RUDEC Volunteer Testimony- Andrea

Andrea

During my three months with RUDEC, Joshua and I worked on a micro-loan project for women who were members of a local community group in Belo. Joshua, the women of the group and I sat together in meetings to discuss loan ideas in order to decide on the best terms for all parties involved. The outcome of these discussions was a loan project that has proved to be quite successful. To date, 12 women have received a loan and none of them have defaulted on their repayments. Joshua and I hope that we could expand this program to other women's groups in the area because of how successful it has been. The other volunteers and I also worked Monday through Friday at the after school program during the school year and the summer school program when school was not in session. These programs that RUDEC offers are so essential to the school children's education because it is the only time students will get individualized attention in a small classroom setting. Children attend schools that often have more than 100 students per classroom so it is very easy for them to fall behind.
I noticed that these students are eager to learn and are happy to attend the program. It is essential that we have more volunteers coming to RUDEC so that it can continue to provide these children with this educational service. What is great about this program is that almost anyone can be a tutor. We taught them all of the same things we learned when we were their age in school - addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, English. You do not have to be a teacher to help students with their lessons. It was also fun to watch them learn about acting in the drama class - that was something totally new to them and they enjoyed it! The weekends always brought a new adventure for the volunteers as there are many things to see and do in and around Belo. Belo is a beautiful, picturesque village situated amongst mountains.

Woman gets a loan

Looking outside was an experience in and of itself. In town there is also a waterfall that one could walk to on the way to Joshua's house that was also a beautiful and fun excursion. My favorite experience was the Mbingo Cliff walk, which Joshua accompanied us for. We walked along the mountains and eventually came to a breathtaking waterfall, which we were able to get very close to. Lake Oku was also a magnificent experience and I happened to spend my 21st birthday there with my fellow volunteers atop the second highest mountain in Africa overlooking a sacred mountain lake surrounded by forest. The Northern Highland Tea Estate was also a cool experience. We toured the tea factory with a guide who walked us through the process of how the tea is made on this estate, which is the largest tea estate in the world owned by one person. We toured the tea fields and saw tea at every stage in the growing process. Then we saw the horses and ostriches that live on the estate and played with the monkeys who were quite friendly. They also gave us a bunch of tea to take home, which I still drink with the white honey I brought back! It is also very likely that one will experience cultural activities and celebrations. I recommend to everyone who travels to Belo to do their best to see the JuJus, who are masked tribal dancers who perform at death celebrations.

The people who live in Belo are very welcoming and understanding. They know the volunteers come from cultures very different from their own and are more than ccommodating of the foreign volunteers. I do recommend to take every opportunity to learn about what life is like in Belo and cherish your time there. You will develop friendships in the community, and this is perhaps the best part of living there. Joshua is a great person to work with because he so passionate about helping his community and is truly invested in his work. His enthusiasm for what he does is evident and inspiring and it passes from him to the volunteers he works with. He also maintains a connection with his volunteers throughout their stay, ensuring that they are feeling welcome in the community. One of the best things that Joshua does is that he listens to the ideas of the volunteers and works with them to develop their ideas into actions. Working with RUDEC was the best experience I have had, and I wholeheartedly recommend others to volunteer with RUDEC in Belo. Volunteers who can take initiative and can maintain an open mind will succeed in making a lasting contribution to the community and

Footsteps Tourism in Cameroon at CAMAST

Cameroon is a destination that is not yet exploited , so visiting Cameroon is like entering a virgin land. Cameroon Association for Sustainable Tourism which is a project within RUDEC is please to inform readers of this blog that we at CAMAST got two partners this first part of the year.
                                   

Lion Tourism is a partner with CAMAST this year. We had a group of Tourist from Austria under the leadership of a Professional Guide/ Tour operator and powerful woman call Agnes. We did had a nice colourful cultural day.

The Principal of GTHS Njinikejem also spice the day with carrot juice and showed us around her school. It was painful to see also that children learn in this part of the with very little resources as we saw very few

computers for many students, saw few sewing machines for many students in that department.

Many of the departments were empty if compared to students and their learning tools.
                                       

Crooked Trails led by a powerful co-founder Tammy has also join hands with RUDEC and CAMAST to bring tourist to Belo. It was a great day as we move just as the name implies. We visited coffee farms, saw how crops are planted, touch some and saw organic farming in practice.
                                             

Coffee selection cooperative Belo

                                                               
We did also ate foufou corn and Kati-Kati. We were all immense in to the culture and all our client ate with ease and appreciated the meal.
                                                     

Crooked Trail and Little Aston

The day ended with a donation of  materials by the tourist friends to children at RUDEC for us to share with the children. They also gave a donation T-shirts to support the activities of RUDEC projects and promise a come back-Tammy said. Do you want to see what RUDEC does?

Lawrence  is learning a trade and needs a sponsor dress on the donated T-Shirts

Partner visits Cameroon

RUDEC Cameroon is happy to inform our readers that we have come face to face a friend who became a donor to RUDEC for the past 5 year. Joe meet us first on idealist when we post an online volunteering project " looking for a person who would update our brochure, print it and send it to us.

Joe did the worked well and we started discussing who we could do again together... He told me he had been talking with friends on starting an organisation., so with our brochure, it has spur him to start thinking about registering this organisation which he called The project solution(TPS).


We are working with TPS on school development projects and community development. So far we have had 5 projects completed within this time.

Joe as co-founder visit all countries with a photographing project to encourage students to start looking at cameras as a way to make a business. He teaches how to take pictures and why people need to take picture. We hope that these children could one day be able to take good photos and make a living from it too. TPS would present the pictures in a gallery that would fetch some money to support the projects and the children.



We have visited the first school that TPS funded in Cameroon with a total of 21 benches, chalkboard and zine for a classroom and Joe-Cofounder is very happy and as days pass, he would be visiting another school that we supervised 58 benches  and also the community that got their water extended to a community that had no clean water to drink.

We also did visit some children that RUDEC support in the community. We visited Anabel of Bolem after Fundong who collapses at school when she had sport. We rushed there and paid the first deposit. Today Anabel is discharged from hospital and thanks to those who donated to make life better for all the children.
                                   

                                                  "You can be part of the solution"

RUDEC Christmas Party 2013

 RUDEC supporters and their friends joined resources to give a smile on the faces of children we cared for. RUDEC always looks at a party like this every year to help the children support other children that they stay with in their homes because they stay with their family members and not in an orphanage as most people see us.
                                           

The orphan project was set to establish a bond with family members, RUDEC and the children. So RUDEC does not provide all needs of the children because we want their family bonds to stay with them and not completely depend on us.

On the 22nd December, the children attended a party that we had rice, fresh fish, soap, candies, balloons and some old dresses and shoes left by volunteers and some donated by our partners.

The children started coming to this party as early as 7am although they were told to come at 8 am. This to me signaled the importance of the party to them all as by 8am, the office was full.
    
Joshua, gave a talk on importance of school and encourage the children all to past exams and not to fail because they does not encourage people who give donations for their education. He also advised the children to always respect their family members as it was noticed that some do not respect their guardians... He look at the girls who are mature already to because careful at this festive period and not be fool by "coastal guys or cocoa boys"(cocoa farmers or people out of the area  who come only at this busy period with money to deceive them )because they may pregnant you and leave without you knowing. The girls were called up to preserve their virginity because God has a plan for them . The children were also told about the diseases that are found when you have sex without a  condom. The grown up boys were also won not to pregnant a girl as they could have the diseases that girls could have without sign.

At the end of the day the children took home some food to share with others who are not in their own shoes(orphans).Each child took home 2.5
litre of rice, 2kg of fish, 2 soap for washing, candies, balloons and some clothes and shoes donated by some volunteer and partners.

We at RUDEC wish to thanks all do donated to made it a success. One dollar was as important as $100... so all who donated were all equal.

Eco-tourism supporting local community and environment

RUDEC supports many children and families in Belo, Cameroon and has had such a great impact on lives since its inception. To be able to do such critical work, RUDEC is supported through a range of income sources, one of them being from eco-tourism. Eco-tourism is a more sustainable way to visit a country; it’s about respecting, preserving and supporting local communities, environments, customs and cultures.

RUDEC partners with the Cameroon Association of Sustainable Tourism (CAMAST) who takes visitors on tours and trips around North West Cameroon. The profits from these tours and trips are put back into RUDEC for program implementation, including education costs for the children RUDEC supports and providing a wage for local tour guides.

North West Cameroon is a beautiful place,with rich cultural traditions and dances, sweeping 

landscapes and natural falls. Attractions include the Bamenda Highlands, one of the most beautiful regions in Cameroon. Visitors can go on tours for one, two or 10 days depending on time and interests. RUDEC and CAMAST offer accommodation and a range of activities for visitors including hikes of all ability levels, visiting waterfalls, seeing traditional dances and song performances, home stays, local site visits and tours of current community projects.

For RUDEC and CAMAST, eco-tourism is an effective and sustainable way to bring visitors to Cameroon, and importantly, support the local community.

Recently, Joshua (RUDEC Founder and tour guide with CAMAST) took visitors on a three-day tour around the region, visiting a tea factory and the lakes and mountains of the North West. This partnership between RUDEC and CAMAST gives visitors the opportunity to really see the Cameroon while being lead by an experienced local tour guide. It also helps draw important links and build relationships between visitors and the local community in a way that is positive and sustainable.

If you’ve always wanted to go on a unique adventure, consider going with RUDEC and CAMAST. It might just be the life-changing experience you’ve been looking for.

To find out more about CAMAST and tours, visit: http://www.camast.com/  

To learn more about RUDEC’s work, visit: http://www.rudec.org/de/orphans/ 

RUDEC is in need of a volunteer house, we have got land and are looking for philanthropies that could support them in their vision. See our page on fundraising at www.betterplace.org/p14642

benches delivered to secondary school

Good news again: 58 benches were delivered to GSS Ibal-Asha, sponsered by RUDEC via „Project Solution“ which is based in the U.S. Once more, we are very grateful to cooperate with such great people and initiatives, and it is especially remarkable that they decided to finance this project just through finding RUDEC and it’s work on the Internet. We had done othe projects with them like the water extension project, benches for students in school, and roofing of a classroom at Njinikejem village school. Thanks to Project Solution in the U.S. and our great sponsors!

photos by Ida Mederos

School is starting!

Education in Cameroon is not for everyone... it is expensive to send a child to school. People have to pay school fees, buy uniforms, books, school shoes, badges, school bags, exams fees... and not to talk about taking care of the health of children. RUDEC came up to seek ways to support these children. 

photo by Yuri Wahl Valle

This Monday, School has started and therefore bags and textbooks have been delivered to our orphans on Friday. In these days we were busy paying their school fees, packing the bags, and accompanying children to school.

 

Meanwhile the school preparations were running we had visitors from the U.S. They have continously sponsored 10 children at RUDEC. 

Todd and Shaun from „Cameroon One“ have been visiting Bamenda and Belo to see how everything is going and get to know better RUDEC and it’s work. Their plans in Cameroon were to create a network with another project in Bamenda that is called "Mankon children’s home". 

They have furthermore promised to see what they could do to sponsor more children at RUDEC. We are very happy about this news as we are always looking for new sponsors! Thank you!

 

 

 

RUDEC has not relent its efforts to reach out to children that they sponsored in the remote villages around Boyo division. Joshua visited Makwa Anabel who was discovered by a pastor about her drop from school because she got no person to pay her fees because the mother is widow twice,being a small farmer in a remote village of Bolem, filled with frustration, she was looking at where to have support to give hope to Anabel. RUDEC's focus on educating a child caught up with her and visited them with one of its volunteer Kelly, she decided to sponsor Anabel. Our visit this time was to see how she is doing and progress in school. She came 2nd position in a class of 56. We gave her school bag, books, paid her fees and a toothbrush