In less than three weeks I am leaving to spend a month volunteering in the small city of Arusha in Tanzania. I will be working with an international volunteer organization coordinating with local NGOs (non-governmental organizations/non-profits). Tanzania and much of sub-Saharan Africa are rife with poverty and societal issues that disproportionately affect women. Did you know that the international poverty level is defined as having less than $2.15 per day on which to live? Roughly half of all Tanzanians fall below that level. However, that's only a part of the picture. It does not reflect access to clean water, education, medical care, dental care and many other things that we are fortunate enough to be able to take for granted in our daily lives. Women in Tanzania are further disadvantaged in so many ways. They are much less likely to get an education due to forced child marriages, pregnancy and local gender norms. Girls and young women can be subjected to genital mutilation, other violence and banishment from their villages for any of a number of reasons. HIV and AIDS is a massive problem in Tanzania and elsewhere in Africa. A significant percentage acquire the disease at birth, yet they are often ostracized. Again, women are disproportionately affected, with an infection rate of 6.2% vs 3.7% for men. I could go on and on, but you get the idea. The program I will be volunteering with works toward empowering these marginalized women through education. I will assist in whatever way I can to help these women gain skills leading to the ability to effectively support themselves. This will include helping them to develop small businesses. So, I have undertaken this out of a desire to help to make a few women's lives a little better in whatever way that I can. I live a blessed existence and want to pay that forward. In addition to the work that I will do while in Arusha, I am purchasing items to bring with me. Up until now, they have been small items that I will be able to transport on my back in my backpack. They include items like numerous solar calculators, reading glasses, and menstrual cups (a long-lasting solution for women without access to menstrual supplies). I would like to do this in a bigger way. I'd like to purchase more and ship the items to Arusha in advance of my arrival. I'd also like to have a fund to help with needs that I will see once I am actually on the ground there. Recently I had this seemingly obvious realization that alone I can only help so much, but that together we can help more. You can join me in providing small, potentially life-changing items through a small donation. I hope you will consider it, and thank you so very much for reading this far. I will be sharing photos and videos of my experience here on Facebook. You will be able to see the faces of some of the people that your donation will help in a very direct way.
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