Ethiopia

Austin and I flew to Ethiopia after Uganda and spent a few days in Lalibela, a holy city with 13 ancient churches - some carved into the ground.  They were a magnificent sight.  We took mules to the top of a mountain to see the final church.  Some day I hope to return and visit Ethiopia again - there is still so much exploring to be done.

Uganda

A few years ago I traveled to Uganda and Ethiopia with my good friend, Austin.  We first flew into Kampala and took a 10 hour car trip over poorly paved roads to Lake Bunyonyi where we met our guides for the next few days - the head doctor and nurse of Bwindi Community Hospital.  We swam and hiked around the lake for two days, then traveled to the hospital which was on the border of the Impenetrable Forest.

There we were put to work: taking testimonies and photographs of mothers and their children on the children's ward for the fundraising newsletter.  For the first time in my life I witnessed great poverty.  I saw how a child's life could balance so precariously on proper nutrition, or access to clean water or medication common in the United States - but scarce in Uganda.  The experience left a lasting affect on me.  I have published some of the images on the US Fund for UNICEF's website and am revisiting the photographs again.  Because I can never forget.  And ultimately I hope to continue to expose how many live - or rather, struggle to live in this world.

Batwa pygmies have lived in the Impenetrable Forest for thousands of years.  Above is a photograph of a young Batwa boy.

Some children play with a tiny fruit they toss in the air and catch repeatedly.

A healthworker facilitates a nutrition class for the parents of children on the ward. 

3-year-old Moses and his mother, Turinawe came to the hospital three weeks before to receive treatment for Moses' malnutrition.  Turinawe walks four miles to collect drinking water for her family everyday, and she walked for four hours from her home sub-county of Mpungu to the hospital so that Moses could get medical assistance. 

The young girl was admitted to the hospital that day with what appeared to be an unhealthy liver.

Anna and her 11-month-old daughter, Rachel arrived at Bwindi Community Hospital after a 5 hour walk from their village of Kyishegeri.  Anna sought medical treatment at the hospital for Rachel's severe bouts of vomiting and diarrhea.