local schools. Barnabas the Assistant Chief is continuing to help jigger infected individuals in our area get the extra assistance they need. And Teresa the Director of Hope and Life is continuing to find those with jiggers and bring them to the hospital. And my family and friends in Kansas City are working hard to organize and publicize the presentation I’m giving at St. Marks on the 18th. Van made a great flyer for the event. Joe is talking to everyone and anyone about the event and organizing interviews for me in local newspapers. My mom is contacting neighbors and friends to help spread the word.

And all the while, I got to spend a few days at the beach with the Karungu Mzungus. The timing was perfect: Amanda flew into Nairobi on Saturday after her arm completely healed; I needed to be in Nairobi to fly home; Lauren and Christy had a few days between their travels before flying out of Nairobi; and Angela wanted to say hello and goodbye before we all go our separate ways. We all converged on Nairobi and traveled to Diani Beach to spend our last few days together. So I managed to sneak in a few days with my dear friends at the beach. But don’t worry; I kept working on the Campaign reports, prospectus, and presentations!
Angi, Lauren, Amanda, Me, and Christy at Diani Beach.

So I’m leaving Kenya. But only for two weeks. Which is a good thing because I’ve got jiggers to remove, families to help, and Public Health interventions to implement.

We’ve Got a Good Thing Going...Kenya Week 17: January 24-31

It’s amazing how a series of small, yet related events can evolve into a full blown public health intervention. I’m seeing it happen before my eyes. Or rather, I am seeing how my actions are making it happen. It started when I couldn’t get the story of the destitute Wambogo family out of my head. So we removed their jiggers and built them a new house. Then beautiful little Rocky with 5 jiggers in his feet led to the discovery of the jiggers outbreak in Otati. Then Wilson and Jacklin, 150 children and adults in Otati, and 45 school children in Rabare. And just when we thought that jiggers only affected individuals in remote areas, the severity of the problem hit close to home when we found 2 families in Sori Town, only 3 km from the hospital.

Eunice, a beautiful young widow, and her 6 children slept on the floor of their barely livable mud hut on the outskirts of Sori. After we removed their jigger and bought them new shoes, we realized we needed to go a step further. Her young children not only suffered from jiggers, but also constant respiratory infections from sleeping on the dusty floor. and cemented their floor. Eunice told me that you never know when God will answer your prayers. But for her, He did when we first knocked on her door.
Eunice's young daughter at the door to their newly cemented home. The family is sleeping soundly and away from the fleas in the soil

David was so poor he swallowed sand to make his stomach feel full. Neighbors brought him homemade beer, when they had extra, and he drank to ease the hunger pains. His feet and hands were so covered with jiggers he could barely walk and couldn’t sleep at night from the unbearable itching. Since we’ve removed his jiggers, bought him a good pair of shoes, smeared the floor of his home to keep the jiggers away, and bought him food and cooking supplies, he’s regaining his strength and his dignity. He hasn’t drunk alcohol in 2 weeks since the day, as he put it, that the two white ladies (Lauren and I) told him to quit drinking. And the smile on his face tells the story of a man ready for a second chance.
David proudly displaying his jigger free feet!

Everyday we are getting reports from Community Health Volunteers, Social Workers, and concerned community members about jigger cases throughout Karungu and beyond. So now that we’ve opened the Pandora’s Box of a major public health concern, what do we do about it? Currently nothing is being done to help those infected or prevent further infections. And we’ve realized that jiggers are plaguing hundreds, if not thousands of our neighbors

So I sat down with Barnabas Wajiwa, the Assistant Chief of Sori, to develop a plan. Working with the District Public Health Officer, St. Camillus Hospital, and the Provincial Authorities, we’ve designed a systematic, sustainable program to not only help those infected with jiggers, but to implement major prevention efforts and educational activities. It’s even got a catchy name: Karungu Jiggers Eradication Campaign, or more conveniently, KJEC! It won’t be easy and it won’t happen quickly, but little by little, we can drastically reduce the health burden caused by jiggers in Karungu. And what is particularly appealing to me is that since jiggers most significantly affects the poorest of the poor, these pesky parasites are a direct way to reach the people in our community that most need our assistance. We can do more than just extract the fleas from their feet. We can give them shoes, help them clean their homes, and in severe cases, even cement the floor of their mud huts.
The only real kink in the whole program is that we need funds to really make it effective. We don’t need millions of dollars. For about $3 we can give a child a good pair of shoes to protect their feet. For about $300 we can cement the floor of a home and permanently prevent jiggers from returning. For about $600 we can cement the floor of a classroom to protect school children from getting jiggers from their classmates.

In another series of well-timed events, I’m flying home next week for my older sister’s wedding. But instead of putting the project on hold till I return, we’re taking advantage of this priceless opportunity. My home parish, St. Marks Catholic Church in Independence, Missouri, has agreed to let me host a fundraising event for the project. Talk about good timing! My family, friends, and neighbors who made it possible for me to come to Kenya can hear and see first hand what I’m doing. Anyone who’s curious can come learn more about living and working in a developing country. And anyone who wants to help drastically change the lives of some of the world’s poorest and forgotten can find out how.

Here are the details!

Kayla in Kenya Fundraiser
Date: Thursday, February 18th
Time: 7 pm
Location: St. Marks Catholic Church, the Upper Room
3736 S. Lee's Summit Road
Independence, MO 64055

I’ll write more about the event and the Karungu Jiggers Eradication Campaign as we go along. But in the mean time, clear you calendars and I’ll see you at St. Marks on the 18th!