Happy Holidays

Happy Holidays to all my friends and family-

Thank you for all your thoughts, prayers, and well wishes this year. I have completed my year with Arlington Academy of Hope as Special Projects Coordinator in Bumwalukani, Uganda. Throughout the course of the year, I focused on sustainable outreach through teacher education, mentoring and coaching the girl child, improving the quality of resources by purchasing over 1,500 textbooks and library books for the school library, and evaluating and recommending other special projects such as the secondary program, teacher training, and solar power. I have had an unforgettable year and have met incredible, hard working people.

On weekends, I spent most of my time traveling-- sometimes for work and sometimes for fun! From a safari in the Serengeti National Park to white water rafting down the Nile, my favorite place has been Jinja, Uganda. Jinja has great weather, fun people, cheap drinks, plenty of monkeys, and beautiful landscapes!

Towards the end of my time at Arlington Academy of Hope, I decided that I was not ready to leave Uganda. So I have decided to stay in Uganda for another year, but instead of being deep in a village, I will be working in Kampala- the chaotic capital city. I have accepted a job with Coach Africa. Coach Africa is an executive coaching organization with clients such as Compassion International, PricewaterhouseCoopers, and Emirates Airlines. My role will involve quality assurance, organizing and managing training for team building, risk management, and strategic planning.

In my free time, I will continue traveling and volunteering with organizations such as Arlington Academy of Hope (www.aahuganda.org), MERSNIP, a weekend care program for children with special needs, and a micro finance project. In addition, I have been working as business advisor for Jinja Art Studio, and I just launched their new website: (www.jinjaart.media.officelive.com).

I am going to be coming back to the States for three weeks at the end of this month. I will be traveling to Minnesota, Iowa, and Texas to visit family and friends. I look forward to my next year in Uganda as a new opportunity to see another side of the developing world. I will continue with the updates via my blog at: emilysoeder.blogspot.com

I wish you all the best holiday season,

Emily


Updated contact info: Email (same): esoeder@gmail.com

Address in Uganda:

Emily Soeder

c/o Angelo Wasike

P.O. Box 725

Jinja, Uganda

Ph: 011-256-756938627



Address in the States:

Emily Soeder

845 Fair Lane

New Braunfels, TX 78130

Ph: 319-352-1449