Springing into Summer

"RUBBISH HERE"
Just my favorite garbage can in Kimberley

 As winter quickly passes through spring into summer here in Kimberley, I continue to be seasonally challenged. Technically it’s spring here but there has been no rain and the sun has no intent to be mildly warm; just intensely hot. Sunscreen is generally a must if I plan to spend more than 20 minutes outside. And my seasonal clock is confused because it’s supposed to be spring here and it’s fall in the states but it’s really neither. I’m following the college soccer season and playoff baseball, seeing pictures of apple picking on facebook, preparing my Halloween costume, and making thanksgiving plans, all while it continues to get hotter and hotter. And then I’m reconciling with the fact that September and October is spring. My internal Doppler radar is going haywire. 

            The dry heat isn’t too bad though and I’m getting more used to it. I’ve been able to lay out in the yard in our compound on the weekends and bask in the hot sun. Great nap weather. September hasn’t been entirely a spring fling, though. Work has been busy and demanding, but rewarding. And in our time off we’ve had some time to do a little traveling the country.

It’s been two months now. I’ve been exposed to so many new things already and I’ve settled into my life here, but there is still so much that I am learning every day. I spent 20 years of my life pursuing education but there are so many things that I learn from the people that I work with, people that I meet in passing, and even people that I’ve known for years. When I talk to different people, perspective is constantly variable. Even my own perspective changes almost on a day-to-day basis.

A couple of weeks ago, a Grassroot Soccer coach told me about the term “Ubuntu.” It literally translates to something like “humanity” or “human kindness” which this coach explained as, “I can’t be me, without you.” It’s a simple idea that relates to every aspect of our lives. The more we think about how we relate to the world and other people, the more we are truly being ourselves. This is a perspective, or a way of life, that I am trying to incorporate more and more on a daily basis.

But that’s enough philosophical musing for one blog post. We’ve been doing too much stuff for me to fill this blog with just my thoughts. I need to include more ACTIVITY and stuff to keep you engaged.

September was especially eventful because we were finally able to successfully plan an HCT (HIV Counseling and Testing soccer tournament). We had been trying, to no avail, to plan several HCT’s at schools on the outskirts of Kimberley at the end of August. The Department of Education was helping us work with these schools but then pulled the plug on the HCT’s last minute. (We’re now running Grassroot Soccer programs at these schools instead). This was an unfortunate setback but we continued to push for an HCT in September. I was delegated to take the lead on the HCT planning along with our Community Programs Coordinator, Coach K. We decided on a location in the Kimberley Township that had two full-size soccer pitches. The surface of the pitches was hard red dirt. The goals were just goalposts, no nets. There were no distinct lines on the fields. Some played in cleats, some in old flats. When Coach K first showed me the site of the pitches, it looked pretty bleak. There was broken glass in some of the surrounding areas and piles of fresh and burned trash. The bleak image I had of the pitches was completely changed on the day of the tournament.

The tournament was on Saturday after a week of long days planning for the tournament. On Friday we had walked through the town surrounding the site of the tournament and hung up posters, handed out fliers and invited people to come to the tournament and get tested. A process we call “mobilization.” It was a humbling experience walking through the town talking to different families and groups of friends. Most of the houses were shacks with tin walls and roofs, and dirt floors. I was certainly outside of my usual comfort zone but the GRS coaches were constantly yelling, talking and laughing. Even though they were speaking in other languages for much of the time, they brought a light-hearted energy that made it all a great experience.

The day of the tournament started early and after picking up other staff members and gathering up the equipment for the tournament, we arrived at the site at around 8AM. The first match was to be held at 9 but teams arrived late (expected delays). The first game started at 9:30 and the second around 10:30 when the other team finally showed up. It was a frenzied atmosphere trying to get games started as quick as possible, monitor the ongoing games and keep the tournament running smoothly. Thanks to a long lunch break, we were able to catch up with our schedule and ACTUALLY finish the tournament on time. Apparently this is a feat that is not often achieved at GRS HCT’s. There were 8 boys’ teams and 4 girls’. (Women’s soccer in Kimberley is still lacking much of the support it needs, but we were happy to at least have a girls bracket in our tournament). Time only allowed for a single-elimination bracket-style tournament. Unfortunate but necessary. Throughout the course of the day, I ran back and forth between the two pitches – about fifty yards apart – dozens of times to make sure we had referees, balls, the right teams and GRS coaches with each team.

One important aspect of our tournaments is the life skills coaching that our GRS coaches provide for each team. Our coaches are paired with teams and they discuss the importance of “knowing your status” in order to live healthy lives. “Knowing your status” means getting tested for HIV. Our coaches engage with participants in discussions about healthy living. The coaches encourage participants to get tested so that they can go on living healthy lives and encourage others to do the same. The importance of being tested for HIV in South Africa relates to the tightknit communities. Community is built on trust and the “Ubuntu” idea that I talked about. To “Know your status” means to care about your community. HIV is not always a sexually transmitted disease.  Overcoming the stigma of the epidemic is a major part of the battle. “Knowing your status” means challenging the stigma by educating one’s self and the community about the importance of healthy living. This isn’t just about being sexually responsible, it is about resisting alcohol and drug abuse, resisting gender norms and their resulting violence, and being an overall positive influence on one’s community. This is what our coaches discuss with participants.

            This is also the focus of the HCT. The HCT targets the GRS slogan, “Educate. Inspire. Mobilize. Stop the spread of HIV.” HCT’s foster a great community environment that brings people together around soccer, but focuses on larger community issues and life skills. While the coaches are with the teams, I’m making sure that everything runs smoothly and that the community is getting the most from the tournament. I was busy running around for most of the day (ref’d one game) but by the time the finals rolled around I was able to sit and enjoy the games. There were several very talented players, in both the boys and girls divisions.

            I’ve witnessed different styles of the game in Brazil, Bolivia, Belize even Kazakhstan (although it’s tough to remember) and of course America. South Africa has its own style and I’ve seen it in the professional games I’ve been able to watch. It’s quick, aggressive, and very technical. It can be pretty hectic tactically. The good players have a sense for the ball that is tough to find in America. It reminds me of Brazil in the way that the ball just seems to move fluidly with the feet. The best players seem to move more naturally with the ball at their feet than without. It’s fun to watch.

            At the end of it all, we tested over 200 individuals, a good number for a small town in Kimberley. Just last night we had a focus group with participants and coaches from the tournament to evaluate what went will and what we need to improve moving forward. This is the first time GRS has done an HCT focus group with participants and coaches (I’ve been told) and I think it is a great reflective process for us to make sure that our programs are as effective as possible. We are hoping that the next HCT will be even bigger and more successful. I’ve included a video slideshow recap of the HCT at the top, enjoy.

            There’s really just way too much to share in one blog post. I need to increase my turnover on blog posts if I actually want to keep up. So here is a quick picture synopsis of the last month or so:

HCT and Focus Groups

Awards ceremony


Focus Group with local team coaches


Focus group with participants from the teams


Soweto Derby in Johannesburg

Soweto Derby: Pirates v Chiefs at Soccer City in Johannesburg with the Joburg interns. 

Celebrating the Pirates victory

Griquas!!

Griquas Rugby Game. The Griquas are the professional rugby team from Kimberley. They're not very good (worst in the league currently) but we still had a great time at the game. 

 

Diamond Cup and Big Hole

Kimberley Diamond Cup and Big Hole weekend with Joburg interns. International skateboarding event that brings together the best skateboarders from all over the world. Why is it in Kimberley? Who knows, but I’m happy about it. Joburg came from the weekend and enjoyed the festivities with us.

At the diamond cup supporting the American Skaters 

The Big Hole. And the not so big Kimberley skyline.

One day, this will all be yours Simba.

Rockin' the Daisies

Cape Town trip/Rocking the Daisies. This past weekend we went to an amazing music festival in Darling, Western Cape (about an hour outside of Cape Town). It was a bit chilly but it was an incredibly beautiful place with an amazing variety of music. We camped outside with some of the Cape Town interns as well as Liza Lepage (that’s James Lepage’s (college roommate and best friend) twin sister)! We also spent a bit of time in Cape Town and got to play 5v5 pickup on turf fields! A true blessing for my mind and body.

Showing some American and Christmas Spirit. Cause why not?

Tents on Tents on Tents. This state of the art tent happens to belong to Liza Lepage and the Bowdoin Crew. 

 And of Course...

The Cardinals winning the NLDS game 5

I've recruited some fans in the office. This is Community Programs Coordinator, Coach K, rockin' the birds hat.

A great moment that I enjoyed by myself at 4:30AM

GRS Kim - 1 Month in

Community Programs Coordinator, Thembi, running the circle with her daughter at a GRS Skillz Street program designed to empower young girls and teach important life skills through soccer.

My first month in Kimberley, South Africa has been excitingly outside of my comfort zone. I am constantly forced to criticize and adjust my perspective of the world that I grew up in. I knew that my experience here would be culturally "different" but it has been amazing to see my expectations turned upside down and to open my mind up to entirely new experiences of life. I'm sure that words will not do an adequate job to explain this, but I want to share some of it before I run out of space in my overflowing mind and I lose it all.

It took me a couple weeks to begin feeling settled in the office. I'm not sure if it's because I've never had a job sitting at a desk or if it's because I'm still getting a grasp on the work I'm doing. I find myself needing to get up and move around a lot and taking any opportunity to drive to a school for an intervention or down the street to pick up office supplies. We're also working on a wall mural in the meeting room because the new office we recently moved into has extremely bland beige walls. That project has provided me a nice creative outlet when I'm tired of writing for the newsletter or editing letters to local schools and departments in the municipality. As a programs intern, one of my main responsibilities right now is to plan an upcoming HCT (HIV counseling and testing soccer tournament). I am the point person on the project along with our Programs Coordinator, Coach K. He has been with GRS Kim for several years so he is leading me through the process of reserving a local field, advertising for the tournament, contacting local officials and testing partners, and the many other required steps to running an HCT. I still have loads of information to learn but anything I can do to help GRS Kim running smoothly gives us more opportunities to work with more local youth and give them access to the important life skills curriculum that GRS provides. As an intern, I have some flexibility to pursue new projects that can improve the GRS programs. The more I learn from GRS coaches, Programs Coordinators and our amazing Site Director, Thuso, the more I can support the growth and outreach of GRS in Kimberley, and in turn promote the health and success of local youth in the coming generations. 

In my first blog piece, I talked about how young Kimberley is as a city. How it feels 10 to 20 years behind other places I have been - culturally, fashion-wise, in terms of general development. Unfortunately, because I'm tall and blonde, I look like an Afrikaaner (the dutch descendants of the colonists). Not to say by any means that all Afrikaans are bad, oppressive, racist people. I have met some great people from all across the spectrum of the culture and class structure. A structure that is seems much more rigid and unavoidable than any place I have been. I have also met some undesirable people from all parts of the social structure as well. But that is to be expected in any place. What I have found most interesting and difficult to cope with is how racially divided different places are, and how openly that's accepted and understood. Just left over separation. It's hard to imagine how intensified that was less than 30 years ago here. There is still a whole generation, maybe two, that lived through all of that. I've made a some new friends (a skill that I'm still working on) at the gym, local restaurants and with the GRS coaches. It's not easy to discuss the social structures but I think it's important for both me and them to be able to discuss these things. 

It's obviously difficult to put these ideas into words. Words are almost always inadequate to describe places, people or cultures. But i'll keep trying and maybe in 10 months it will start to make sense. Maybe not. 

Weekend trip to Lillydale

Zebra Sighting

The Beautiful River

The Local Pitch at Sunset

The Condor at the Pitch, basking in the moonlight

Skillz PC Team. Thembi and Coach K

The Fabulous Braii Stand

Skillz Team 2.0, Thembi with other intern, Mimi

Local Band; Snotkop

Letting Off Some Steam on the Bongos after a long Day

PC's daughter, Owa. Can't beat that smile.

In Action! Mother looking on proudly in the background.

Skillz Street intervention activities at local Tshiamo Primary School

Doing her best Avril Lavigne Impression

Doing her best Jim Carrey impression

T.J. Newborn Son of Community Programs Coordinator, Christa. Photo cred: Owa

Selfie, as promised.

Now that one month has passed, I have many of the things I need to live on a day to day basis in and out of our intern house. As you may know, my volunteer internship with Grassroot Soccer is completely unpaid. Generous donors have made everything possible so far and for that I am extremely grateful. Funds from donors go directly to food, gas costs and any needs around the house (lightbulbs, electricity, soap etc.). In the upcoming months, any donations are greatly appreciated so that I can continue to do the good work on the ground here. You can make donations and follow the work we are doing right here at my blog. Or, if you wish to make a tax deductible donation to Grassroot Soccer (a registered 501c3) in my name, you can follow this link and make the donation "in honor of" Nick Barron. I have included a short piece on my first month below. Thank you for taking the time to read and support my internship and Grassroot Soccer. 

If you have any questions or want me to write about different experiences in my blog, please feel free to ask or comment on my blog posts.

Life in Kim

After a long eventful weekend in Kimberley, we have arrived in the office for our first full day of work. I share a room in the office with Thembi, Coach K and for the time being Nora, one of last year's interns. She is staying on board for the next couple of weeks to show Mimi and I the Kimberley ways. GRS Kimberley moved to this new office a few weeks ago. Mimi, my fellow intern, is in the office across the hall with Lebo. The director of the site, Thuso, has an office right down the hall. Down the hall from Thuso's office is a nice kitchen and across from Thuso's office is a large conference room. The windows are large which makes for great natural lighting but poor insulation. The Kimberley winter is no comparison to the Maine winter's that I became accustomed to over the past four years, however I didn't expect to wake up to 40 degree fahrenheit (still haven't reprogrammed to celsius) mornings in Africa and I didn't expect to be wishing that the office was heated. I tried, however, to come in with as few expectations, positive or negative, as possible.

Expectations about weather are relatively inconsequential in comparison to cultural, social or other types of expectations I may have had before I came to Kimberley. Rather than trying to keep my expectations low so that I might be impressed, I try to rid myself of expectations in general. Kimberley is different than any place I have been to. Some aspects of life here might seem better or worse than other places, but statistics like "standard of living" prescribe something about a place that does not do it justice. I have talked to several people who live here and asked them what they think about Kimberley. Almost everyone I've talked to has commented on how small the city is in comparison to places like Johannesburg, Cape Town or Durban. If the cities in South Africa were siblings, it seems Kimberley has the size and qualities of the youngest. One of the past Kimberley interns (Kimterns) told me that Kimberley can seem like a time portal to the 80's or 90's. I wasn't entirely convinced until I found a pair of mid-thigh jean shorts in the local mall that seemed straight out of Boy Meets World or Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Of course I bought the priceless gem right away. 

While something like those jean shorts is a tangible representation of the time and place relative to what I'm used to, other aspects of the culture are less tangible and difficult to grasp. The lasting effects of apartheid separate the city in a way that is unfamiliar to me. Galeshewe is the township in Kimberley, also known as "the location." We have already driven through the location several times to drop GRS coaches off at different schools. It is completely different than any place I have seen or experienced. Makeshift homes made of scrap metal and other recycled materials sit next to gated homes like the one that I live in here. It's hard for me to completely understand the disparity of wealth and how it relates to race and how that divides the city. It's also difficult to tell what kind of racism still exists. I've heard from Nora and other past interns that this is another example of how the city is still in the past. Some Afrikaaners (descendents of the Dutch colonialists) maintain their ignorance and separate themselves from the black population. I was told about many of these things before I left for Kimberley and thankfully still have yet to witness blatant racism, however it's important to be aware that it is present. Racism still exists in America too though, and similar to Kimberley it is an exception not an expectation. It never has to be, and never should be accepted.

Of course, I love that Kimberley is the youngest sibling of South African cities. I have a soft spot for the spontaneity and quirks that come along with the reputation of the youngest. I grew up the youngest in of three in my family and have since been blessed with the adoption of two younger siblings so I have both experienced and witnessed the growth of the youngest. Maybe its because I've only been here for a week or maybe its that Kimberley has a kindred spirit but I am overwhelmed (in a good way) by the possibilities of my year in Kimberley.

More to come soon on how the Kimterns are navigating their way into Kimberley and fitting into their roles in the GRS office. Keep following the blog for pictures of zebras, the intern house and jean shorts (possibly NSFW).

Thierry Henry and Goldman Sachs partner with GRS

Well I guess I will have to start watching more MLS. 

Click Here to read full article

Grassroot Soccer Kimberley

Here is a link to the blog run by the current interns in Kimberley.

Grassroot Soccer Kimberley Blog

Less than 2 weeks to departure! I'm making one final fundraising push before I leave on August 4th. Any donations are greatly appreciated.

The Journey Begins...Almost

On August 4th, 2013 I will depart for Kimberley, South Africa to begin my internship with Grassroot Soccer. Soccer has been a driving passion in my life for as long as I can remember. My four years at Bates College have channeled this passion toward the more significant universal power of the game that GRS utilizes to its full potential. Grassroot Soccer is a nonprofit organization that uses soccer to educate, mobilize and stop the spread of HIV/AIDS. Since it was founded in 2002, nearly 600,000 youth have graduated from the HIV prevention programs. By World Cup 2014, the program hopes to reach 1 million at-risk youth.