Moving Forward

Hey everyone,

So in the past few days I have got a few new contact from friends, John and Nicole to be specific. I have gotten in contact with a guy who has already built sports fields in Uganda and he offered to help me out and talk to me whenever he gets back from Uganda. Also, I have gotten a contact for the Schools4Schools representative from Invisible Children and I am trying to get a contact at a school in Uganda so that the deed to the land can be under their name and we can make sure to find suitable land for the field. I'm getting excited :). I need to get to Uganda....

Jeff :)

Trip to Africa?

So for the past week or so I have avoided studying at all costs and instead began to look into service trips and opportunities to go abroad. So I've been talking to people here and a few of us are legit considering making contacts and making our own trip to Kenya or Uganda. Right now we have had a couple thoughts about where to go and what to do. A recent thought by my buddy Will was to bring some joy to the kid's lives at displaced camps. Possibly raising money and getting sponsorships to help build a, as Will puts it, "football pitch". I like it, its different and a gift which can bring the kids a way to leave everything behind and clear their minds a little bitch each day and create a tight knit community. So right now I am emailing people I know, trying to see if anyone knows anyone with an MLS contact or some other sort of contact and go from there. If you guys have any ideas please post them as a comment, we're open to everything!

:)

IC

So Invisible Children just came last night to campus and showed the video of Sunday who is a displaced boy in Uganda. I was really happy with the turnout of the showing, we're thinking about 115-125 people showed up :) i was really excited. Also, I met some awesome people like always with invisible children and like always i want to drop out of school right now and join the roadie team, or leave the country and set up camp in some third world country and do some good work there. I'm up for just about anything tonight and would honestly look into flying away tomorrow morning if the opportunity presented itself..... just need to post something tonight, a nice way to let it all out....

Busy Busy Busy

Hey Everyone!

Sorry, I have been super busy these past few weeks. But it is now November, scary, I know! But my next little research for my non profit is going to be reading about Pol Pot and see if there is a way we can help be a direct influence and try to help cure some of the problems which he had created in Cambodia. Also, I am taking advice on what to do with my life so if you have any ideas let me know!
Also, if anyone has any contacts in Cambodia could you please let me know?

Thanks

Found a cause?

Hey everyone,

So I was just talking to my friend Kate Ryan who is currently living the life and traveling around asia for the semester. i'm jealous. HOWEVER, she has helped me out a lot and just provided me with an email to an orphanage in phnom penh and I have just emailed him hoping to set up a contact and hopefully making a trip there in the near future :) :) :)

Lets get this rolling!

Fall Break :)

So Bridgette is in DC right now for the march for equal rights and the green fest (yay environment!)and promises she will update the blog when she gets back to school. But I keep getting yelled at for not updating the post and keeping people informed and all. So right now I am thinking of focusing in Cambodia. Thanks to Nancy, I'm reading the book The Road of Lost Innocence. The book is about a Cambodian girl who was forced into the life of an indentured sex slave- unknowingly of course- and she shared her story with us. So I'm thinking of doing a trip to Cambodia to get a personal story of a female over there. If not I will do the next best thing, see if there is a group in the US who sponsors Cambodians to move into the states and get away from the world of sex slavery. For now it is Fall Break so I will be relaxing for a little bit, reading my new book, and talking more with Bridgette about our plans. Also, my mother, dearest Jude, wanted a shout-out, so here it is Jude: Thanks Mom for becoming a follower!

Introduction Part 1: Jeff

For those of you who don't know myself or Bridgette, we thought it would be a good idea to introduce ourselves. Bridgette will be posting on the blog tomorrow sometime. But for me: My name is Jeffrey Thomas Howell (as it appears on my birth certificate, but that is only a piece of paper anyways so call me what you want). I was born and raised in Pittsburgh and love my hometown, and the Steelers of course. I went to Catholic schools my whole life, have some regrets, but eh it was good so far. I am currently a Junior at Mount Saint Mary's University majoring in Environmental Science and minoring in Biology and Chemistry. Currently, I am Vice President of the Environmental Club on campus, a student representative on the ESSC committee, a Resident Assistant, and Mount Ambassador (aka I sell the school). So yeah, busy busy schedule, but I guess thats what I get for being a science major. However, I did get to travel and spend a semester on the other side of the world in Sydney, Bali, and SOUTH island New Zealand (shout out to my aussies). I love to travel and have seen some insane amounts of injustices and inequality throughout the world. I have been inspired to do what I can to change the world. My thoughts for this organization is to inspire others. If I am able to bring out the emotions in individuals, then they will follow the cause and the movement will start itself. Like I said in the first post, what makes us so different? WHY CAN'T WE!?

The Beginning

Hey guys,
So tonight Bridgette and I had our random text session and we developed plans for our lives. We are starting a non-profit organization. Right now our idea is to focus on child slavery, especially that of the use of children as sex slaves. So Bridgette and I will both be writing on this blog periodically. Right now we are in the planning stages and have our hopes set nice and high :). I have never been so excited about an idea. We both have exciting mindsets and high expectations and are thinking: what makes us so different from other individuals who have changed the world. WHO SAYS WE CAN'T?!

-Jeff