Yesterday I wrote a book review on "28 Stories of AIDS in Africa".

I love to read. I am always in the middle of a book, with several more piled up ready to go. Lately I have been reading many books about Africa. I have been reading biographies, history books, travel journals and plenty of others.

I think that when adoptive parents choose to adopt a child internationally, that they owe it to themselves, their children, their children's birth family, their children's birth country and the people left behind, to care. They have... more

The US State Department recently issued a report on the Lubuto libraries in Lusaka, Zambia.

The Lubuto Library Project was started by an American woman - Jane Kinney Meyers - who believes that, in addition to food and shelter, every child deserves a chance to learn and to hope for a better future. Lubuto is a word in the Bemba language of Central Africa that means "enlightenment, knowledge and light.

The project has taken shape as a Washington nonprofit organization that is... more

While you are waiting to travel to Africa to complete your adoption, you've decided you want to have a "kit" party - birthing kit, hygeine kit or school kit. Great! You send out invitations inviting all your friends and family to get involved, but you're not quite sure what is needed in the kits. Worry no more - here's a suggested list for all three kits:

Birthing kit * shower curtain from the Dollar Store - goes under birthing mother; shower curtains are not as slippery as "regular" plastic * 6 medium gloves... more

Continuing our discussion on collecting donations while you wait, from here, there are many, many ways to help with in-kind donations.

In addition to, or instead of gathering donations for orphanages (your child's or others), you may end up choosing one (or more) NGO's (Non Governmental Organizations) to work with. Mary, on the Ethiopia Adopt blog, has some good... more

Continuing on in my series of posts on different things you can do while waiting, I'd like to talk about collecting donations. The previous posts have covered such things as how to choose health care providers for your new child, planning spiritual ceremonies after they arrive home, thinking... more

This quick, easy to use book was written to help those who want to help, but don't know where to start. It is as applicable for families with young children, as it is to young adults as to seniors.

It's “How to Make a Difference: Over 1,000 Ways to Serve at Home, in Your Community and in the World” by Catherine Poelman.

In his second State of the Union address, just four short months after the September 11 attacks, President George W Bush issued a bold invitation to the American people.

“My call tonight”, he said,... more

We went to UTH today (that's University Teaching Hospital) – a huge, sprawling complex that also encompasses a medical school, a midwifery school and a nursing school. I met with Charity, the head nurse of the NICU. I met her in September – not only is she a nurse (like me), but she is a midwife (like me) as well and even goes to the same church I do. We have lots in common. :)

I brought her supplies – Vitamin K, ambu bags for resuscitation, cotton balls, latex gloves, a stethoscope, oxygen tubing – that kind of stuff. She was delighted. In... more

The Amazing Change Campaign

William Wilberforce's work is far from finished. There are still an estimated 27 million slaves in the world today. Modern day slavery can come in many different forms. Entire families may work long days in rice-mills, brick kilns or on plantations. Children may be abducted and forced to fight in a rebel's army. We have all heard of the "sex slave" trade. I met a man in Ethiopia who had been kidnapped, maimed and forced to beg. All of the people in these examples are slaves—they cannot come... more

One of Rosamond Carr’s “kids” was Frederic Ndabaramiye, whose hands had been chopped off by Hutu insurgents.

In 1998, Frederic was 15 and had gone to Gisenyi for the day when the Interahamwe, or Hutu militias, attacked his bus. They separated the Hutus -- among them, Frederic -- from the Tutsis with the aim of forcing the Hutus to kill the Tutsis.

All the Hutus knew that they were going to be asked perhaps to kill the Tutsis, and they all started running. And Frederic was a kid, and he was caught. He refused to kill other passengers, so his... more

As we start to discuss how to “give back”, I’d like to point you to a great little book I just ran across. It is “Raising Charitable Children” by Carol Weisman. It was just published last year and is a quick, easy read, with lots of valuable ideas on how to get your kids “into” being charitable. Ms. Weisman is an entertaining reader who knows whereof she speaks. As you start to think about what your family can do in reaching out, she has the following advice:... more