nkuringo

These are photographs, some of which I just processed for the first time since I captured them in 2012, from one of the most beautiful places I've ever visited. Maybe the most beautiful.

With my sister, I traveled to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park after a stay at St. Mary Kevin Children's Home in Kajjansi. Bwindi is in the southwest corner of Uganda, very close to the border of the Democratic Republic of Congo. We were there to do a gorilla trek. That trek was one of the most challenging and exhilarating experiences of my life.

I love seeing these pictures now. They transport me right back to the dense, lush, verdant and mountainous landscape of the rain forest. They remind me how lovely planet earth is, how generous and warm people are and how moved and humbled I was to be in the presence of the silver back mountain gorillas.

It was truly one of the best journeys I've ever taken.

10 years ago

Around this time ten years ago I made the decision to travel to Africa for the very first time. As I was making those preparations, I had to decide what my three-week project there would entail. That's when I began making connections with orphanages in Uganda. Here are some of the photos I ended up making during that October, 2006 workshop. Some of these were made in Jinja at two different orphanages, seome in the Rakai district at a family's rural dwelling, and some were made at St. Mary Kevin in Kajjansi. Some are old faves; some I've never even processed until now!

kampala boxing club

In a recent post I made mention of the boxing club in Kampala, Uganda. One of the first things that happened during my three-week long workshop with Thatcher Cook in 2006 was a visit to the club. Thatcher suggested that I go there to "get out of my comfort zone." I slung my SLR over my shoulder, hopped on a boda-boda (motorcycle taxi) and immediately headed over there. After all, I had come to Uganda to push myself into unknown territory; here was a way to dive right in… shoot something I'd never shot before in a place unlike anywhere I'd ever been before. The minute I walked into the space, I knew I was about to transcend into photography heaven.

The guys (and a handful of women) took me in right away. It helped that Thatcher had cleared the way for me. It also helped that I was in the midst of doing some boxing of my own with a trainer at the Woodside Health Club back home in Kansas City. The guys appreciated me showing off my moves, especially my upper cut which was quite impressive at the time.

After introductions and me showing off, the athletes got back to the business of shadow boxing, sparring and punching the bags. The place was gritty and sweaty and dark. I danced around the guys as I photographed them. They didn't hesitate to let me get close. The shooting became kind of a dance. I love it when that happens.

After thinking back to that afternoon and the one that followed (I had so much fun I returned the next day) I revisited the images I shot. I've never even processed most of these before. Seeing them in a finished state reminds me how much I love a good challenge, how much I love being in situations where I have to make my own way, how much I love connecting with people, how much I love photographing people who are passionate about what they do, how much I love and am grateful for opportunities that encapsulate all of the above, and yes, how much I love photography.

afripads

I couldn't have told this delightful tale any better. The following was written by CTT's on-the-ground-liaison, Melissa:

There are some people that are just natural go-getters. They see a need and take the reins with enthusiastic action. Their efforts end up making a true impact for others. Such describes Natalie, who is a GREAT friend and PASSIONATE supporter of CTT. She has traveled to St. Mary Kevin 3 times now and will making her 4th trip in September.

Natalie saw a need within the teenage girls at SMK. Uganda is like most developing countries where sanitary pads are not always readily available monthly. Girls can miss school during these times if other self-made provisions are also not available. Sadly, some girls will even drop out of school, due to teasing from peers or failing grades due to significant monthly absences from school. Sanitary pads here in Uganda are relatively inexpensive compared to America. A package of 8-10 pads can be bought for just under $1. But for families that can only afford that amount to feed their entire family daily, it can be an investment just not realistic.

Even at SMK, it is impossible for the Administration to meet this need for the girls. There are a total of 40 Primary & Secondary girls living at SMK with the monthly need for sanitary pads. CTT is able to provide their sponsored students with pads during the school term, but there is a lapse during holidays. The simple calculations illustrate that feminine products must take a backseat to other essentials, like food and more basic provisions.

That is where Natalie has valiantly stepped in. She learned about an organization called AfriPads. They make washable cloth sanitary pads that girls can reuse for upwards to one year. She began a small campaign of her Facebook friends with the hope of raising a couple hundred dollars. To her surprise and delight, the word spread to friends of friends and beyond. By the end of her week’s drive, she had collected over $1500 for the cause. Natalie will purchase these Afripads sets when she visits Uganda in September. If you would like donate, go to Change The Truth’s website and put ‘AfriPads’ in the byline of your donation.

Thank you Natalie. Your heart is so full of love for our friends at SMK. My hat of respect and appreciation is off to YOU!!

the shoe that grows (or why didn't i think of that?)

The Idea

The Shoe That Grows started when Founder and Executive Director Kenton Lee was living and working in Nairobi, Kenya in 2007. One day while walking to church, he noticed a little girl in a white dress next to him who had shoes that were way to small for her feet. That led to questions about why.  And finally an idea: 'Wouldn’t it be great if there was a shoe that could adjust and expand – so that kids always had a pair of shoes that fit?'  And just like that The Shoe That Grows was born.

The Solution

Over 2 billion people in the world suffer from soil-transmitted parasites and diseases.  The Shoe That Grows is a better solution to help children protect their feet than just regular shoes, shoes that don’t fit, or no shoes at all.  The Shoe That Grows adjusts five sizes and last five years – providing better protection and better health for children.

Information

The Shoe That Grows is a patented design of an innovative shoe that adjusts and expands.  It was developed in part by a shoe development company in the Northwest called Proof of Concept. 

These children in Kenya had just received their shoes

Kenton Lee is brilliant. He's also unassuming and kind and just wants to get his "shoe that grows" out into the world, particularly in developing countries. The first batch of shoes sold out in a heartbeat, and his next shipment isn't due to arrive from the factory until the end of July. But, Change the Truth has been promised 75 pairs! They will travel with me to St. Mary Kevin Children's Home on August 30th. As soon as the larger sizes are delivered later this year, we'll get 75 pairs of those, as well, so our older children can sport the shoe.

A photo I took at SMK in 2008

Not only do the children outgrow their shoes (if they have any) quickly , their shoes get so beat up. "The Shoe that Grows" is going to last a long time. Five sizes, five years! Such a wonderful concept… and one that we are very excited about!

wonderful and terrible news all at once

Last night I received notice from a very excited friend of mine that her first grandson had been born! Baby Jack could not look any cuter in his newborn photos. And grandma is on cloud nine! Mom had gone through 24 hours of labor before being wheeled off for a C-section. She's doing great, though, and will be able to come home with her precious bundle of joy in a couple days.

At about the same time, I received notice from a Ugandan friend about a young woman who had just died during childbirth. She had had a fine pregnancy and had gone into labor, telling her 2-year old daughter she was going "shopping for a baby in Kampala" and would be home soon with a new little brother or sister. Something led the doctor to decide on a C-section and during the procedure, both mom and baby died.

The contrast between life in America and life in Uganda sometimes knocks me out.

More than 100 women die during childbirth each week in Uganda. A whopping 76 of 1,000 newborns do not reach the age of one. Only 52% of births are attended by skilled personnel. In rural areas, this figure drops to 37 percent. Uganda is ranked among the ten bottom countries for highest maternal, newborn and under-5 mortality rates in the world. 

This morning I've been thinking about my American friend's joyous news, and I've been thinking about my Ugandan friend's terrible loss. 

And realizing there is so much work on so many levels to be done in our beloved east African country.

another look II

While recently revisiting the images I made last year in Uganda, I paid attention to this one for the first time.


"A photograph is a secret about a secret. The more it tells you the less you know."
-Diane Arbus

another look

Back in the days of contact sheets, I labeled and filed them carefully. On occasion I would go back and look through them, concentrating on the images NEXT TO the ones I had selected in the editing process. Every now and then, those near misses gained credibility and started to make more sense to me. And so I’d print them, and sometimes I’d be really pleased that I had rescued a good picture from its previous death sentence.

Fast forward…

I try hard not to erase any of the images I capture as I am shooting digitally. Same reason. Now and then, I go back and consider the ones that didn’t measure up during my first few edits.

Sometimes, I am surprised at what I let get away.

And I give it a life.

This image was made last year in Kajjansi, just down the road from the orphanage. My current frame of mind says, “Hey, Gloria, give this one a chance.”

collision

Too often I get caught up in the self imposed need to put my work into neat little categories, complete with project titles. Occasionally an image crosses over, and a collision occurs. This picture was made as part of the dream series, but is finding its way into my group of sea pictures. Or maybe the Uganda pictures. Or perhaps "Convergence"?

book work

The collaborative process of making a new book has begun.

The photographs have been selected with the help of curator Keith Davis. Photographer and teacher Thatcher Cook, and Ann Thomas, therapist, are writing essays; Sam Brandao is editing them. Lindsay Laricks is busy with the design of the book. And Meridian Press is gearing up for the printing of it.

And I have been spending glorious days in my digital darkroom making reference prints and hammering out an essay of my own. Blissful activities for this lucky girl.

The book, still unnamed at this point, has a long way to go before it makes its way to the east coast for printing and binding. It is interesting and gratifying to watch it all come together, as all these talented people - located in different parts of the country - help weave together the finished product.

Included in the book will be my black and white work made in Uganda in 2006 and 2007, as well as the color dream pictures made on the most recent trip in 2008. We may even include some of the artwork made by the children at the orphanage.

save the date

When you have four and a half minutes of quiet time today, please give it to us at Change the Truth.

When you do, you can watch the latest creation by Change the Truth board member, volunteer Team Member and filmmaker Lynne Melcher. It was made in collaboration with award winning Austin filmmaker Layton Blaylock.

It is a request that you mark your calendar for the second annual CTT Friendraiser/Fundraiser. It is also a thoughtful and powerful short film that helps explain the work that is being done in Uganda because of generous supporters like you.

(To view it properly, you’ll want to click on the HD button that is in the lower right corner of the You Tube screen. You Tube isn’t perfect; sometimes the film chokes. Please bear with it.)

And please pass this link on. Change the Truth has grown from just a handful of people to over 300 active supporters. This is simply because people like you have spread the word to family and friends.

In this film, you will see that the helping hand we have extended has touched the children at St. Mary Kevin Orphanage in a very warm and wonderful way.

Got some time? Here's the link.

world water day exhibition

Opening March 7th at the White Sturgeon Art Gallery of the Water Resources Education Center in Vancouver, Washington will be an exhibition of my Uganda photographs. The curator, Maya Jones, chose to show my work in honor of World Water Day 2009. She appropriately selected this image to use on the exhibition notices. I made this picture on my first trip to Uganda in 2006, when I took a workshop from Thatcher Cook. I had walked with some of the children who live in the small village of Buyingi to their water hole. After this little girl had finished filling her jerry can, I asked her to place her hand on the surface of the water.

The exhibit will run through April 25th.

b.o.o.k.

When I was a graduate student, I had the opportunity to study with Phil Hamilton. Phil was a graphics man who happened to love letterpress printing. His studio classroom was chock full of type cases, pica sticks, inks and Vandercook letterpress printing presses. I can still recall the smells and sounds of that room. There was no better place on campus to hang out.

The coolest part of it all was watching books being born. My classmates and I spent countless hours conceiving and designing books and then setting type, one letter at a time. The sections of type were locked onto the beds of presses, then printed one page at a (very slow and methodical) time.

My love for beautiful books has not died. I love the feel of a nice paper, the sound of a page turning, the way an image “sits” in its place, the creative arrangement of type and the eloquent conversation that takes place between all these elements.

My press name back in the 70’s was “Yellow Bird.” I continued with the moniker when I self-published Convergence in 2001. On the heels of that was Among the Ashes.

Yellow Bird Press is proud to announce that a new book is on the horizon! It is unnamed at this point, but the work to birth it has begun. It will include photographs and essays about the children in Uganda. Its due date is early June. The book is being underwritten by a very generous donor; all proceeds from sales will go to Change the Truth.

Since it will be a small run with several people carefully collaborating, it still feels kind of like a handmade book to me. I certainly will not be setting one letter at a time, but I believe I will be putting it together with the same amount of attention to detail and deep appreciation for the beauty of a well deigned and well printed photography book that I learned back in Phil Hamilton’s classroom.

hands

"The hands (med./lat.: manus, pl. manūs) are the two intricate, prehensile, multi-fingered body parts normally located at the end of each arm of a human or other primate. They are the chief organs for physically manipulating the environment, using anywhere from the roughest motor skills (wielding a club) to the finest (threading a needle), and since the fingertips contain some of the densest areas of nerve endings on the human body, they are also the richest source of tactile feedback so that sense of touch is intimately associated with human hands. Like other paired organs (eyes, ears, legs), each hand is dominantly controlled by the opposing brain hemisphere, and thus handedness, or preferred hand choice for single-handed activities such as writing with a pen, reflects a significant individual trait." ~ From Wikipedia

Going through my images from this trip and even last year’s, I am struck by all the hands that appear in the frames. Brian, my friend from last year’s workshop who designed the logo for Change the Truth came up with the hand motif without any suggestions from me. I think the whole idea of making a connection is what this may be about. A connection to ourselves, a connection to others, a connection to the world.

collage number 3

letters and photos from uganda

“Dear Friends of Change the Truth,

My name is Joseph Mukiibi. I am 13 years old. I live at St. Mary Kevin Orphanage Motherhood. I am an orphan. It is sad, however I am happy that I have Madam Rose Mary who took care of me when I was eight years old. I am very happy to receive the good news about my sponsorship from Change the Truth. Now I can see my future is bright. I promise to be a good boy and to work hard in my secondary school because through your help I will start Senior One. I have sent you my photo.

God bless you,
Yours faithfully,
Joseph”

“Dear Friends of Change the Truth,

My name is Habib Mbowa. I live at St. Mary Kevin Orphanage Motherhood. I am 14 years old. I have no father or mother to take care of me, but I have a grandmother with four grandchildren. Mary Kevin Orphanage started taking care of me when I was in Primary Four.

I am so excited to receive your sponsorship and I promise to strive for my future. I did my last term’s exams and I was ninth out of fifty three students. You have made my dream very clear.

Yours faithfully,
Habib”