Preparing for Kenya

Hello from Kenya!  We'll be sharing our experiences here with you, but first here's a glimpse into what we had to do to prepare:

 

First, imagine a living room full of supplies for running seven days of medical clinics in African villages, and for 750 first aid kits, all of which weighs about 650 pounds.  Imagine packing all of that into 22-gallon plastic storage bins to ship to Africa, making sure that each bin is as close to the 50 pound limit as possible.  Now imagine the exhaustion as this task is completed at midnight, the night before the flight departs.  Welcome to our life for the few weeks leading up to our departure!

 

 

This picture is just at one location - Marlene was going through a similar process with her four bins and a suitcase.  When we met at the airport we had a total of 18 pieces of luggage, weighing just under 900 pounds!  Earline negotiated with Delta Airlines to ship our supplies for free as a humanitarian donation, but we had more items than they expected.  After waiting anxiously for them to get approval for the 18 items (for only three passengers), Delta came through and we paid ZERO to ship all of this to Nairobi.  Thank you Delta!

 

 

Next time we go to Kenya, I am definitely inventing a "Honey I Shrunk the Luggage" machine.

 

In addition to the first aid kits that we distribute to the three villages where we hold a medical clinic, and the clinic supplies and education materials, we also bring treats for the children who flock around us everywhere we go!  We give them candy and small toys, as well as cheap solar calculators and pens.

 

Of course Phil, the photographer, videographer, blogger, and general chronicler of the trip, had his own assortment of battery-operated electronics to take into electricity-less, rural Kenya.  His own 50-pound pack (felt like 50 pounds; actual weight may vary), was filled with a Canon 7D still camera + lenses, a Sony Handicam video camera, a Wolverine 250GB battery-powered photo storage, Samsung "Nike" tablet, Logitech Bluetooth keyboard, iPad and iPod!  Of course Phil's number one concern was how to charge these items and how to connect to the internet to upload anything, so he can keep everyone updated on the Imani Project's adventures!

 

Thanks for checking in with the Imani Project!  Next time we'll update you with our cast of characters!