News – Page 7 – Notes from Bob and Ellen

2012

Where did December go? What with the ECHO conference, follow-up from the Nov. Africa travels and going to Cincinnati it just seemed to disappear.

Our family enjoyed a great time together with the Wheeler clan in Cincinnati and Columbus.New Year’s Eve found me southbound on I-75.Ellen stayed behind to help her parents with a few moving details.

Back at ECHO we have hit the ground running. A light freeze hit us last night and a full class of students will be here next week for the Introduction to Tropical Agricultural Development class.
There is not much else to add except that it seems 2012 is off to a good start.

Photos from East Africa trip

Here are links to albums from my recent trip to Tanzania, Rwanda and Kenya. I haven’t added much in the way of captions and descriptions but hey, a picture is worth…
Tanzania Album
Rwanda Album
Kenya Album

Tuesday in Arusha

Our trip from the USA to Tanzania went very well and we arrived in Arusha Saturday night.

Yesterday (Monday) we went with two of our contacts and their staff on a visit to two sand dam projects up near the Kenya border. For more on sand dams see this link for the ECHO technical note on Sand Dams.

Kimokowa Terrace — Terraces are dug by hand

It was encouraging to witness the cooperative effort between the communities and the assisting NGOs (Non-governmental Organizations).

Since we were in Tanzania we decided we should see some of the countryside so on Sunday we went on a day trip to Tarangire National Park. Photos from that safari are online in this web album.

Preparing to travel to East Africa

Three of us from ECHO will be leaving next Friday, Nov. 4th for East Africa.
The first stop will be Arusha, Tanzania where we will meet with key people and discuss plans for opening an ECHO East Africa Impact Center.
Two of us will proceed to Kigali, Rwanda to consult with Akilah Institute for Women on plans for an agricultural component on their new campus.
From there I will continue on to Kenya and join our son James in a visit to Turkana. James and I will then attend the 25th anniversary celebration of the Africa Inland Church Cheptebo Rural Development Project on Sunday, November 20th.
And of course I will squeeze in some birding along the way!
My intentions are to send a report from each of these countries — you can check up on me 🙂