Beat the Drum!
Some of the BTC travelers to South Africa watched a movie called Beat the Drum last night at the Pan African Film Festival.
The movie was about a young Zulu boy who left his village to find work in the big city of Johannesburg. His entire village was being wiped out by the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Upon his arrival to Joberg, he quickly realized that his task would not be very easy, nor that this city was all that it seemed. Joberg too was caught in the middle of a HIV/AIDS epidemic and being a street kid made things that much worse. Through some very emotional twists and turns, the boy finally makes some friends, finds some money and touches the hearts of those who help him.
I am sure the movie impacted many of the travelers to South Africa. I personally found myself connecting back to our recent experiences as soon as I heard the local language again.
After the movie, a panel discussion ensued. I am still processing the information from the panel session. A lot of questions remain unanswered. How does racism, corruption, unemployment, apathy, illiteracy, poverty, and HIV/AIDS tie into our role here in the United States?
After our return from South Africa, I recall a recent conversation that I had with a friend: “its feels like we left them behind”.
There is a lot of hope and yet a lot of apathy that continues to exist. Some of you may have heard of our experiences in Kenya where life threatening health conditions were not only widespread, but also largely ignored. Part of the experience of returning from a developing nation is to ask the question, how does my life change the way others live?
… or to continue asking the question that service asks of us every day, what now can we do for others?
About Beat the Drum: http://www.beatthedrumthemovie.com/
About Next Aid: http://www.nextaid.org/
Tias Arms: http://www.tiasarms.org/
On 14 December 2004, Lean on Me welcomed our first organized group of volunteers. 17 People from the American Be The Cause Organization joined us from the 14 – 23 December 2004. The group, who organizes local volunteer missions in their home country, was on their first international volunteer expedition. Lean on Me was honored to receive such an amazing group of people and thoroughly enjoyed their short time with us. 
The BTC volunteers assisted our other volunteers and staff in hosting our numerous project Christmas parties all of which were a resounding success. Parties filled with presents, sweets and laughter were held at the following venues:
Once again we would like to thank everyone who helped us to make these parties a success, the enormous smiles on the children and patient’s faces were enough to confirm that the time and effort was well worth it. Although we appreciate each and every donation, we would like to make special mention of the following people for their generous contributions:
With our project Christmas parties bringing a very festive end to 2004, Lean on Me is now looking ahead to the Busy and Exciting year of 2005.