Five Much.



Interns completing the self-assessment


I am in a frenzy. I have so many projects I can’t keep them straight. I think it’s a coping mechanism for me at this moment (I won’t go into details). Anyway, along with planning and fundraising for the camp (Camp GLOW!!) that I am extremely excited about (keep those donations coming...please!?! - see previous post if you would like to assist with this awesome camp), helping one of our centers build a new building, working with the school on various projects, day to day work at the centers like renewing NPO certificates, writing policies and procedures, annual reports and job descriptions...today I started an internship program at our centers called, “Achieve Your Goals (AYG) Internship Program.” After applying for and receiving a small grant last year which will provide the funding for this project, I have been writing manuals, buying supplies, accepting applications from possible candidates, and doing interviews.  Well, today we proudly had our first meeting with 12 young interns from the community. The kids who are participating in the internship are in grades 10, 11 or 12 and they will be helping at our drop-in centers while learning basic job skills. All in a day of the life of a Peace Corps volunteer.

Then I relaxed in my bucket bath. 

2011 Phedisang AYG Interns (and my co-facilitator)

One More Time!

Dear Friends and Family:


I am writing to ask for your support (again!) for an upcoming project. The project that I am seeking your support for corresponds with my girls club and is aimed at bringing a group of girls from my rural community together with a group of girls from a similar community in another volunteer’s village where we will then host a leadership camp (Camp GLOW – Girls Leading Our World) for the week. This camp is a unique opportunity for young girls to learn leadership development skills, while also focusing on issues of women’s empowerment, health, and environmental awareness. We (I am working in partnership with another Peace Corps Volunteer) truly believe it will be a life-changing week for these girls. 
My request from you is in the form of any financial assistance/donations to help with the overall operational cost of the camp – including lodging, transportation, food provisions, and materials/supplies. Through many of your generous donations (thank you, thank you!) I have raised a portion of the funds but am still in need of some additional funding. The camp is being planned for the July school holiday so we are in need of funding as soon as possible. No opportunities like this currently exist for the girls in our rural communities, and our goal is to create a camp that provides them with access to much needed information surrounding their physical and emotional health as well as providing them with a chance to gain much needed confidence...as well as just having a lot of fun!

I can be reached via email (wendydelta@yahoo.com) if you have any questions and I appreciate your consideration.
The easiest way to donate is to send a check (or cash if you are so inclined!) to my parents address and they will deposit in my account:

Betty Kingston
18535 E. Lawndale Place
Queen Creek, Arizona 85142

Best in health,

Wendy Kingston

Peace Corps Volunteer, 2010-2012

Community HIV/Aids Outreach Program

Limpopo, South Africa

Happy Easter.

I feel lucky. I have just returned from a wonderful Easter holiday visiting the beautiful country of Zambia. Home of Victoria Falls. I have to admit that as we were headed to the airport last week we all were a bit confused as to whether or not Victoria Falls was or was not one of the 7 Wonders of the World?  Unfortunately, I still don’t know for sure. There are now apparently several lists of said Wonders of the World…according to some lists Victoria Falls is indeed one of the Wonders. But it’s not on all lists. I had no idea there was such a controversy over this list?


Anyway, we had a great vacation. I traveled with a group of four other volunteers – Emily (who is another community health volunteer from my group) and then two education volunteers, Shilpa and Megan. The first exciting part of the vacation was getting to fly (we didn't use a public taxi on this vacation)!  It’s been a while since I have been in an airport and I was excited to be in such civilization…we had hoped to get to the airport early and enjoy the shops but ended up being a bit hurried (exchanging money and going through long lines) but were treated to drinks and food on the plane. We stayed at a great backpacker in Livingstone (in Zambia). The country definitely had a different feel to it than South Africa and it was fun to meet other Peace Corps volunteers staying at the backpacker – some from Zambia and also from Nambia. We swapped stories and enjoyed hearing about some differences (and also many similarities) of our experiences.

Seeing Victoria Falls was amazing – one unfortunate part is that we were there during the “high season” which means that there is just so much water it’s difficult to see much of the actual waterfall. You just see white puffs of mist/water. It’s still pretty spectacular but doing things like white water rafting or some of the other water stuff is just out of the question. You can walk through the water “mist” and get totally soaked which was fun and then we walked to the bottom of a trail to see the view from the bottom (and watch people bungee jump from the bridge - which I did not do.  Sorry).

We enjoyed a sunset cruise down the Zambezi River, crashing a couple of the very nice hotels during the day to enjoy their pools, views of the falls, and food, as well as a game drive in Botswana where we visited Chobe National Park…and also ran into Chuck and Michelle (the couple that I have vacationed with during my last two vacations)! Surprisingly we stumbled upon them while we were having breakfast before our game drive in Botswana (totally unplanned) and then got to enjoy spending a couple of days with them before we left (I am just meant to vacation with them it seems)?!

I really do feel lucky that I have been able to travel in such an amazing place. I don’t know how one could see all there is to see in a lifetime here in Africa. But I will certainly do what I can and enjoy every minute.

Enjoy my pictures (I still have to get some from Emily but this is a start)!