Golu Resource Center Well on It's Way to Being a Self-Sustainable Facility.

So far we have been able to complete the construction of the resource center, install solar power and provide a few computers and other equipment to get things started. The Golu community has played an extremely active part in getting the center where it is today. Volunteers from the community have stepped up to help manage the facility and provide security. The center and village has even started to generate revenue from solar powered cell phone charge stations and they even have plans to start charging admission to watch sporting events and movies on a projected screen. All revenue will stay in the community and go towards running the facility. The center has proven to be useful in more ways than what TVL originally anticipate by providing both Golu and surrounding villages the benefit of solar power during night time deliveries for the health and safety of mother and child . It's amazing that the center has been able to contribute to the community in this way!

The village members are really entrepreneurial at heart and want to better their home and provide opportunity for their young. The center may have been built through TVL but during each step in the process we have stuck to our goal of working with the community to ensure they get what THEY need vs. told what they need. Through our experience and expertise, we have been able to provide innovative solutions to meet these needs. The resource center is well on its way to being the self-sustaining operation we have been working towards. We just have a few more milestones to reach before closing this chapter.

1. Install a digital library with local and global content
2. Provide education for community volunteers
   1. Solar Power Maintenance
   2. Cell Phone Carrier Training Program (Top Up Minutes)
3. Generate Enough Revenue to sustain building requirements

If you'd like to help us reach these milestones you can do so through a contribution here.

Village Life in Golu

Here are some more pictures from our trip to Salone. Such a great vibe and place to be.

Journal Entries From Salone 2013 - Entry 4

December 2 - 3:

Today I want to give you a glimpse into the village life and the people that make up Golu. Over the past few days I've been talking with people of all ages and the common theme is gratitude for what TVL is doing. The reason for this is because TVL has committed to be a community driven resource and facilitator to provide what the people want and need instead of telling them what they need and want. You will notice as you look through our photos that there are many meetings I take with the leaders of the community to make sure TVL stays in tune with the community needs. This is the driving force of what we do. Enjoy the photos and please stay connected with us on Facebook, Twitter and our website for more updates on our Nov./Dec. 2013 trip to Salone and lighting up Project Golu!

If you would like to make a donation to help us complete this project you can here.

Journal Entries From Salone 2013 - Entry 3

Nov. 29 - Dec. 1:

Today is #GivingTuesday so all over the world charities are lobbying for consumers to donate to their cause. Today’s blog post is both an update on our trip to Salone launching the Community Resource Center (CRC) and meant to be inspiration for you to click the donate button if you agree with what we're working on.

It's been such a great time in Golu and a busy one! I love the village life. The rains have ended but everything is still so very green and its not yet dusty as we transitions into the dry season. There's a lot of new life: chicks, ducklings, kittens and baby goats...not to mention the always-endearing human kids. It's quite wonderful! Food-wise, we're eating home-grown "red rice" which is delicious and nutritious. On Thanksgiving we were down at the river and bought freshly caught fish from the fisherman. Everything is so natural. I love it.

We chatted with some diamond miners who were walking up the road from the river. They do some mining by hand in and around the river. One of them had a diamond with him. He dug it out of his pocket. He had it wrapped up in a small piece of foil that looked like it was from  pack of cigarettes. It was so tiny and dirty. Yet, I'm sure it was quite valuable. It was cool the way he just pulled it out of his pocket. He had mined it that day.

As far as development at the resource center. It's so impressive how excited the villagers are and how appreciative. We have a core group that has evolved around managing it and they are terrific. I am very impressed with 2 of the young guys, especially. They are so sharp and learn everything so quickly. One is illiterate but has picked up the solar technology mechanics in a snap. He told me he wants to learn to read and write. TVL is now committed to getting an adult literacy program off the ground. We talked about it at the town meeting and so many of the young adults lit up at the mention of it. Many of them lost the opportunity to go to school because of the war. The illiteracy rate among adults is 60%. The illiteracy rate among the children has been reduced to 40%. That's still ridiculously high, of course. In Golu, approximately 200 out of 500 school-age kids are not in school. Read about Ishmael’s story on how he was affected by the civil war on our Facebook page. The theme of illiterate young adults is all too common and something that needs to be addressed.

With the exciting news of the opportunity for young adults in the community to finally be able to learn and write from the town hall meeting in Golu the ladies broke out in song and dance. See video below.

Post by Village Link.

In addition to town meetings we also traveled to a neighboring town, Gerehun which is about 4 miles from Golu on the Bo-Kenema Highway. We met with elders and the chief on 11/29, to discuss ways to cooperate, promote joint efforts and advance the common goals of TVL and similar initiatives in Gerehun.

I hope that you enjoyed our post from Sierra Leone and that it inspired you. If you would like to make a contribution to TVL you will be helping us to complete our Community Resource Center. You can contribute by clicking here. Your contribution will go towards newer technologies, power sources, internet connectivity, furniture, continuous upkeep of the building and educational programs geared towards children and adults literacy.

Stay connected with us on Facebook, Twitter and our blog for more updates on our Nov./Dec. 2013 trip to Salone and lighting up Project Golu!

Below are more recent photos from this visit. You can view more on our Facebook page here.

Journal Entries From Salone 2013 - Entry 2

November 27-28 2013:

Happy Thanksgiving from Sierra Leone! As North American’s we have so much to be thankful for. The everyday basics we take for granted, such as power that we have continuous access to all the time, is something others have never experienced or have to travel miles to have access to. This is just one thing we will be giving the village of Golu this Holiday!

If you've been following our Twitter and Facebook posts you already know that TVL is back in Sierra Leone this Holiday to get our first Community Resource Center (CRC) off the ground. In my first post (below) I let you in on all of the technology we’ve brought with us from Silicon Valley to get things started.

Before heading off to Golu, we've been meeting with our Sierra Leonian counterparts, friends and partners in Freetown. “Taking care of business” as they say. However, a big part of the joy for me coming back to this country is reconnecting with long time friends from my Peace Corps. volunteer days. One of those friends is an Irish Catholic priest, Father Brian Starken, who lived in Sierra Leone from 1975-1997. Six of those years were during the civil war. During the 1970’s and 80’s, Brian taught school in Pujehun and then build a secondary school in Gerehun. I also taught school in Pujehun and then later moved to Golu which is only 4 miles from Gerehun. So, Brian and I were acquainted then. During the war, the school Brian built was destroyed. He ran camps for villagers displaced by the war and homes for boy soldiers who were released by the armies after UNESCO came into the country and insisted on their release. Brian was back in Europe for a number of years and now has returned to work on a center in Kenema. Needless to say, it has been great to catch up with a dear friend and someone working with Sierra Leoneans in creating positive social change in their beautiful country.

Another dear friend of mine from my Peace Corps. volunteer days is Mr. Fillie, now Chief Fillie of Golu. He and his family lived with me back in the 70's and is someone I can’t wait to catch up with to see how his family is. I'm so excited to get back to the village and get the CRC lit up and ready for operation. It’s going to be a crazy and fun time for me and TVL!

Stay connected with us on Facebook, Twitter and our website for more updates on our Nov./Dec. 2013 trip to Salone and lighting up Project Golu! If you would like to make a donation to help us complete this project you can here.