NOMAD BLOG

PARKER MADE IT TO THE TOP OF KILI!

2008-10-18T22:31:00.000-07:00

In the early morning hours on Sept. 27th, eleven yr. old Parker Huffman became the fourth (documented) youngest person in the world to summit Mt. Kilimanjaro. Unlike his aunt Janette and mother Lauren who succumbed to altitude sickness, Parker had no problems with either the altitude or the cold. With the help of his two local guides from Tanzania, Parker summited solo and stayed at the top and took in the view for about 20 minutes before heading back down the mountain. In all, Parker raised over $10,000 and continues to raise both money for Nomad and awareness on HIV/AIDS in Africa. Thank you to Parker and your family for taking part in our 2008 "Climb for a Cause".

Jenn and Janette just got back from a two month trip to Kenya. It was an extremely challenging trip for the two but in that time they were able to open a Nomad Charities NGO bank account in Kenya, update paperwork at the NGO board, meet with USAID and other sources of funding for Nomad's projects as well as work on the completion of Gail's House, which is set to open in February of 2009. The opening of the orphanage was delayed by four months due to Nomad's international Rotary grant being held up due to ling distance paperwork.

Nomad's most exciting news is the arrival of our new full time Project Coordinator in Kenya, Christine Birnbaum from Bend, OR. Rather than commit to the Peace Corp. for two years she decided to work with Nomad and commit to an eighteen month assignment in Kibwezi, Kenya.
Nomad is beyond excited to have her on board and already in the few weeks she's been there she's proved invaluable.

Nomad has some exciting new projects in the works for 2009 so be sure to keep checking our website for various program updates. Asanti Sana!

NOMAD UPDATES

2008-08-01T22:31:00.000-07:00

Parker Huffman is getting ready to conquer Mt. Kilimanjaro in a few weeks. He will be the fourth youngest person in the world to try and summit the largest mountain in Africa.
The construction of Gail's House is running about three weeks behind schedule due to a shortage of water. Nomad will be sinking the pump for the borehole the end of August so there will be a constant water supply. Our American builder Patrick Huffman will be in Kenya the first part of September to install the solar panels for both the building and the borehole.

HELP US CELEBRATE ON JUNE 21st!

2008-06-10T15:06:00.000-07:00

Nomad Charities is holding its 4th annual fundraiser on June 21st, raising funds to pay for our 2009 operations expenses for Gail's House in Kibwezi, Kenya. The event is being hosted by Lavabelles and catered by Bluefish. Tickets are $35 and you can purchase at the door. Hope to see you there!

SUNSET PRIMARY SCHOOL - West Linn, OR

2008-06-03T15:38:00.000-07:00

"Just wanted you both to know that the bracelet sale has gone well...we have money for you to pick up. Parker's Sofa Cents is receiving numerous donations in the office... that is also going well.
Ane the excitement has caught on! We had a Kindergarten class of girls (about 8 of them) that decided to also create a fundraiser for Nomad Charities by selling little paper fans for five cents each around our school. VERY CUTE! They put the chance into Parker's Sofa Cents container. I think they made way more that 5 cents a fan:)" - Kathy Ludwig - Principal

KIBWEZI UPDATE

2008-06-03T15:29:00.000-07:00

Jenn and Janette returned from Kenya in early May after completing the drilling of one of the first private boreholes in the entire District of Kibwezi. The orphanage construction project continues to operate on time and on budget. Jenn & Janette have formed a great relationship with the new MP of our district, the Hon. Philip Kaloki. We have formed a partnership Prof. Kaloki with our first project being the construction of the only public library in the District of Kibwezi. The MP will use allotted government funds to build the facility, the land was donated by a local community member and Nomad is shipping 15,000 books to Mombasa for the library.
Jenn & Janette are heading back to Kibwezi on August 16th for a two month stay.

KENYA PROGRESS REPORT

2008-05-13T16:18:00.000-07:00

Jenn and Janette returned from Kenya mid May after a very successful trip! They were able to complete the drilling of the borehole at the orphanage site, distribute gifts from the Student Sponsorship Program, held funding meetings with USAID, AED, the Embassy of Japan, Aga Kahn and the Canadian International Development Agency. These meetings helped secure funds for our new medical program, the Kibwezi Children's Health Program, which will start in November of 2008. The two plan to head back to Kenya in late July to complete the orphanage and open its doors in mid August!

OFF TO KENYA

2008-04-11T15:22:00.000-07:00

Jenn & Janette Hofmann are off to Kenya April 19th for 3 weeks. The purpose of the trip is to both finish the drilling of the borehole and close out the International Rotary grant and pound the pavement in Nairobi, setting up meetings to find funding for our Kibwezi Children's Health Program and 2009 operations costs for Gail's House. - Gail's House is running on time and on budget!

KIBWEZI UPDATE

2008-02-28T13:37:00.000-08:00

Our builder Patrick Huffman remains in Kenya while we complete the drilling of our borehole. Check out "Gail's House" on our website and see the update on the orphanage. The walls are almost up! We will be installing the solar portion of our orphanage in May thanks to a International Rotary grant for $19K.

Eleven year-old Parker is in full swing fund-raising for his Kilimanjaro climb in September. To learn more about Parker, check out his page "Parker's Journey" to learn more.

PARKR IN THE OREGONIAN!

2008-02-13T10:46:00.000-08:00

Check out Parker's interview with Mark Larabee in the Oregonian today. The article features Parker's quest to both conquer Mt. Kilimanjaro and to raise funds for Nomad Charities 36-bed orphanage in Kibwezi, Kenya. Great job Parker!

KIBWEZI UPDATE - Feb 5th

2008-02-05T14:40:00.001-08:00

The walls for the orphanage are going up as you read this. Our American builder Patrick Huffman continues to oversee and work along side our Kenya partners. The borehole survey is scheduled for this Friday and Sat. Once completed, Nomad will purchase the land and start drilling.
The recent events in Kenya have been very hard to follow, especially those of us that work in Kenya and have fallen in love with the people, the culture and the country as a whole. We hope this will come to and end soon. Our staff and volunteers in Kibwezi are not effected by the violence, which is concentrated in western Kenya.

MEET PARKER!

2008-02-05T14:37:00.000-08:00

5th grader Parker Huffman will be one of the youngest persons in the world to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro located in Tanzania, Africa. Parker will take part in "Climb for a Cause" in which he will be raising money for Nomad's 36-bed orphanage / community center in Kibwezi, Kenya.
Learn more about Parker on our website - Parker's Journey. - If you are interested in participating in our charity climb, please e-mail us and/or call our office directly.

KIBWEZI UPDATE

2008-01-28T16:16:00.001-08:00

Both Janette & Pat have met with both Rotary International and our Kenyan builders. Nomad signed a contract to have the construction of the orphanage completed by the end of July 2008. Nomad is purchasing additional land next week and will be conducting a water survey next week as well. Once the land acquisition is complete (roughly 1-2 weeks) the borehole will take 1 week to complete. Our goal is to have the borehole completed by the 3rd week of January.

Made it to Kenya

2008-01-25T15:48:00.001-08:00

Janette and Pat have arrived in Kenya safe and sound. They have meetings with Rotary International on Friday and then will be heading out to Kibwezi on Sunday.

Welcome!

2008-01-11T10:28:00.000-08:00

Please feel free to talk about your experiences with Nomad and/or ask us questions through our new BLOG. We look forward to hearing from you!