Camp U.N.I.T.E

Every summer a couple of PCVs organize a camp for the youth of Togo at the Peace Corps Training Center in the Central Region. Six other Volunteers and my self were counselors for a week for male apprentices. There were approximately 30 “kids” ranging in ages from 14 to 32. Each volunteer teamed up with a Togolese Counterpart and gave presentations on a range of Topics from Gender Equity and Sexual Harassment to Child Trafficking and Family Planning. I gave my presentation on the importance of sending girls to school. It was a difficult topic to present to male apprentices, many of whom never went to school in the first place, but I think that overall it went well. My counterpart and I introduced the subject with a small sketch and then we asked the kids about what they thought on the subject. We based the rest of the presentation on the idea that “if you educate a woman you educate a family and a nation.”
Each day after the presentations we had team building challenges for the campers. After the challenges we ate lunch and played games and had another small presentation. At night before dinner we had small group discussions with our cabins and I think that was the most important part of camp for the participants. They could ask the counselors questions about the presentations from the day, as well as any other questions they had about life in general. It was a great experience to be able to sit in a small group setting and see the light go off in the participant’s heads. It was pretty moving for all the volunteers who worked at the camp that week.
On the last day of camp we put on our new camp shirts and marched out in the community near the training center. A few minutes after we left it started to rain. The camp organizers tried to stop the march but the kids wouldn’t have it and we continued out in the rain singing songs and dancing in the streets. Little kids saw us and came running beside us, and it was of my most memorable moments during my six months as a volunteer.
After camp I planned on going back to Dapaong, but I decided to go to Lome for a few days to use the internet and welcome the new stage. They landed in Togo on June 5th and it they are the first new group of trainees to arrive since I got here in September. It’s crazy to believe that I have already been here for almost nine months. Since coming to post I have accomplished some small but positive goals, and over the summer I plan on working with some teachers in the area about new projects for the next school year. I am also going to Lome again in less than two weeks for an art show that is being put together by Small Enterprise Development (SED) Volunteers. Many SED Volunteers work with artisans through out Togo and this exposition will give them a chance to display their art to a large audience in the nation’s capital. I usually don’t like to travel outside of post this much but I feel it is important to show my support as well as buy a few gifts to give for my upcoming visit to the States. I’m very excited to see you all and I am very excited for my cousins wedding in August. Congrats Justin and Mandy.
On a side note many of you have asked how you can support me as a PCV. I have no ideas for major funded projects yet but if you want to help out Camp Unite for next year you can donate money to the UNITE Foundation in America which is run by former volunteers and organizers of the camp in Togo.

www.unitefoundation.org