As many of you know, and if you didn't, you do now: I'll be leaving to go to Zambia a week from today. I'll be there for three weeks with a group of 5 other people, 4 current Messiah college students and one alum who is our adviser. We will be working in a rural village in the Southern part of the country to start 2 or 3 savings and credit associations (SCA's). I'm really excited for this trip and what it will hold. Micro-financing as well as SCA's are something that I have really developed a passion for. It is an outlet for me to use my business skills in a way which truly helps the poor. I have come to a disdain with the traditional forms of aid. Way too often traditional aid hurts those which it is trying to help. (To learn more about this read When Helping Hurts) Our SCA's will utilize the capital and resources that the Zambians already have, to truly empower them, rather than giving them the often demoralizing handout, that has become the common place, sadly. In addition to starting the SCA's well be visiting some established Micro-Financing Institution's (MFI's) as well as the SCA's started last year. We have also cleared an afternoon to visit Victoria Falls (it would be almost wrong to go there and not visit it).
Part of the trip that I'm looking the most forward to, but am also the most nervous for is the home stay. For 10 days of the trip I'll be living with a host family when we are not training or making site visits. It's going to be a definite stretch for me, but something needed. I've also heard from numerous people that the Zambians love to barter at the markets, so I look forward to that, and I'm sure I'll have a good story from that..
Our team has prepared well for this trip, learning both our teaching material as well as some basic culture. Prayer is always appreciated, though. I'll make a short list here to make it easier
-That people would come to the training
-That we would be effective teachers
-That we would put aside our western values, and truly learn from the Zambians
-That we would put aside our expectations for this trip, and just be the hands and feet, and do what we felt led to do
While there, I'll probably only update this once or twice, if that. We won't exactly have readily accessible internet while we're there... Although we will be staying in some missionary guest houses for part of our trip which I believe do, so I will try to update briefly from there. One of the other people on our trip will be keeping a more regular blog, which I will find the link to and and post here so you can keep updated through that.
If you have any questions about my trip, micro-financing, or anything really shoot me an email at nickmartinophotography@gmail.com
In love,
Nick
Of course I will follow you! Your disdain for traditional aid venues makes you one of my heroes! You need to check out jeff goins' blog at Adventures in Missions. Really mind stretching stuff there.
ReplyDeleteCan't wait to read, hear and see what God is up to through you. You will have some great barter goods in your photos, if you can find a way to print them while you are there. A polaroid camera, perhaps? I know when we went with MAMA, I think it was Jane Wirt that took one and gave photos to people. For many it was the only family portrait they had. Imagine...
So you go! Keep being a (humble) heor!