Last week my boss and his translator went out into town and bought a pile of supplies with money he had raised through his hometown church. The Marine's patrol between our base and the Somali border (11 miles to the south) and find local villages in need of some American compassion. They then worked with the town chieftain to setup 10 families that needed a helper gift - a goat and a wheelbarrow, and 10 families that needed a food charity gift - a bag of rice, a bag of tea, a bag of sugar, a cooking pot and a thermos. Then after that we handed out toys, flip-flops and balls that the XO had collected from his family and friends. The kids there were very excited to see us, the adults were initially shy, but came around when they realized we were giving them stuff. One of the kids came up to me and said, "Sir, Mr. Allen, water, water please, please give me water Mr. Allen." He had read my nametag. Smart little kids! One of the teenages gave me one of those long MTV handshakes with the slapping, and knuckling and the whole bit. We'll probably go back out in a few weeks. If you want to send stuff for us to hand out, e-mail me and I'll send you my address. If you want me to buy a goat or something, the prices are :
$ 6.75 - bag of sugar
$ 16.88 - bag of rice
$ 7.32 -tea kettles
$ 10.13 - thermos
$ 6.03 -bag of tea
$ 28.14 - goat
$ 33.76 -wheelbarrow
The kids liked the flip-flops and sports balls the best, especially soccer balls. Maybe even super colorful rolls of cloth. There is no color other than dirt and leaves except for the clothes people wear, and the women seem to make their own robes.
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