Even before we arrived in Kalma Camp, we heard about Adam. A week or so before Changemakers 365 came to Kalma, Adam had lost his wife in childbirth at home. Once they had finally made it to our clinic it was sadly too late. The family was struggling. Adam was left with 7 older children AND a brand new baby. He didn’t know how he would care for them all or what he was going to do. He even asked our medical staff, “please, can I give the child to you. I have older children to feed, and I don’t have any milk to give this baby.” When Beatrice, our health coordinator for Sudan heard the story, she reached into her own pocket to buy Adam two goats. It was a sustainable source of milk that would give the baby the nutrition he needed. But we wanted to also help the whole family who’ve been through so much losing their mother. A donkey and cart are a versatile means to make a living. You can carry produce from the fields to the market for farmers, or transport people around Kalma or … [Read more...] about A Donkey for Adam
Changemakers365
Welcome to Kalma Camp
Kalma Camp in South Darfur, Sudan is what they call a super camp, meaning it’s home to more than 100,000 people (in the case of Kalma, 170,000+ people are living there). The people who live in Kalma have been displaced from their homes in other parts of Darfur by conflict and violence, coming here for safety. Like any other camp, life moves on. Kids are headed to school, playing outside. There are markets where residents sell food and household items and tailors sew away at new garments. Kalma is one of the biggest camps in the world for displaced people. With such a huge population, Kalma needs a way to organize itself. And that is through the sheikhs. We met the Sheikhs on our first morning in Kalma. There are eight of them, each representing a different section of Kalma. There are also people in charge of the different interest groups – there’s a women’s leader, a leader for youth, a leader for religious groups, etc. The Sheikhs have a small office and a large open meeting … [Read more...] about Welcome to Kalma Camp
“Come See The Fruits of Education”
Before we head to Sudan’s South Darfur state, we wanted to do one more project at Green Hope. Founders Samira, Kemal and a group of women had built the center themselves some 15 years ago. At night! “We built at night, because construction work wasn’t really acceptable for women. AND we all had to work to make a living during the day,” Samira told us. The school is compact, but there’s space for separate classrooms for all of the grade levels. What there wasn’t was a chair for every student. Some kindergarteners sat on the floor. Other kids shared chairs. We knew we could do something about that. We called up a local furniture maker and he got to work building wooden and metal chairs – small ones for the younger kids and big chairs that would work for older students and for the adults who come to Green Hope for adult education and skills training. The kids had also asked us for some exercise materials, so we grabbed some soccer balls and jump ropes. And we had enough … [Read more...] about “Come See The Fruits of Education”
New Hope @ Green Hope
Mayo is a large section of the city that is home to people who’ve relocated to Khartoum, mostly from western Sudan. And inside Mayo, there’s a neighborhood called Mandela that refugees from South Sudan now call home. Some came fleeing conflict near home, others were seeking the opportunity of the capital and the chance at a different future. For most the promise hasn’t lived up to reality. But there is a group of changemakers in Mayo determined to change that. Samira and Kemal lead the Green Hope Association for Peace and Development. They don’t have any regular funding. So, when they decide to do something new, they mostly just bootstrap it by gathering resources and talent from their own community. Green Hope offers adult education, skills training for women in carpentry, welding, food service, handicrafts, electrical repair and more. They even offer a food-for-work program for the vulnerable elderly in the neighborhood, providing food staples in exchange for seniors … [Read more...] about New Hope @ Green Hope
Finding Fatima
Tea ladies are a neighborhood institution in Khartoum. They provide the place – a piece of shade and a place to sit – for the community to meet, connect and share a cup of tea. They don’t earn much at all, but they really are the glue that holds together communities. Fatima’s tea stand is right outside our front door. And that’s given us a great opportunity to get to know everyone who lives and works in the neighborhood. We wanted to thank Fatima for her service to the community, so we asked if there was anything she needed. “Chairs,” she said, immediately! Fatima’s stools weren’t very comfy and she wanted everyone to feel at ease as they discussed neighborhood happenings and the news of the day. It was an easy wish to grant. 30 minutes later we delivered a couple dozen chairs to an astonished Fatima. “I’m the most happiest ever!” … [Read more...] about Finding Fatima
Khartoum Cleanup
Welcome to Sudan! Alight has a team of 760+ changemakers in Sudan, most in South and East Darfur states, providing health care, clean water and nutrition support. This team hasn’t had the chance to do much Changemakers 365, but boy were they ready. Alight’s international staff have lived in the same house in Khartoum for going on 7 years. And the neighborhood has looked after them well in that time. We wanted to do something to say thank you. So, we organized a cleanup of a vacant lot at the center of the neighborhood, full with construction debris and garbage. Everyone gathered – the neighbors and our team – pulled on work gloves and set to clearing years of trash with rakes, shovels and garbage bags. After just an hour the difference was clear. “We’ve been a part of this community and we wanted to thank them for being so good to us,” Country Director Heidi Diedrich told us. “Hopefully this will help the community to keep it clean, and maybe children can play here … [Read more...] about Khartoum Cleanup
Bubbling Over With Excitement
On a cold Saturday in November, Alight guests were transported to the aromatic streets of Southeast Asia. With over 300 vendors, stalls at Hmongtown Marketplace sell everything and anything the heart desires - from soaps, beauty products, colorful fabrics, to vibrant spices, exotic produce and even live ducks! During our tour of the market, we wanted not only to see but to help the market thrive. And what better way to do that than by taste testing some of the delicious offerings available? We treated our guests with bubble tea from a local vendor, Coco Island Papaya & Deli, to not only support them but to also entice visitors deeper into the two large complexes of the bazaar. We wandered the stalls of the market, chatting with people as we went, and meeting many first generation migrants from Laos, Vietnam and Thailand. One story in particular stuck out - a vendor, also a grandmother who sells clothing and beauty products, was proud to talk and share a photograph of her … [Read more...] about Bubbling Over With Excitement
Preserving History
In the Hmong tradition, beautiful and elaborate story quilts are created to preserve family history. Toua, who we first met yesterday at the Hmongtown Marketplace, has a family story quilt that is not only beautifully handstitched but also recounts the Hmong exodus as far back as the 1800s. His personal journey starts in Laos and Thailand, ending with the arrival of Toua and his family in St. Paul, Minnesota. That's where another adventure began, as he learned English while already enrolled in a 21 credit-load at a local university. A couple of guests that were invited to sit in on his story were recently resettled immigrants from East Africa. One of them, Emmanuel, chose to stand up and say a little bit about himself following Toua’s presentation. He said that he was honored to hear Toua's story, and was inspired to know that he was indeed able to support his family through all his hard work. Emmanuel had just arrived in the U.S. 7 weeks ago (!) and feels that after hearing … [Read more...] about Preserving History
Welcome to Hmongtown Marketplace
Hmongtown Marketplace has been an important destination for the more than 100,000 Hmong people in the Twin Cities. As a central meeting place, it has served to preserve tradition and foster community. It's founder, Toua Xiong, a refugee himself, created this market space from the ground up. He's been able to persevere because for Toua, the challenges of building a business pale in comparison to some of the challenges he's been through. After he made is safely to Minnesota, he had a vision to not only to create a space that Hmong people could call home, but also a marketplace where first generation shop owners could start a livelihood and thrive. Now is a pivotal time for the marketplace, as many shop owners are thinking about passing down their businesses to the second generation. There’s a desire to reach out and invite in a broader community to learn and celebrate this culture and help preserve its legacy. So Alight decided to bring 30 guests to come and experience the … [Read more...] about Welcome to Hmongtown Marketplace
Keeping Cozy
For many of the newly resettled refugees in Minnesota, this will be their first experience of a bitter cold winter. As you can imagine, winter can be shocking for new arrivals, especially if they don’t have the right gear to stay warm. So partnering with the International Institute of Minnesota (IIM), we put a call out for donations of winter gear to bring some warmth and comfort for these families experiencing the cold for the very first time... And boy were we amazed by the response! Donations came in from all over the Twin Cities – some people brought in their gently used things, and others purchased brand new gear on our Amazon wish list. In just a short amount of time, we gathered dozens of winter items: coats, snow pants, gloves, and hats. They're going to families who are new to this area - now they'll be better prepared to handle the months ahead. We were inspired by the generosity of so many Minnesotans. Jesse and Kristen recently moved back to their home state … [Read more...] about Keeping Cozy