Above: Kim Davis with Nelson Jongopie (son of Sierra Leone Director of RHCI Manley Jongopie)
Excerpts from RHCI volunteer Kim Davis’ speech at Taste of Africa on March 24th, about her trip to Sierra Leone in early January 2019
My personal goals for this trip were to learn more about the people and culture of Sierra Leone, and specifically find out more about how RHCI was impacting the mortality rates of mothers and babies in Tikonko. I also always wanted to be on the Amazing Race and travel the world, and this was probably the closest I would ever get!
Have you ever seen a single seagull at the beach and thrown a piece of popcorn up to feed it? What happens? All of sudden you’re surrounded by 50 seagulls right?! Picture this same thing happening except with crayons and kids in Tikonko! It was so amazing! After applying some crowd control techniques, we passed out 2 coloring book pages and 1 single crayon to each kid, and then we would head out for the day.
At the end of the day, most of the colored pages had many different colors used on them, not just one. In a place where kids have to make their own toys, where there are no color books and crayons, these kids organically shared their singular crayon with each other and then proudly brought their pages back for our review.
We completed a comprehensive inventory of the birth home and all of its furnishings, unloaded and sorted the contents of a huge shipping container that was on site. Most of the contents in the container were donated medical supplies from Minnesota.
I was able to go out to a couple of the other villages and interview new mothers who had previously stayed at Mbao-mi since it opened in January 2018. Overwhelmingly all the reviews were extremely positive. They loved the food and the education they received. They felt respected and cared for, they learned a lot about caring for babies, and their husbands and families supported them staying there. One of the best comments I heard from a new mother was “I learned how to take better care of my son so he can become a future leader”.
An example of the SYSTEM OF CARE that RHCI has built in Tikonko, is how our drivers are utilized. Our RHCI drivers are available 24/7. They transport mothers from near and far to the local clinic, or to the hospital in Bo when necessary. These women might be experiencing difficult labors, may need C-sections, or have other complications that otherwise would have poor outcomes for mom and baby. They also arrange transportation for the women that live too far away to walk to Mbao-mi, and they help get them back home after delivery. They often transport sick babies and children to the hospitals in Bo as well; these are children who would have NEVER survived without medical intervention.
We joined the outreach motorbike team, who routinely go out to the very most remote villages of the chiefdom, delivering malaria meds, antibiotics, and other medical supplies. This motorbike team works in conjunction with the Tikonko Community Health Clinic. Not only do they bring medical supplies, they bring the clinic nurses who do the immunizations and education in these villages.
On this trip I made lifelong friends, I met personal challenges head on, climbed a little higher on Maslow’s hierarchy, and truly saw your charity and love in action every day. I very much look forward to going back.
I’ll leave you with this…
Help IF you can, Give WHEN you can, And always, always SHARE YOUR CRAYONS.