Our first day in Zambia

I arrived this afternoon in Lusaka, Zambia after being 'stuck' overnight in Johannesburg. It seems that everyone in our group experienced some type of delay, and we all agreed that we need to adjust to a new cultural rhythm in Africa. Nothing moves quickly.

Betty Chella Nalungwe, the Communications Assistant for the UNICEF office in Lusaka, greeted me at the airport. It was wonderful to see a bright blue UNICEF t-shirt and a warm, friendly smile as soon I stepped into the terminal. I was quickly moved through the VIP/Diplomat line at passport control, which is an indication of the esteem in which UNICEF is held within the country.

US Fund for UNICEF

Maryanne and Paul Harvey with Betty Chella Nalungwe stand next to the UNICEF Range Rover at Lusaka Airport.

Betty gave up most of her weekend to fetch me and the other visitors, which she seemed to do happily. In fact, Friday was her birthday, and she spent many hours at the airport waiting for Sean and Griffin Flannery, 2 members of our group from the Boston area, to arrive. None of that put a damper on her energy, though! Casey Marsh is part of a delegation of U.S. Fund for UNICEF staff and supporters currently visiting UNICEF's country programs in Zambia. She will be reporting on her experiences from the field all week.

I arrived this afternoon in Lusaka, Zambia after being 'stuck' overnight in Johannesburg. It seems that everyone in our group experienced some type of delay, and we all agreed that we need to adjust to a new cultural rhythm in Africa. Nothing moves quickly.

Betty Chella Nalungwe, the Communications Assistant for the UNICEF office in Lusaka, greeted me at the airport. It was wonderful to see a bright blue UNICEF t-shirt and a warm, friendly smile as soon I stepped into the terminal. I was quickly moved through the VIP/Diplomat line at passport control, which is an indication of the esteem in which UNICEF is held within the country.

US Fund for UNICEF

Maryanne and Paul Harvey with Betty Chella Nalungwe stand next to the UNICEF Range Rover at Lusaka Airport.

Betty gave up most of her weekend to fetch me and the other visitors, which she seemed to do happily. In fact, Friday was her birthday, and she spent many hours at the airport waiting for Sean and Griffin Flannery, 2 members of our group from the Boston area, to arrive. None of that put a damper on her energy, though!

We all arrived safely"Paul and Maryann Harvey from Chicago via Kenya, and Sean and his son Griffin Flannery. Most of the afternoon, we were free to rest and recover from the long journey. The weather is absolutely beautiful"warm, sunny and breezy. Each time I enter the elevator in our hotel, I say hello to a thin Zambian woman posted to guard our floor. She has been standing in the same spot, guarding, since we arrived about 12 hours ago. She tells me that her shift will last until tomorrow morning.

This evening, our group met with Lotta Sylwander, a Swedish national and the Country Representative in charge of the UNICEF office here in Lusaka. Lotta offered us much insight on the country of Zambia and what we can expect in the days ahead. There are 12 million people in Zambia, and more than half are children under age 18. Of those, 1 million are orphans. HIV/AIDS has ravaged the country, and currently, it is estimated that 16 percent of Zambians live with the disease.

There are about 72 tribes in Zambia, and they all speak different languages. There are, however, about 8 primary languages. Lotta told us about the street children who we will meet with later in the week. She said that there are three groups of kids: those who are permanently homeless; those who have a place to stay and do so part-time while living on the street part-time; and those who have homes but work the streets as beggars during the day in order to help support their families. Again, this ties into the HIV/AIDS pandemic and how it has ravaged the social fabric of the country. UNICEF funds both governmental programs and NGOs to help these children find permanent housing, receive vocational training, or be placed with family members.

Copper mining in the country has experienced a real boon in the past few years, and as a result, there is hope that the economy will improve. However, the trickle down effect has not been felt yet.

US Fund for UNICEF

Sean and Griffin Flannery, Paul and Maryanne Harvey, and Casey Marsh (left to right) go to dinner on their first night in Zambia.

After dousing ourselves in Deet to prevent mosquito bites, our group had dinner on the patio of our hotel. We had a wonderful conversation about the challenges of fundraising and the importance of communicating our experiences to people at home so that they too can feel connected to the work of UNICEF. I hope to share many more stories with you in the week to come so that you can experience this trip vicariously!