Update Letter to Sponsor Counselor

Initially the following letter was private but after rereading it I thought it was such a good synopses of what was actually happening I decided to post it.

Enjoy

Dr Smallwood,
Just thought to send you a letter that is a little bit more personal than the Blog. Just wanted to tell you that I am doing well here in Nicaragua. The project has ended up changing quite a bit. Due to lack of a market for their product the Organic industry is drying up here. What some estimated conservatively as 100 farms in now down to about 10... I am talking with Dr Correa and Levy and they are helping me salvage what I can as far as having some publication from this.

As Far as things Rotary go... I am going to make my first official presentation to the Rotarians of Managua. I had a very hard time finding them and after that getting in contact with them. I hope to post pictures on the blog and let everyone know how it goes. Aside from this I have been working with Rotaract to do various service projects and fundraiser for the club. They are an entertaining bunch ! We are currently trying to develop a project that will be a banner project for the year.

So far the idea for the project is to find a school in one of the poorest areas in Managua and adopt it. We need to find funding to give the students breakfast and lunch for a 1 year and have Rotarians that are doctors volunteer their time once every 3-6 months to provide medical attention. There is also an educational component as far as health and hygiene are concerned. What we will do ourselves aside from raising money is clean, paint, possible make a playing field, ect. The idea is that this will be a pilot program will let us know how this program can be extended to other schools. So far this idea is in the developmental stages. There are 3 groups of Rotaractians who are developing their individual ideas in order to present them to the District Rotarians. From there we will decide to choose one as a pilot program. I would really appreciate your input on this idea.

I "googled" myself and found this site. It is a nice link to some cultural things that were captured in the News

http://www.uruguayinforme.com/news/14042006/14042006_rimbaud_fiesta.htm

Also I may be included in the upcoming magazine for WSPA ( The world society for the protection of animals). The university has funding from them. They were in Nicaragua doing an inspection because the projects that happen here are the most successful programs they have in the world. I usually go with the university faculty and students and offer my veterinary services to attend animals free of charge. In addition to that this weekend is a spay and neuter day and kind of open house for the university.

Just thought you would like to know. Also I am back filling my blog to catch up on some of the things I left out.. So if you go back to June you will find a lot of new posts.

Keep in touch.


Nneka M. George, DVM

The following photos are of the traspaso of Club Rotaract Managua - Tiscapa. It is literally just the changing of the leadership of the club. As I get to know the members more I am building friendships and realizing that the projects we develop to serve the community here are really just a reflection of the people in the group and our individual passions and abilities. I think this year will be very productive.

Traspaso Managua- Tiscapa

 

Pictures from Costa Rica

Waterfall and wading pool near Volcano Arenal
Quepos Bay near Manuel Antonio
My Last Day with the whole crew.
Volcano Arenal on a rare partly cloudy moment. The only day we almost saw the top. It was covered again 15 minutes after this photo.

 

Why do I always feel as if I am catching up??

As usual it has been too long since I have posted an entry but I have come to terms with the fact that I am not a journalist. :) I know my profession and journalism is not it.

To that end I will try to do some catching up. Since the last post I went to Costa Rica with friends from the States. It was so good to see them all and get to explore a little bit more of Central America. A side note that most Americans may not know is there is a kind of rivalry and feud between the countries of Nicaragua and Costa Rica. The rift goes back a long time in history with varies reason ( ownership of Rio San Juan, a war where something was burned and someone took something, and the economic/ political / social differences between the countries). Regardless the countries in land mass are very similar. Check out the picks.