check it

wednesday the 22nd the city council and mayor came to have a little volunteer appreciation lunch with us. i say 'with' because it meant that we worked longer, bought and cooked more food, and had 10x's more dishes:) below are some photos of us making 9 trays of pudding at 10pm:

now that we made all that puddin' it was time to retire for the night and get ready for the celebration. folks from other volunteer organizations came to enjoy a band, a speech from several city council members and the mayor, and TONS OF FOOD...

the video posted below is of one of our city councilwomen thanking us for our work as volunteers. the video cuts off as she is about to mention the opening of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr elementary school. the city wanted to demolish MLK elementary after the storm but common ground (another volunteer group) broke into the buliding in the evenings and gutted it and restored it back to life- im not sure how public that story is but it should be shared more often.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F2g7Sgwh4O8

bam

im sitting in a dust storm at the moment. today we were closed and did an all day clean and inventory. we're still working!!! folks are sweeping the entrance of the center and i'll be moving stuff back into the double wide once the carpet dries. this morning i cooked breakfast for the volunteers did 8 economy size loads of laundry from EC and then assisted with dinner. one of the funniest people i've ever met taught me how to make polentas....kinda:) a polenta is usually made out of boiled cornmeal but all we had were leftover grits. so we fried up some grit patties and added kates mushroom, fennel, and tomatoe sauce and fed people one by one...it was so good!! it's been a long freakin day though.

my paitence just about ran out in the early evening for a number of reasons and then two things happened. 1) peace corps people tell you that patience is the number one skill you need and will acquire during your time so i did a little bit of self-talk to snap out of it and 2) cara sat me in a corner with colored pencils and a mandala and i slowly got to come back to center. i'm definitly going to buy a mandala book and pencils before i head overseas:)


last night was one of the scariest times i've had in a long time. a few of us went to sixflags about 20 mins away from site. the park has been closed since the storm... it was dark, quiet, and like being in the middle of a really creepy video game. the park hasnt been touched...there is a GIANT clown head smashed on the ground, stuffed animals and tshirts moldy but still on display as prizes, weeds growing up into the rides, and signs into the entrances of rides tilted or broken from katrina. we walked around wispering and taking in all of the sites, of course i was getting a bit scared-ok, im a giant baby. i was freaking out when we decided to walk through mardi gras madness in the pitch black....we ended up turning around. we did walk to the top of a roller coaster though and saw the whole park and the city in the distance- that was amazing. my writing is not doing the evening justice but it was pretty amazing. here's a shout out to two amazing people who left today: kate and emily, you guys are awesome and thanks for taking me on that adventure!



friday night we went to see a brass band play at the balcony bar and cafe. i met the owner last week and after asking what i was doing here gave me his buisness card as a coupon for 8 free drinks for me and some other volunteers. it was cool to be there with a ton of the ec people and reconnect with Massumi, the owner. he's persian and the crowd was a nice mix of people, persian, black, white- new orleans is a truely diverse place. anyway, we ended heading down the road eventually and taking over the entire street. it seemed like every bar there you saw someone from ec- at one point we had 12 of us in a little alcove- im realizing this is a stupid story to share cause you cant really get the feel for the night so here are some pics:)

point: this weekend was nice, we worked hard, and had a freakin blast in the eve:)

this wednesday the new orleans city council is coming to do a volunteer appreciation event at our place. that'll be exciting- when we have visitors we usually get a band so im looking forward to that:)

welp, tomorrow is a big day again so im outta here.

xo,
sb

Aspiration Statement

Sarah H. Buffie

Namibia

November 1, 2007

A. The professional attributes that you plan to use, and what aspirations you hope to fulfill during your Peace Corps service.

One of my greatest aspirations for my Peace Corps service is to become an engaged and connected community member. I thrive on relationship building and believe in the power of a group to build community first and accomplish a task second. Starting here, I hope to match my skills and passions with those of my community to tackle the existing issues surrounding HIV/AIDS. I am a student of Asset Based Community Development and hope to use this professional skill in conducting “needs assessments” at the community, organizational, and individual level. I plan to use my communication skills to listen and learn the needs of people affected by HIV/AIDS and administration and research skills to enhance/create educational and training materials on topics deemed necessary for the community in which I live and work. I also plan to use my professional networking skills to be a connector of people and organizations.

B. Your strategies for working effectively with host country partners to meet expressed needs.

It’s difficult for me to express a “strategy” per se because I know I have so much to learn from my host country and organization. I believe my biggest strength is an open mind and an adaptable work style. That being said, my goal in working effectively with host country partners to meet their needs is to always stay focused on these needs. If we can keep our eyes on the end goal without letting personal or cultural interest steer us away, I believe we will achieve a positive end result. Personal or cultural interests should only enhance a team’s goal rather than hinder. My “strategy” will be to find a good balance between listening openly and asserting my ideas.

C. Your strategies for adapting to a new culture with respect to your own cultural background.

From a young age I’ve been exposed to and raised in different cultural backgrounds. I have respect, admiration, and a yearning for understanding other cultures and believe strongly that the way others live does not have to conflict with how I live. In many cases I will adapt by adopting certain practices and customs because I am a life-long learner. I know and am prepared for new experiences, local cuisine, and cultural practices that will be unfamiliar and perhaps uncomfortable for me, but which can be found anywhere in life not just isolated to this experience. I plan to keep an open mind and ask questions, when appropriate, to help with my understanding and thus adapting to Namibian culture.

D. The skills and knowledge you hope to gain during pre-service training to best serve your future community and project.

I hope to gain not only language skills but also cultural cues that will help me communicate to the fullest. I also hope to learn more about HIV/AIDS specific to Africa and Namibia. I am very interested in learning about the structures of NGO’s in Namibia and then outlining how they differ from similar organizations in the U.S. I would love to learn more about the history of Namibia and the current political and social issues locally and countrywide. I want to become conscious of cultural norms when meeting people, building relationships, setting boundaries, and the roles of men and women in the workplace, in the community and in the family unit.

E. How you think Peace Corps service will influence your personal and professional aspirations after your service ends.

My personal and professional aspirations are closely connected: to be an active citizen of the world, create and build community wherever I am, do service and share experiences with people different from myself, and work hard at whatever task is in front of me. I can’t think of a better “career move” than joining the Peace Corps! I believe that this Volunteer service experience is going to build on the path of self-awareness and understanding I embarked on two years ago with AmeriCorps and will give me more professional skills that will be applicable anywhere upon my completion of my Peace Corps tour.

out-of-towners..and some big news!

last week two of my favorite people cam eto visit. jori and patrice arrived at noon on thursday right in time to welcome ben poor to town- the guy who walked here from indiana! The two of them got roped into holding some of his welcome banners so im sure they were on the even news! thre were a few media sources, all of the volunteers, a brass band, and residents- it was a pretty hapenin' time. ben's website is pretty cool: benswalk.com

after the excitement we walked to the corner store to get a drink- pennington was DYING from the heat:) at 3:30 we started on dinner prep, then the girls left for their hotel and i joined them later for a nap before we hit the town. they already had pretty important observations to share so we did a good ole fashion PA debrief which got me thinking....would you two care to add your thoughts to the blog!? I'd love for folks to see it through your eyes too...

Our first stop that night was a really great hooka bar then we went to see Soul Rebels play- an amazing brass band that play at the same spot every thur night. The night ended by us being pulled over by the cops for a missing headlight (the wiring is mesed up dad!) THe cop made all of us put our hands out of the window before she approached the car then asked if we had any weapons- very strange...she then proceeded to check all three ID's and finally came back to the car with: "you know the saying 'it's not what you say it's how you say it?' 'well, you were very polite so i'm letting you off with a warning" ...i wasnt too sure where she was going with that at first. was a broken light worth all that!??!?! Oh well, it made for some extra excitement i suppose...

it was amazing to have some members of my extended family in town... we balanced our time between site and relaxing time- well more vacation time which was nice for all of us. it was sad to see them go.

after dropping them off at the airport it was back to work- sunday barbque was a hit and the week got off to a great start because I FOUND OUT MY PEACE CORPS ASSIGNMENT!!!

October 29th I head off to (unknown city) for the staging event (predeparture training) then November 1st I leave with my training class to NAMIBIA, AFRICA!!

i can't wait...i cried when my parents told me, the mail was sent to their place, and i've been smiling ever since. i'll be a health extension volunteer helping to build the capacity of local NGO's for HIV/AIDS. i'll be doing program development, liasion between community, organizations, gov't etc, assisting with development and dissemenation of educational materials and much more im sure. the packet i read was HUGE and i have a lot to do in the next ten days: update my resume, write a motivatin statement (5 part bulletted essay that i'll probably post for ya'll), apply for my visa and peace corps passport, and then much more before my actual departure.

besides YAY!!!!! the most common response when i tell people is "isn't that where angelina's baby is from?" maybe we'll be at the same coffeeshop one day... :)

speaking of coffeeshops: today i took the day off to take care of some of the paperwork and to read all of the information sent to me about pc. i went to two different places and both times people started conversations with me. they asked why i was down here and i told them a bit about EC and then they asked what i'll be doing when i went home and i told them about the peace corps. both of their responses were similar to a question jori asked me while she was here: are you punishing yourself for something?

i've been sitting with that question ever since jori popped it and i had to think about it differently when it was posed today. i'd never thought of what i do as a punishment- most people i've worked with, whether here or in public allies, are all doing it for similar reasons- there is a need, we have a passion to be involved, and we're having amazing experiences and meeting amazing people along the way. being down here and heading to africa are just as selfish as anything else- the words "selfish" and "selfless" have such concrete negative or positive connotations that makes it difficult for me to express exactly what i'm trying to say but i hope you follow me. i decided a few years ago that when i travel i want to work my way through countries- not just visit. peace corps is a perfect way to do that. im excited about the challenges, looking forward to how i'm going to continue to mold and be awoken to my true self and impact others just as they will impact me along the way...i need to give this more thought but generally- no, the decision to head overseas is not a punishment, it's truely a gift!!

i'll be sleeping on this quote tonight from the one and only browniest sanders of all the browns:

"courage is the capacity to confront what can be imagined"

...let's all be a little more courageous.

peace,

sb

hmmm

well today i was on my food for friends route for a few hours. it should go much smoother thursday because i'll know where the hell im going! i have 6 houses on my route all in New Orleans East. It's pretty close to my neighborhood but i dont deliver to anyone here. i dropped off to people in two different FEMA trailer parks. those places are pretty much a disaster. it's just trailer after trailer lined up on black rock gravel. two security guards sit out front all day long in the crazy heat checking id's as people come in. can you imagine living there for 2 years?

this isn't a picture of one of mine but you get the idea:

one of my stops was to a woman and her 12 year old daughter- they are both living with AIDS. on my way out of their park traffic was backed up because of a big arrest going on. i saw a woman get handcuffed and thrown to the ground a guy get punched in the chest by the cop right before they searched him. it was awful. ms. williams told me her grandmothers name was sarah and then asked me to stay for a while- she was my first stop so i could't today but maybe i will sometime. i'm living in pretty extreme poverty at the moment but i got to see it in other parts of NOLA just as bad...

after my route i tried to figure my way home and luckily got lost by a great coffeeshop. i took some me time and had some good coffee, read, wrote a few letters- just hung out. it took me about an hour to find my way back and once i did it was back to work. we are feeding 30 visa'd workers who are here in a shelter tonight and it's family night so we've got some extra kids around:)

in other news: i've talked to unjin krantz about helping with some fundraising for EC. she's been contacted by mike agresta our director of development and he sent the following email. i thought i'd share it with you all because he's a bit more eloquent than me:)

Hi,Kate Fogle at our Lower Ninth Ward site gave me your contact information. She said you were interested in helping to raise funds forour work on the Gulf Coast. As you might be aware, Katrina-related funding is increasingly hard to come by these days. Most foundations (and the American public) are inclined to view the Lower Ninth Ward as a"permanent disaster zone," a sort of worst-case scenario of everyday urban poverty, rather than an emergency situation. As such, we've concluded that we'll have the best luck with private donors.

If you're interested in helping us raise funds for our current project, I strongly suggest you first talk to your friends, family and personal contacts. We have to turn the tide of apathy one person at a time. On the other hand, if you think you can help us find further foundation support, I'm happy to share with you our grant research and some of our past grants.

I'm attaching our annual support from last year and a page of testimonials from our friends on the Gulf Coast to give you an introduction to who we are and what we do. If there's anything you know you need to get started, don't hesitate to ask me. Thanks so much foryour interest in helping out.

Best, Mike Agresta Director of Development Emergency

lots of stuff

so tonight keith came in white as hell cause he was sanding a house....lookin pretty foxy. we had stevie wonder blastin and he FREAKED OUT!! looooooves him some stevie!! he was singing quite a bit but finally i got a video of him...check it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uLbRmd7_JV8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RJNRSXqYJZ8

also, here's a little clip from our sunday barbque...enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-OqgWv-vjD0

aaaaaaaaaaaaand check out this link!! http://www.wbko.com/news/headlines/8403272.html

20-year old Ben Poor (from ball state university...and new palestine, indiana!!) is walking from New Palestine to New Orleans and raising money for Emergency Communities on the way! it's pretty amazing. he should arrive thursday around 2:00 so things are going to be pretty awesome around here. updates to come...

tomorrow night is "national night out against crime" we're having a cookout in front of the center and then sitting in the grass until midnight. a bunch of the organizations here are planning events to show drug dealers and crime committers (ha, what is the name for that?) that this is our neighborhood and we won't be run out!

and last but not least listen to the Steve Harvey morning show this week!! the 5th annual Hoodie Awards are being nominated and voted on this week- "the Hoodie Awards recognize our everyday figures and buisness owners for their beliefs, courage and commitment." i'm nominating "Dirty Darin- mechanic and handyman" Darin McKinney is a long time resident of the Lower Ninth Ward and has been doing work on homes since before Katrina. Once the center opened up here Darin has been our righthand man- taking crews out to houses all over town, fixing things around site, grilling burgers for the barbque etc. so listen to the show or check back here so you know when to vote for Darin!! http://steveharvey.com/hoodie_awards/

the weekend!

this weekend was great. friday i hung out with some friends at tulane university which was nice. i didn't have breakfast duty so i got to sleep in which was WONDERFUL!! I got ready for lunch prep at 10 but there wasn't anyone for the front desk so i sat up there, caught up on some emails, did some research and then took a bike ride to the french quarter. the ride was awesome. about 4 miles up st. claude i reach the outskirts of the quarter. i explored a bit and found a coffee house that i'll definitely be heading back to when i get time off. the part i was riding through was the predominantly gay area so that was pretty cool. i passed one of the offices of the NO/AIDS taskforce and got more familiar with that area since my route will be somewhere close.

i headed back for dinner prep but we had had such a slow day that we were just serving leftovers. a few of played euchre and drank some cokes. after a shower i joined the crew in eating some crawfish...chris from buras is the fish guy around here and hooked us up with several pounds of crawfish and corn:






right are kate and garret- garret did NCCC (AmeriCorps) last year and he's our site director. kate did EarthCorps a while ago and she's the on site volunteer coordinator


a few of us headed out last night to lehrmans- a bar in st. bernard parish (next to new orleans parish where we stay) this place is a serious dive but they love the volunteers in the lower ninth. they actually save our karaoke requests and give them out whenever the gang comes in. kate and kate are pretty great singers, i mostly played pool and then ate some peel shrimp towards the end of the night.

sunday the schedule is a bit different. we have a brunch at 11 and then a barbque at 4. the rest of the pictures below are from the day. i've also added some pictures of my new home- i moved from the house to the doublewide- much nicer and cooler!

NO/AIDS Taskforce

So before I head to the PeaceCorps I need a few months of volutneer service in an HIV/AIDS organization. I've connected with the NO/AIDS Taskforce here in nola and will be delivering food every Tuesday and Thursday morning to persons with AIDS who are homebound and cannot prepare their own meals. check the link below for more info:

http://www.noaidstaskforce.org/article.php?story=vol.fff



I'm really looking forward to this because I haven't had much experience with this area of work. I'll be able to assist in some testing and possibly help out on some of their fundraising events.

I'm also excited about getting to know the city better. I'll have the same route both days (wish me luck I'm terrible with directions:) hehe, didn't tell them that when they were screening me!) so hopefully I'll get familiar with the east side of new orleans.



The only drawback to this volunteer position is I have to use my own car and pay for gas $$. With no income this is going to be a little taxing but with some support from my family I'm sure I'll be ok. If you've been reading and are wondering about a way to help out with things down here feel free to donate to the Food for Friends sarah buffie driving fund! holler at me.

i'll put on some more pics soon.

a few pics

here are a few photos from the past week. (top) that's the dining area and the serving line. the door right next to the aligator on the wall leads outside to the kitchen. during the day the kids summer camp goes on in there. today the kids made dresses and suits out of cardboard and had a prom on the stage :) the one on the bottom is of us hangin after dinner...i was writin' a letter...

then jeremy and i decided to do some gymnastics:)

this is the wish fish. if you click on the picture and zoom in you can see the wishes of some of the children down here:

"i wish for life improvement"

"i wish for a bike"

"life before katrina"

"that everyone's house can be fixed up by now!"

"a better and prayful louisana"

"a bag of money"

"for everybody to be happy"

"i wish for inner peace"

"i need some reliable transportation"