Meet Dennis and Janie, dear friends of African Road
It's hard to think of a more faithful and generous couple than Dennis and Janie Henderson. Since their marriage in 2015 — with Dennis's longstanding friendship going back even further — Dennis and Janie have been at the core of the African Road community in Portland....
Gratitude from Oregon and East Africa Today
The scent of baking pies, the happiness of loving hugs, faces of sweet children we haven’t seen for too many months, catching up with loved ones here at home. In the middle of all of this joy, friends in East Africa remain near to my heart. Exuberant dancing, joyful...
Five languages, seven countries, and a suitcase full of candy — lessons learned from VICOBA
By Joni Grace Powers, volunteer facilitator extraordinaire (thank you Joni!) Over thirty community leaders representing Village Community Banking (VICOBA) collectives around East Africa gathered for a focus group in Kigali, Rwanda this month. Imagine five languages...
Meet Maggie Hanson, Champion and Activist for the Batwa Indigenous People
"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." ~ Margaret Mead You might have heard the above quote before. To me, Maggie Hanson is the embodiment of its meaning. Can you imagine...
“If I could see them, we could dance together” — a heartfelt thank you from Julietta
by Evariste Ndikumana, African Road Changemaker Evariste Ndikumana is a leader of the Batwa Indigenous People in Burundi. Long marginalized and left out of development efforts, the Batwa are among the poorest people in Burundi, a country that stands as one of the...
Why Togetherness?
By Donna Edwards Weber -- and Bryan Weber too! 2017 Learning Trip Participants At first, I had a hard time wrapping my head around the ongoing mission of the Togetherness Cooperative. The horrific Rwandan Genocide happened in 1994 — 23 years ago. The people affected...
What I’d say to someone thinking about a learning trip… by Grace McLaren
By Grace McLaren, 2017 Learning Trip Participant Here’s what I’d say to someone thinking about coming on a Learning Trip: Expect this to change your life in some way. The African Road Learning Trip recalibrates how you see things. I am really glad that I joined the...
The best travel experience of my life by Kathryn Gearheard
Guest post by Kathryn Gearheard, 2017 Learning Trip Participant Though my expectations for my African Road Learning trip were high, they were fulfilled the first day we were in Dar es Salaam. Little did I know how much those expectations would be exceeded again and...
New Hope for Girls by Glenda Montgomery
Guest post by Glenda Montgomery, 2017 Learning Trip participant The mandatory “feet on the carpet photo” at PDX marks my return to Portland from an extraordinary adventure with African Road this summer. During two weeks in July, a small group of us from the States was...
Grateful for the Opportunity to Learn by Rikki Baltes
Guest post by Rikki Baltes, 2017 Learning Trip Participant The learning trip changed my life drastically. I ended the trip with so much love and hope in my heart. The learning trip has given me the opportunity to meet some of the strongest people I have ever met....