HOPE-PALS Summer Camp

Thanks to a PEPFAR grant (President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief), I was able to organize a 3-day overnight camp for the children of the Hope-Pals members. We had sports, arts & crafts, sessions on sexuality and personal development, a puppet show on HIV/AIDS, taekwondo lessons, a movie night, and then our final day at the beach. It was stressful bringing it all together, but oh so worth the effort when a few of the kids said this was their first time at summer camp and one child even told me, "I was scared to come to camp, but now I think this is the most fun I ever had." I grew so attached to them within the first few hours and was so humbled to have them trusted in my care.

Dr. Marianne Szauer leading a session on HIV/AIDS with the puppets...
me & the kids...
Beach Day at Grand Anse...

Our Franka becomes Senator the Honourable Franka Bernardine.

Since NDC won the elections, they've been selecting a cabinet of ministers and have asked Grenada's Peace Corps Director to be the Minister of Education! We're incredibly sad to see her go, but this is such an amazing opportunity for her and the children of Grenada that we can't help but be happy for her. She later told us she had to rush out to buy a fancy hat just for the Swearing In Ceremony...

Farewell EC 76!

In honor of the previous group of volunteers who are finishing their 2 years of service, we made oil-down (Grenada's national dish) and had a bonfire on the beach to say our goodbyes. It's so weird to think that once they leave, we're going to be holding down the fort. We'll miss you Eastern Caribbean 76!

Firstly my birthday, Secondly elections

Well...I'm on lock-down right now. It's really not as fun as it sounds. And I'm officially old.

Good news is that I have a phone and I can still have visitors...after they vote of course.

My Quarter-Life Crisis

Happy 4th of July! It was pretty funny trying to celebrate an American holiday while no one around us seemed to get excited with us. :) A bunch of us Americans gathered together and had a BBQ at our friend's house, and then went out afterward to celebrate my 25th birthday (since Grenada's Election Day is stealing my thunder on July 8 and we Peace Corps Volunteers are supposed to be on house arrest that day). I couldn't have asked for a better night with friends, getting spoiled with margaritas and dancing til the bar closed. Thank you to everyone who came out for the madness!

West Indies vs. Australia Cricket Game

Another scorcher of a day (my friend and I were literally pouring ice cold water down our spines so we could get the chills). Unfortunately the West Indies got crushed, but I was happy for my friends Down Under. And I ate about 5 pounds of Rice Krispy Treats, so how can I complain?

School's out for the summer!

We had our End of the Year Party at the Limes today! I can't believe it's already summer. The kids have done so great and responded especially well to the Incentives Program I began in January. They all got their prizes (my Mom sent a bunch of toys and books from home) depending on how many stars they earned on their chart, and it was so rewarding to see their faces when they realized all their hard work paid off. I also ended the year with 2 young girls who have come onto the program to help teach, so that is a huge blessing!

Special Olympics Launch

Tonight they officially launched the Special Olympics here in Grenada. One of the volunteers from the previous group has been working hard with the organization to make this happen, so this was exciting to witness and I'm really looking forward to helping coach for the upcoming games in November (Lauren and I are stepping in to fill her shoes).

Green vs. Yellow

It's not just election fever in the US...Grenada's Prime Minister Keith Mitchell recently called for elections, so everywhere you turn there is something green (New National Party) or yellow (National Democratic Congress). As Peace Corps volunteers, we're supposed to keep our distance from any political gatherings as to keep neutral and not offend anyone. But I was able to watch a New National Party Rally from afar since my homestay family's house overlooks the location.

Limes Field Day

Since the school year is wrapping up and the masses are getting restless, I decided to have a Field Day with my Limes kids. We had football, relays, frisbee 500, jump-roping contests, and cake...it was a great day. I was narrating everything like an Olympics commentator the whole time and the kids got a kick out of that. And of course my whistle made another appearance.

Dancing King

My friend Keith is a performer with the Vinney Way Dance Group and let me tag along as the photographer/groupie for one of their shows at a nearby resort...how fun is my job?

And this is Keith (they won't let him wear the rest of the costume...for obvious reasons. :)

Football & Reggae

Today was the Grenada vs. Costa Rica football game, which was fun, but disappointing for 2 reasons: it was a tie and I wasn't able to snag another free jersey from a player. But there was a free reggae concert afterwards with Maxi Priest! It was awesome and we were dancing along right in the front row!

I chopped my hair!

HIV Peer Counseling Workshop

For the past 3 days I co-facilitated a workshop with my community partners at Hope-Pals, based on the material that we acquired at the Tobago training. We had a small turnout from the Hope-Pals members, but every person trained is a big step towards educating the community in HIV/AIDS and peer support, so I was very happy with the results. It felt like a huge accomplishment running my first workshop and I'm feeling much more confident for the next one.

PE classes

My classes with Grensave have been going a lot better lately since I’ve switched over to PE class instead of keeping them indoors all afternoon. We all walk down to the old National Stadium, do warm-ups and stretching, then either have races or I teach them frisbee. Today I brought my whistle to keep them in line and it works wonders! As well as push-ups for those who misbehave. Muhahaha!

March for the Disabled

I got a kitten!

St. Vincent & the Grenadines

Lauren, Megan, Andrew, Kris, Paul, and I all went to St. Vincent & the Grenadines for 5 days and had a blast! We visited the gorgeous Owia Salt Ponds...

spent a night on Bequia island...

hiked the active volcano La Soufriere (which also meant traversing the entire north part of the island with our backpacks for 9 hours)...

jumped off ocean cliffs in Chateau Bel Air (and swam for our lives when we spotted a shark about 50 yards away!)...

All thanks goes to the Vincy Peace Corps volunteers who took such great care of us and planned out our whole trip!

Peace Corps Director Visits Grenada

We were honored to have the Peace Corps Director Ron Tschetter visit Grenada, especially since we were only 1 of 2 islands in the Eastern Caribbean that he was able to fit in (good choice if I might say so myself). We had a luncheon at the beautiful & historic plantation house in Mt. Fendue and discussed the current changes going on within the Peace Corps and the world in general (i.e. the food crisis). It was a pleasure to meet such an intelligent and genuine man, and reassuring to see that even the "higher ups" of the Peace Corps are as compassionate and authentic as the ground level.

Mama Howard's visit

My mom came to visit me this week! It was so refreshing to see her and so fun to show her my world down here. She got to do everything from touring Fort George with my Grensave class...

having a relaxing day on the beach...

visiting some of the island’s gardens and the cocoa plantation...

going to the Tivoli Drumfest and meeting my crazy friends...

snorkeling at the underwater statues and being swarmed by fish...

watching my volleyball practice, helping me teach at the Limes Program, having dinner with my homestay family, meeting my director Franka, having dinner with my community partners, treating me to sushi and a pedicure, and even helping me clean my apartment! Aren't Moms the best? We had so much fun and of course it wasn't enough time with her. Let's see if she thinks I'm worth it to fly for another 20+ hours on 3 different planes to do it again. I love you Mom!