A small little favor....

As many of you know, I am involved in a group here made up of Peace Corps Volunteers called the Gender and Development Council. One of the biggest things that the Gender and Development Council, known as GAD, does is host two annual summer camps. One is for girls called GLOW (Girls Leading our World) and the other is for boys called TOBE (Teaching Our Boys Excellence). As a part of this group, I must raise money to hold the camps and I really could use your help.

I know many of you do not have a lot of extra money right now, and as a Peace Corps Volunteer, I can truly empathize. But if you skip dessert at your next meal out or go without getting your double extra-shot venti mocha next time at Starbuck's, than that little bit of extra money would go a long way here in Ukraine. And it would be greatly appreciated by students here, more than you could imagine.

This is our official fundraising letter:

Peace Corps Ukraine
Gender & Development Council
http://www.globeukraine.blogspot.com
gadukraine@gmail.com 

Hello Friends and Family! During my time in Ukraine as a Peace Corps Volunteer, I have become heavily involved with a working group of volunteers called the Gender & Development Council (GAD).

Every summer, GAD, in partnership with local Ukrainian organizations, organizes two summer camps for Ukrainian youth, ages 14‐17. Camp GLOW (Girls Leading Our World) and Camp TOBE (Teaching
Our Boys Excellence) provide a unique opportunity to gather 40 girls and 20 boys from different parts of Ukraine to participate in a camp dedicated to learning about gender issues and developing leadership as well as team building. Camp topics include: How to GLOW/Excel, How to Design a
Volunteer Project, CounterTrafficking and Human Rights, Domestic Violence, HIV/AIDS Awareness, and Healthy Lifestyles and Body Image, in combination with fun leadership and team building exercises and excursions. 

This year, GAD and our partnering organizations will offer two GLOW and one TOBE camps. One GLOW and TOBE camp will take place in the eastern town of Kremmenaya, and the other GLOW camp will be held in the western town of Kolomiya. Last year was the first time GAD held three camps at these sites, and they were all fantastic—this year we can only hope for the same. We are lucky to be working with Ukrainian partners who are eager to help make these camps a success, but we are still in need of funds to help make these camps a reality. Through the Peace Corps Partnership Program, we are asking friends, family, and local businesses back home to help us cover costs for these camps. In order to make these camps a reality, we need to raise $8,361. But your dollar can go a long way here. For example, you could: 

• Buy materials for a scavenger hunt—$12.50
• Send a Ukrainian child to camp for one day—$13
• Pay for copies of camp materials—$25
• Bus 40 kids to their campsite—$30
• Buy art and work supplies for one camp—$40
• Send a Ukrainian child to camp for one week—$72 

Please consider making a taxdeductible donation ($10, $20 or more) to help us make camp GLOW/TOBE an amazing experience for the Ukrainian youth we work with each and everyday. Every little bit counts! You can make a donation at the following website:

Or go to peacecorps.gov, and search for GLOW/TOBE Leadership
Summer Camp under "Ukraine" in "Donate to Volunteer Projects." Also, visit our blog at www.globeukaine.blogspot.com for more photos, videos and testimonials from past campers and counselors. 

Please let me know if you have any questions, and thank you for helping us empower the next generation of Ukraine! Sincerely, GENDER & DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL Peace Corps Ukraine
https://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=donate.contribute. projDetail&projdesc=343‐218

Peace Corps Ukraine
Gender & Development Council
http://www.globeukraine.blogspot.com
gadukraine@gmail.com  

My new favorite holiday

My internet is working really well at the moment (a kind of unusual occurrence), so I thought I would take an opportunity to re-update my blog. I really like blogging and wish I had more time and better internet to do it, but unfortunately I don't. So, I will just try and post as often as I can.

Last Tuesday, March 8th, was International Women's Day. International Women's Day or Women's Day as its often referred to, is celebrated around the world, but most especially in Eastern-bloc countries. My old host mom in Slovakia, Melania told me that Women's Day is a big deal, because Valentine's Day was thought of as a capitalistic holiday. Today both holidays are celebrated in Eastern Europe but, Women's Day is by far the bigger deal. Women get flowers and presents and the day is a national holiday, now do you see why I like it so much?

My Women's Day celebration started the Friday before, classes finished at noon and all of the teachers went to the auditorium for a performance in our honor. (All but 3 teachers at my school are female). After the concert which included songs, dancing, and a power point presentation on all of the ways that women are great, the biology teacher, Anton Anatoliovich came out with a beautiful cake for all of us. We all went back to the breakroom and had cake, sandwiches, wine, tea, and coffee.

Then my counterpart Sveta suggested we all go to the city and go to a cafe. So a group of about 10 of us went.I had a calzone and a very good greek salad. While we talked and ate, everyone went around the table and gave a toast. Toasts are very common at Ukrainian celebrations and holidays, and even I gave one in Russian/English. After a few hours at the cafe, a group of three of us went bowling. And for the first time in my life, I actually won a couple of games. It was a great day and to top it off I had a four day weekend.

 

The faculty or collectiveas we are called at a cafe in Melitopol.

On the actual holiday, I went to the city with some Ukrainian friends and a fellow Peace Corps Volunteer. we walked through the park and went to a cafe. Later at home, I celebrated with my new host mom, Klaudia Gregorivna along with her daughter and her family. All in all, its a fantastic holiday, but unfortunately because of it, we had school on Saturday to make up for our day off. Sometime you just can have everything.

Saying goodbye to a friend

A couple of weeks ago my good friend Heather left Ukraine due to medical reasons. Before she left I went to go see her and say goodbye to her. Here in Ukraine, us volunteers often hear that we are members of what is called the "Posh Corps." In other words, that we have so many luxuries that other Peace Corps members do not have throughout the world, we are in a league above the rest. However, after visitng my friends Heather and Margo, who also lives in the same town, I can attest that they are certainly not members of the Posh Corps. 

Both Heather and Margo had water in their apartments for a total of 5 hours a day and neither had hot water. Also, I spent the night in Margo's apartment and it was by far the coldest home I have ever been in. Although I live in better conditions than both Heather and Margo do, it is still hard to be so far away from home and there is nothing posh about being 7,000 miles away from home.

 This is a picture of my friends Heather, Margo and myself. Margo is holding the box that Heather's birthday cake came in.

 

This is a picture of mini-caviar sandwhiches that were for sale in the cafe at a Super-Walmart esque store in Donetsk. Donetsk is one of the largest cities in Eastern Ukraine and I traveled through it on my way to see Heather. And on the way back I got an opportunity to see it a little. There are many nice and expensive stores, i.e. Dior and Dolce & Gabanam, and nice cafes, none of which I can afford.

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This is a picture of a church in Donetsk. The inside was very beautiful, but unfortunately I could not take a picture of it.Churches are not such a frequent sight as they are in Western Europe, but I relish every opportunity I can to see them. Although I am not particularily religious, there is something calming about being in a quite church, with incense, and being alone with your thoughts.  

I hope you are all doing well and I will try and update my blog more often, my internet connection is not the greatest, but there are always more tales and pictures to share.  Take care and if you have time, drop me an email.