Beginnings

"Congratulations! It is with great excitement that we extend to you an offer to participate in the DukeEngage Uganda program during the summer of 2010..." -DE acceptance letter

Three days into my winter break this year, I learned I had the opportunity to spend 9 weeks in Uganda, all travel, immunization, and housing costs covered. (Thank you, Bill and Melinda Gates and the Duke Endowment.)

Since then, the past few months have been a whirlwind of project preparations, meetings and conference calls, and fundraising. There have been moments of sheer excitement and eager anticipation (I'm going to Uganda this summer!), and there have been times when I'm still dumbfounded by the reality of the situation (Am I seriously going to Uganda this summer?).

Well, the plane tickets are booked, the bags (almost) packed, the work plans finalized, and there are people already awaiting our arrival. I leave Monday, June 7, and the clock is ticking down.

To provide some basic background about our projects (see "Our Work" for more details and for more about Progressive Health Partnership, the student organization that organizes and spearheads this particular DE program), there are two main components: (1) Safe Motherhood (SM) and (2) water, sanitation & hygiene (WSH). In SM, we'll be providing antenatal services to pregnant women and conducting some follow-ups later in the summer. For WSH, we will be implementing a rainwater-harvesting program, carrying out an education campaign along with our partners, and conducting a baseline survey. In both projects, we'll hold focus groups with community members to learn more about the qualitative issues that can't be fully captured with numbers and statistics.

Finally, before I conclude this inaugural post, I would like to express my deep gratefulness for the outpouring of support and well wishes I've received. I have been overwhelmed, and every day I am thankful to have so many wonderful relationships in my life. It's going to be a busy summer (and I will surely miss the comforts of home), but I'm looking forward to expanding my horizons, broadening my world perspective, and embarking on a new journey.