Cameroon trip to aid citizens
by mboneenie | May 29, 2008 at 12:17 PM
A women's empowerment group is seeking professionals for a goodwill mission to Cameroon.
Posted on Sun, May. 25, 2008
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Miami Herald Staff Report
The Nubian Sistahood organization announced it is planning a goodwill trip to Kumba, Cameroon, in Central Africa for Nov. 6-16 and is looking for professionals to go along and facilitate workshops in their fields of their expertise.
Workshop topics will include education, nutrition, craft, the arts -- particularly those based in African American culture -- AIDS/STD awareness, farming, irrigation, and the ecosystem.
Kumba and the surrounding townships, in the southwest region of Cameroon, has a population of mostly poor farm workers.
Nubian Sistahood members will also visit six schools that cater to more than 3,000 children. The group is holding a drive for donations of school supplies such as pens, pencils, paper, notebooks and crayons.
Also on the itinerary are women's groups, whose members include women in shelters, battered women and farmers.
Orphanages are also on the list of places to visit and donations are being sought for supplies such as Band-Aids, first aid kits and books.
Members will stay with host families, getting a chance to live with and experience life among the people of Cameroon.
''This is not a tourist trip; this is a work in progress and a true humanitarian effort,'' said Shamele Jenkins, founder of the Nubian Sistahood. ``We will be meeting with local government officials. You can experience Cameroon and bring a piece of it home with you.''
The Nubian Sistahood is a three-year-old women's empowerment group that meets at venues around the county and especially at the Artists Resource Center, 6940 NW 27th Ave.
It hosts biweekly meetings on wellness, health, nutrition, finance, education, tai chi, self-defense and dance, along with hosting day and evening Sistah Nights Out, when members go to the movies, plays and on cruises, and Family Nites Out.
For more information on the Cameroon trip or about the Nubian Sistahood, call Shamele Jenkins, 305-469-1157 or e-mail shabenj@aol.com.
