The rollercoaster ride that is Chikankata continues, with all its high, lows, twists and turns along the way. I have never experience a job with such a vast variance of emotions and no two days are ever the same. The malaria season has commenced and as the hospital wards fill up particularly with children suffering from this disease, both Heidie and I have suffered too. Fortunately we have access to the medication to deal with the symptoms (which are obviously much worse for men than women) but many in our catchment area are not so fortunate. The death rate for children from Malaria in this endemic area is very, very high and Chikankata been identified as one the worst affected areas in the world. The good news for Chikankata is that our proposal for an intensive community malaria project in the form of a Child Survival Programme was accepted and we received five year funding from the US government to try to prevent and treat this disease.
Last month we had a visit from the First Lady of Germany at Chikankata and I was fortunate enough to spend the day with her and her entourage from UNICEF visiting many of our local communities and the Hospital. I was very proud to be part of this institution and work for The Salvation Army It made us both realise that despite all the practical difficulties, Chikankata Health Services is leading the way in Zambia in the ongoing fight against HIV/AIDS and is doing such good work within the local communities. So much so that we have managed to secure three research grants through US universities to investigate various issues related to HIV/AIDS. Our project for next year is to open a clinic for the many children with or affected by HIV/AIDS.
September also saw us attend our first wedding in Zambia, a cross cultural affair where our friends Rachel and Kennedy tied the knot. The trusted kilt, which had inadvertently found its way to Zambia, created much interest and I managed to find myself in three different wedding parties’ photographs. We also attended the commissioning ceremony of the Zambian cadets this month. Somewhat reluctantly we took our place on the march through Lusaka, the gathered procession registered over a mile in length. Heidie and I were the only white people in the parade so we felt a bit conspicuous but we received a very good reception.
Meanwhile, back at Chikankata the water levels remain extremely low, meaning no running water in the house for the last two months. So it’s been back to using water from the borehole and saucepans to bathe. They tell me when the rains come this situation improves. We have only have electricity three evening per week. They tell me when the rains come this gets considerably worse! There is severe fuel shortage in the country but worst of all for me Coca-Cola is nowhere to be found anywhere in Zambia. However we are adapting well to all the shotage and spend more time reading and playing board games to get through the evenings. Heidie is still the champion of Backgammon but I remain undefeated at the far more intellectually challenging game of Guess Who?
Our garden continues to be of great interest to us. To date, we (by “we” I mean our garden boy!) have grown cabbages, onions, cucumber, great beans, sweetcorn and green beans. This week we had our first visit from a snake. I was so brave as I stood about three feet away chucking bricks at it. I eventually managed to slay what I considered to be a cobra, while Heidie managed to spoil my moment of masculine glory by referring to my prey as “a small worm”. Continuing on the animal front, we have bought three pigs and 70 egg laying chickens with money sent from our friends in the UK. The male pig is obviously enjoying the experience with his two female companions and got one of the sows pregnant within 5 days. Way to go! We are hoping that they will go forth and multiply and earn us some much-needed cash!
The highlight of October was our week-long visit Mauritius as a guest of our good friend Kevin Fenton Herring. We so enjoyed the six star luxurious setting of the Le Saint Geran, spending three days in the private villa. Previous occupants of this wonderful house included Prince William, Michael Caine and John Travolta. It is difficult to explain just how luxurious this is but when I tell you we chose our bath from the bath menu and then someone prepared it to your specified temperature you get some idea. Of course, we enjoyed the food and I particularly enjoyed the Roast Beef dinner on the first night, complete with five Yorkshire puddings. I had only taken three but when Chris de Burgh of “Lady in Red” fame serves you another two you have just got to eat them. Heidie enjoyed being pampered at the Spa and drank 33 Cafe Lattes during the course of the week. At the end of it we were tempted to jump on the BA flight back to London, which left Mauritius Airport at exactly the same time as our departure to Zambia. However back we came and we have soon got back into the swing of things back at Chik. Now we are able to have our bucket baths using Molton Brown shower gel nicked from the hotel!
Heidie continues to enjoy teaching at the School of Nursing and Midwifery and last month I was very proud of her as she marched in with the rest of the staff at the Graduation Ceremony. She has obviously made a big impact on her students and their respect for her was evident. What a truly fantastic day it was! Chikankata recorded the best results of any nursing college in Zambia and so this added to sense of occasion. On the other hand, I had one of the most gruelling weeks of my life in October with the visit of the International Auditor from London. My accountant and I worked from 7am – 11pm for nine days on the trot. I am pleased to report we managed to close off the accounts for 2001,2002 and 2003 and received some very positive feedback in the Auditors report. I am though glad it is over though.
We could write for so much more about this very rich experience at Chikankata (Wake up!) but don’t want to bore you to death. We are grateful to those of you who have supported the work of Chikankata in practical ways from setting up fundraising events and scheme, sending donations, collecting clothes and toys, providing the money for pigs and chickens, sponsoring student nurses and paying for orphaned children’s school fees. I wish I could tell you the difference your kindness is making to the local people. Most of all thank for all e-mails and letters we have received. It is so encouraging to know that so many people continue to think of us, even when we are on the other side of the world. We often feel very far away and miss all our friends and family very much indeed but at the same time we feel very blessed.
Last month we had a visit from the First Lady of Germany at Chikankata and I was fortunate enough to spend the day with her and her entourage from UNICEF visiting many of our local communities and the Hospital. I was very proud to be part of this institution and work for The Salvation Army It made us both realise that despite all the practical difficulties, Chikankata Health Services is leading the way in Zambia in the ongoing fight against HIV/AIDS and is doing such good work within the local communities. So much so that we have managed to secure three research grants through US universities to investigate various issues related to HIV/AIDS. Our project for next year is to open a clinic for the many children with or affected by HIV/AIDS.
September also saw us attend our first wedding in Zambia, a cross cultural affair where our friends Rachel and Kennedy tied the knot. The trusted kilt, which had inadvertently found its way to Zambia, created much interest and I managed to find myself in three different wedding parties’ photographs. We also attended the commissioning ceremony of the Zambian cadets this month. Somewhat reluctantly we took our place on the march through Lusaka, the gathered procession registered over a mile in length. Heidie and I were the only white people in the parade so we felt a bit conspicuous but we received a very good reception.
Meanwhile, back at Chikankata the water levels remain extremely low, meaning no running water in the house for the last two months. So it’s been back to using water from the borehole and saucepans to bathe. They tell me when the rains come this situation improves. We have only have electricity three evening per week. They tell me when the rains come this gets considerably worse! There is severe fuel shortage in the country but worst of all for me Coca-Cola is nowhere to be found anywhere in Zambia. However we are adapting well to all the shotage and spend more time reading and playing board games to get through the evenings. Heidie is still the champion of Backgammon but I remain undefeated at the far more intellectually challenging game of Guess Who?
Our garden continues to be of great interest to us. To date, we (by “we” I mean our garden boy!) have grown cabbages, onions, cucumber, great beans, sweetcorn and green beans. This week we had our first visit from a snake. I was so brave as I stood about three feet away chucking bricks at it. I eventually managed to slay what I considered to be a cobra, while Heidie managed to spoil my moment of masculine glory by referring to my prey as “a small worm”. Continuing on the animal front, we have bought three pigs and 70 egg laying chickens with money sent from our friends in the UK. The male pig is obviously enjoying the experience with his two female companions and got one of the sows pregnant within 5 days. Way to go! We are hoping that they will go forth and multiply and earn us some much-needed cash!
The highlight of October was our week-long visit Mauritius as a guest of our good friend Kevin Fenton Herring. We so enjoyed the six star luxurious setting of the Le Saint Geran, spending three days in the private villa. Previous occupants of this wonderful house included Prince William, Michael Caine and John Travolta. It is difficult to explain just how luxurious this is but when I tell you we chose our bath from the bath menu and then someone prepared it to your specified temperature you get some idea. Of course, we enjoyed the food and I particularly enjoyed the Roast Beef dinner on the first night, complete with five Yorkshire puddings. I had only taken three but when Chris de Burgh of “Lady in Red” fame serves you another two you have just got to eat them. Heidie enjoyed being pampered at the Spa and drank 33 Cafe Lattes during the course of the week. At the end of it we were tempted to jump on the BA flight back to London, which left Mauritius Airport at exactly the same time as our departure to Zambia. However back we came and we have soon got back into the swing of things back at Chik. Now we are able to have our bucket baths using Molton Brown shower gel nicked from the hotel!
Heidie continues to enjoy teaching at the School of Nursing and Midwifery and last month I was very proud of her as she marched in with the rest of the staff at the Graduation Ceremony. She has obviously made a big impact on her students and their respect for her was evident. What a truly fantastic day it was! Chikankata recorded the best results of any nursing college in Zambia and so this added to sense of occasion. On the other hand, I had one of the most gruelling weeks of my life in October with the visit of the International Auditor from London. My accountant and I worked from 7am – 11pm for nine days on the trot. I am pleased to report we managed to close off the accounts for 2001,2002 and 2003 and received some very positive feedback in the Auditors report. I am though glad it is over though.
We could write for so much more about this very rich experience at Chikankata (Wake up!) but don’t want to bore you to death. We are grateful to those of you who have supported the work of Chikankata in practical ways from setting up fundraising events and scheme, sending donations, collecting clothes and toys, providing the money for pigs and chickens, sponsoring student nurses and paying for orphaned children’s school fees. I wish I could tell you the difference your kindness is making to the local people. Most of all thank for all e-mails and letters we have received. It is so encouraging to know that so many people continue to think of us, even when we are on the other side of the world. We often feel very far away and miss all our friends and family very much indeed but at the same time we feel very blessed.
posted by Charlie Chikankata at 10:36 pm
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