African Children Love Elephants Too
Greetings from Zambia!
I am a Peace Corps Volunteer currently wrapping up my service in Zambia. During my contract working in a rural Zambian village, I was under the care of the Ngoma family. These people took me in, fed me, helped me navigate the unfamiliar culture of the village, and treated me as their adopted American daughter for two years. I became extremely close to the family, especially the children, and consider them my second set of siblings. A few months ago, another PCV joined the Ngoma family. Anne came to continue Peace Corps presence in the village as my contract comes to a close and has already been taken in and treated as one of the family as I was.
As you may already know, Zambia is a landlocked country in sub-Saharan Africa. It is home to loving people and amazing wildlife. I have been fortunate to have visited one of the country's (if not the region's) best game parks, South Luangwa National Park for safari during holidays. My village is located just a 3 hour car ride away from the park, offering the opportunity for game viewing and educational trips. The game parks are primarily accessible to tourists and wealthier Zambian residents due to the expense of travel and lodging. Additionally, as a result of poaching, one hardly ever sees any wildlife outside of the national parks. No zebras, giraffes, elephants, or even impala are found in the area around the villages, meaning that most Zambians have never or will never see the beautiful animals that share their homeland.
It is our wish that as I wrap up my service and Anne begins hers that we be able to give a gift to our village siblings that they will remember for the rest of their lives and give them an opportunity to experience their country's beautiful wildlife in a way that they may never be able to afford in the future. I have been contemplating the idea of taking them on a trip for some time, but on a Peace Corps Volunteer living allowance of less than 400 dollars per month, saving for something as big as this is near impossible.
We are proposing a fundraiser to earn the money to take our
four village siblings to the game park for two nights so that they may
experience safari as so many people from outside the country come to Zambia to
do. We will accompany them so that I may say my goodbyes and Anne can begin
taking on the duties of being their American big sister for the next two years.
The amount we would like to raise reflects the cost of two nights lodging
(including all meals, snacks, and game drives) as well as transportation to the
park and park entry fees. The rates are based on the resident discount, but as
you can see from the amount requested, even with that, the price remains quite high.
We would appreciate any donations you could spare during this holiday season, as this gift to the children would be something more amazing than anything they could ever imagine.
Zikomo! (thank you!)
