Sunday, December 30, 2012
OLD DOG "TRAY"
Tray died Christmas morning 2012. He was 13. Thanks to Jeanne, Kevin, Daniel, Kevin Denner, Ian Denner for burying him under the pine tree next to Buckwheat. Thanks to Suzanne for loving him to the end. He was a great dog.
MERRY CHRISTMAS 2012!
We wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and Happy 2013.....we miss and love you all.
Our Reproductive Health Team....Karoi, Ben, Moseisei, George, Peci, Eta at our Christmas party.
Christmas Picnic Fiji 2012!
Lollipop and Jingle Bells appeared at our door after the Cyclone. Lollipop unfortunately died and Jingle Bells was adopted by a loving family.
Matt, Ashley and Kayla waiting for the bus after Christmas.
We had 11 Peace Corps volunteers stay with us for 3 nights without electricity. It was hard keeping the beer cold!
We had 11 Peace Corps volunteers stay with us for 3 nights without electricity. It was hard keeping the beer cold!
Our First Cyclone!!!!!
Dear All,
Playing chess during the first part of the storm....
Well we survived our first cyclone and we didn't blow away!!!! It was 18 hours of strong wind and rain. People lost roofs, homes, trees etc. We are still doing clean up and have not had electricity for two weeks. Needless to say I AM HOT!!!!! And I hear Wellsville has 2 feet of snow!!!!! Our clinic closed for two days but we are up and running now without lights or internet....Fiji style!!!
Tuesday, December 11, 2012
Our new "HOME".....
Hi Everyone.....We are busy and happy in our new little "HOME". We have a bedroom (Thanks Betty and John for the comforter....love it!), kitchen, indoor bathroom and two fans!!! We take the bus to Lautoka every week to shop at the open market....lots of great fruits and vegetables. We burn all our paper, composte our edibles and bury our tin. Our yard is full of beautiful native flowers and the Health Clinic maintains a vegetable garden. Joe and I walk each morning over the hill and along the ocean. We have both have lost a little weight and are staying healthy.
Joe is working with Non-communicable disease and I am working with Reproductive Health at the Veiseisei Sai Health Clinic, in the villages and settlements. We enjoy our work and love the people we are working with. Dr. R. and Dr. S are fabulous people and very committed to health, wellness and the people of Fiji. We like them very much and are learning so much from them.
Our little bedroom.
We don't have TV which is good. Joe and I read, play cribbage and go to bed early!
Dr. S
Our new "HOME".
We walk up this hill every morning and along the water. It is beautiful.
This is our composite pile and burning area!
We are on our way to Suva. Joe gave a talk at Tapoo City on NCDs and I gave a talk on Breast Cancer and Cervical Cancer.....
Our days are very full but we look forward to discovering more of the island in time. So life is good... Please stay in touch with us as we miss you all very much.........
Joe is working with Non-communicable disease and I am working with Reproductive Health at the Veiseisei Sai Health Clinic, in the villages and settlements. We enjoy our work and love the people we are working with. Dr. R. and Dr. S are fabulous people and very committed to health, wellness and the people of Fiji. We like them very much and are learning so much from them.
Our days are very full but we look forward to discovering more of the island in time. So life is good... Please stay in touch with us as we miss you all very much.........
Monday, December 10, 2012
My "Little Sister"
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
Thursday, November 15, 2012
Monday, November 12, 2012
Viseisei....here we come.
Hi everyone. Joe and I were sworn in as Peace Corps volunteers on November 1, 2012. We used the same oath as the President!!!! It was very emotional and a lovely event in Suva. The Ambassador to the US, Minister of Health, host families etc. were there.
We spent two months in the home of Wasaki and Ateca in the village of Lodoni on the east side of Fiji. They have a large family, many grandchildren, and lots of roosters! They are a beautiful family and we will never forget them. They shared their home with us, took care of us and taught us so much. Living in a third world developing country is Hard. Communication, transportation, sanitation are all developing. We travel mostly by bus/mini bus or walk. I wash clothes with a bucket and toilet plunger...works well! Our diet was mostly fish, dalo, rice. It was all cooked on an open fire. We learned to husk and scrape coconuts. We learned to drink kava, take cold showers, weave mats, make brooms, dance meke and laugh a lot!
Our group consists of 25 people, 5 over the age of 50, 6 men. We love them all. They are all bright, adventurous, remarkable people. They divided us into 5 groups of 5 and we stayed in 5 separate villages. We had 3 hours of language in the morning and 3 hours of cultural/safety training in the afternoon. Joe and I both scored Intermediate/intermediate on our oral language exam....so slowly but surely our brains are still working!
One in 7 people of Fiji will develop diabetes. They have limited supplies, insulin, glucometers etc. Amputations are common. Heart disease is also high and increasing. Diet is high in sugar, root crops (dalo, cassava), salt. We had a Health Fair in our village before leaving. Joe did blood pressures, I worked with a community nurse doing blood sugars, another did head lice/scabies, teeth brushing and reproductive health. Any education is appreciated and needed.
Joe and I walk everyday and many people started walking with us. Everyone knew Joe and would call out to him wherever he went....Vuniwai Joe (Dr.Joe).
Men are mostly farmers/fishermen. Women cook, cut firewood, wash clothes, clean,and take care of everyone. Sundays are a day of church, big Sunday dinner, rest and watching rugby, drinking kava. I will spare you my bathroom stories!!!!!
We have been in our new site now for about a week. Joe and I are both working at the Veiseisei Sai Health Clinic with an Indo Figian doctor couple. We live in a flat in their home on the Health compound. The village is across the street. Joe will be working with non-communicable diseases and I am going to be working with reproductive health. We like our new "home" and will be happy there. The people we work with are wonderful.
I am in the United States now in Florida. My sister was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer to the bone and skull and has started chemotherapy. I will be here for 3 weeks. I hate being so far away while she has to deal with this. Please keep her in your prayers.
I have not used a credit card for over 2 months so I am off to see if it still works!!!!!
I will have better internet access now and will hopefully keep the blog going. I have attached pictures to it. Thanks again for all the emails and support. We miss you all. Kiss our children and grandchildren if you see them. Lotsa Love.....Joe and FA
Saturday, November 10, 2012
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