VP3: Majengo

Time really flies here. The seemingly distant testing day that we were constantly reminding of came and went without any pause. In Majengo, we spent the days preceding it putting up flyers on trees and buildings with tape and a homemade paste (made of flour and water), and going from house to house, answering questions and advertising the testing. “Bure, Siri, Haraka, na Salama” (Free, Confidential, Fast, and Safe) was our go-to phrase. Most everyone we talked to seemed ready, responsive, and even excited. This was probably due more to the soccer game, between Majengo and the neighboring Tsamasi, than testing itself. But still, the majority said they would come and get tested. On the night before testing day, after a long day of spreading the word, I remember thinking that most of the work was done. The ground work had been laid, people knew about the testing, they wanted to get tested, and would come on their own accord. I believed that with little or not effort on out part, we could test upwards of 200 people. If nothing else, my naïve optimism allowed me to sleep peacefully that night. We arose early on testing day, ate and early breakfast, and took early showers. A sense of excitement hung in the air as we walked to meet our other group members: from there we made the final preparations: more posters, more conversations, and the finishing touches to our game plan. The stage had been set, and now the players began to arrive. Volunteers and Teaching Partners from 3 nei...
Source: Support for International Change : HIV AIDS - Category: Global & Universal Authors: Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: news