At this point in time and during the past two months, I can say these kids have sustained my dreams of working with children as a component with my future career. Here at S.O.S. I can undoubtedly say I’ve experienced a hand full of challenges. These challenges have given me the opportunity to learn more about these children as well as more about myself. I’ve been receiving a great amount of support amongst the other volunteers and from those I’ve built friendships with here in this country. The amount of talent and charisma these children have is so incredibly inspirational.
I have been enjoying the schedule that I have made for myself. Every other day I am assisting in the kindergarten class and during the days in between I spend my hours in the S.O.S. office. In the office a do a variety of work such as assisting the staff with proposals, or reports. I also use that time to prepare activities and events for the kids and other initiatives I have set out for myself.

Last week I had the opportunity to travel to Gaborone for WUSC’s Learning Day! It was really nice to get to see with the other volunteers and share our experiences thus far. That day we also went to the University of Botswana and were lucky enough to speak with a professor of the university as well as other knowledgeable individuals who were able to provide us with a better understanding of Botswana.

Currently I am planning an Activity Day for the village children. I am anticipating a fun and exciting day completely dedicated to the children.
I am also working to revive the S.O.S. Girl Guides group; so far we’ve had a few meetings and activities. I am currently finishing the agenda for the next month and my hopes are to expose these group of girls to a more interactive and hands-on approach to ‘guiding’. The S.O.S. Village also has intense initiatives to strengthen the education of children in standard one up until standard seven. The kids are expected to attend weekly study schedules and are given the opportunity for individual help with a variety of subjects. I too am a part of this initiative, and supervisor the standard 5 children weekly. Another initiative would be the expansion of the S.O.S. library. I’ve given myself the responsibility to acquire books donations and I hope to see a positive response at the end of my placement here.

I foresee the next few weeks to be quite hectic and busy to ensure I complete everything I have planned to do in this position. I’m trying not to think of the little time I have left here and but rather enjoying every day to the fullest as a distraction to the concept of time.
Thank you for checking in on my Blog! I’ll keep you updated shortly!

Kimberley Veitch
(Children’s Support Worker)

I can’t believe that in one month I will be travelling half way across the world. The application process happened so quickly. Sometimes I’ll have woken up in the morning asking myself if this is all real. I feel so privileged to have this opportunity. I am anticipating my arrival and cant to see what this beautiful country has in store for me.

My name is Kimberley Veitch and I am currently studying in my third year at the University of Ottawa, where I am majoring in psychology. This will be my first time traveling to the continent of Africa. I can’t wait to see and experience the culture. I feel prepared and determined to put myself into a situation in which I will be able to put forth my efforts towards a worthy cause. I will be working in Francistown as a Children’s Village Support Worker. I soft stop in my heart for children and I believe that all children are entitled to the same opportunities. Every child deserves joyful memories of their childhood. With my placement I expect to work hard in order to do my part. Three months is such a short period and I know the time will pass by quickly.
I feel that participating in this internship will open a door to what I’ve been searching for. I want to be exposed to environment where everyone is working toward a common goal. I can only imagine the drive of the people working in such organizations and I would love to witness and learn from them. This will also be my first time working with an NGO and I believe it will be the first of many to come.
I live my life to discover inspiration. People are what make life worth living for. Everyone has their own story; many times we learn from other people’s experiences and are motivated by them. I expect to learn a lot about myself and others through this experience.