Young United Stars

There are a handful of moments in ones Peace Corps service where we question whether or not the work we do pays off and if the message is actually being passed along. 

It is a hard notion that comes with the rewarding experience of international work.

Often times the camps that Volunteers tirelessly plan organizing, goes unnoticed and underappreciated, as there is a lack of follow-up to the monitoring and evaluation done.  Peace Corps fails to see the post-camp work that these bright, intelligent young boys and girls do back at their respective sites.

Well Peace Corps.  I witnessed the magic first hand.

After my move to Kitgum I went to one of the primary schools where I will be teaching life skills and helping to continue the softball program that was started by a previous Volunteer.  After practice one day I was invited to a Young United Stars event, also known as GLOW club that was organized by several of the campers after the Northern Camp.  During this session, the girls were teaching their fellow students about sack gardening and how even if one does not have land they can still grow crops out of a rice sack.  They talked about the benefits of this and even demonstrated how to do so.  The girls led the session with confidence and with the intention to include not just the girls but the boys are well. 

The smile on my face could not be contained as I saw the camps play out in real life.  I wanted to scream and shout that these camps do good work and actually make a difference in the lives of these campers.  They provide for a bright future and empower the youth to take on new opportunities. 

The 60-minutes spent under the mango tree, digging, and watching the girls exuberate with poise and self-awareness made me realize something…

The work we are doing makes a difference.  The message is being passed along.

And I am pumped.