HURRY Up... and Wait

Well, another day has passed and I am still in Toronto.   I slept in, went to the gym, got ready, packed AGAIN, checked out and went for brunch.  I had my Timmies, FaceTimed with the family, rushed to check-in for our 11:30pm flight at 3:45pm (?not sure why) and then waited for supper. 

Not a bad day I suppose - short of the Irishman who phoned me at 7:00am to see if we would be meeting up in London to catch the flight to Accra.  Unfortunately - No.  Both Irish coaches made it out of London today and are already in Accra, Ghana....waiting for us!  

The delay in our flight has provided the coaches time to visit and meet new people.  I just can’t believe the number of folks I have met who have been to Africa, pleasure and volunteering.  My server, Angel in the hotel restaurant - just came back in November from his vacation in Africa.  He truly loved Africa and was amazed by its beauty.  Right before I left Winnipeg I met 2 people who have been volunteering in Africa for 15+ years; plus they shared the story of their other friend in Winnipeg who has opened 7 libraries in the greater Accra region in Ghana.

http://www.osuchildrenslibraryfund.ca

The stories are very consistent - working with people from Africa has been a successful means of improving their communities.  It’s not always volunteering in Africa either.  The Canadian Cooperative Association offers a Women’s Mentorship Program where female leaders from overseas financial co-operatives come to Canada to learn and observe within our environment.  So far over 160 women have gone through the program.  The link below takes you to more information about this program:

http://www.coopscanada.coop/en/international_dev/get-involved-with-cca/our-programs/womens-mentorship\

Well gotta go and rush to our gate, where we will no doubt spend time waiting to (hopefully) board our plan and head to London.  Snow has not been our friend on this trip :)

Where am I?

Where am I?

I'm not sure - I think it’s Toronto - but there has been a lot of talk that we may be in an alternate universe.

To catch you up - we finished classroom training today.  This training was humbling, enlightening, educational and important.  My key learnings:

• CCA and partner organizations do some amazing things to eliminate poverty around the world - more than I could have imagined.  They can’t reach their goals without support (financial and volunteer)
• The challenges women face to free themselves from poverty - is immense.  There are still so many women in this world that live in fear.  So many that have experienced sexual harassment, so many that have to battle through negativity and bullying - let alone find the means to feed their families.  More must be done to eliminate this.

The time spent learning from my fellow coaches, has been equally as interesting.  We are stuck in Toronto for the night, as some snow fell at Heathrow which cancelled our flight.  Disappointing as we will be one less day in Africa - but most enjoyable as these fellow coaches I am traveling with are critical pieces to this “life changing experience”.  Tonight at dinner the coaches shared some of their travel stories; backpacking in places all over the world, walking through the Amazon, bamboo rafting with complete strangers, flying upside down in an acrobat plane, piloting their own planes or volunteering all alone with no guidance or training in Cambodia.  

As I listen to their worldly experience and knowledge of so many cultures and exotic places, I wonder if maybe I am in the wrong place. “Hmm”  I think (yes quietly) to myself “what did I do when I was young that  even remotely relates to these experiences?”  I took the bus to Flin Flon alone for each spring break between 12-15 (kind of dangerous) I lived in North Western Ontario for a summer with my husband (there were wild animals) and I went on an awesome road trip with girlfriends through New Orleans and Florida with a stopover in Graceland (we came really close to gators).  In my 30’s I made it to Mexico, Jamaica and Dubai - though not really relatable to the backpacking trips “in search of authenticity”.  Makes me kind of wonder how I fit in....

Well, I guess we can’t do it all and besides the amazing British Airways agent Ruth (who rescued our luggage) thinks I am a “World Traveler” - says so on the coupon she gave me for my hotel stay in Toronto.

How can u leave your family for so long?

It was interesting to hear the responses from people when they learned I was going to Africa for 13 days and would be away from my family for 26 days - “Wow, that’s a long time to be away, how is everyone going to manage?”

It wasn’t easy to leave, I am going to miss some significant moments in the lives of my kids.   However, I deeply believe continuing to develop who I am (what I know and what I have experienced) will improve my ability to positively influence who my kids will grow up to be.  Through my volunteer efforts in Ghana I hope my children will learn the following: 

• Be brave and do things that scare you. Face the challenges and accept the opportunities put before you.  Life is so short and we just don’t know what tomorrow holds for us.  I recently lost a dear friend and was inspired to take on this challenge by her commitment to promote immigrant opportunities in Manitoba.  She worked in the Province of Manitoba and she never hesitated to travel the world to share the benefits available here in Winnipeg and greater Manitoba.

• Serve and help others, it will positively change your life and the lives you touch.  I am guilty of contributing to the “have” and “immediate satisfaction” culture that my kids live in now.  We have volunteered at Winnipeg Harvest with our kids and have tried to expose them to the realities of poverty but it is such a difficult concept for them truly understand and appreciate how blessed their lives are in comparison to so many other children.

• Learn to appreciate other cultures.  Through your ability to be inclusive and encourage diversity, you will gain the respect of people and make some true friends.  Thankfully this has been the norm for my kids growing up.  They know nothing less than a culturally diverse classroom and circle of friends.  Their natural acceptance of others and their beliefs is incredible and will significantly change the future of our world.

• Independence is important.  There will be times when you need to be confident in yourself and will step away from the crowd to do what you believe is right.  This is most important for my daughter.  We raise our kids that everyone should be treated equal and to expect nothing less in how people treat you.  My daughter is the only girl on her 8A1 hockey team and she socializes and engages extremely well with the boys.  I want her to take those skills and share them with other girls, continuing to develop women to be equals around the world.

I know I am gone for what can be perceived as a long time and have concerns and fears about how my adventure will unfold.  However, the stories and experiences I have taken from others who have already been to Africa confirm for me that it will all be worth it!

And to my family - if you are reading my blog (which u should be), I love you and will miss you.  Take care of each other.  I will be home before you know it!

Ready to Build a Better World (bbw)

Through the Canadian Cooperative Association Coaching Program, I am heading to Ghana, Africa January 18, 2013.  I will visit 3 credit unions in 13 days along with my soon to be best friend Fintan, from a credit union in Ireland.  Check out the link below - it provides more information about the CCA coaching program.

http://www.coopscanada.coop/en/international_dev/get-involved-with-cca/coach

I have heard so many good things about this experience from mutliple previous coaches.  Many of these past participants are part of the National Young Leaders Committee, which is where I first heard about the opportunity.  Life changing experience I am told - can't wait to get going!

My adventure begins January 16^th - first stop Ottawa - for some training….

The Credit Unions I will be visiting:

I am going to the Volta Chapter:

Akatsi – Ultimate Credit Union

Aflao – Redeemer CU

Hohoe – Universe CU and are located here: