until they tasted it. The next week I
found a large pile of bananas on my
desk with a note asking, "can you
make some more?"
ice cream, egg rolls, French toast
sticks, mini pizzas, veggie meatloaf,
fiesta rice, breakfast burritos and
fried rice. I made recipe cards for 10
entrees that could be made with per-
ishable ingredients for
less than $20. As I
demonstrated how to
make French toast
sticks, everyone stared
at me strangely. Three
Asian women crept up
to my table and peered
wide�eyed into the bowl
in disbelief. They
thought I had gone mad!
fered samples with
tatively until one gentlemen tried it
and said, "hey--that's good!" Every-
one then devoured their samples--
and picked up the recipe cards. The
cultural differences continue to make
for interesting interactions as we
learn to work together.
and Fridays
our corps
provides a
"perishable
food give-
away." People
line up very
early in the
morning,
allowed. Most are senior citizens of
Asian or Middle Eastern descent.
processed within 24�48 hours. As I
watched women leave laden with
food, I was concerned that they
couldn't possibly use it all before it
spoiled. So I suggested roasting zuc-
chini with parmesan and olive oil,
and using English muffins to make a
quick pizza for kids. At the next give-
away I brought in a food processor
and added bananas to make a
healthy "ice cream." The volunteers
a growing humanitarian crisis as hundreds of thou-
sands of people have fled their homes due to a civil war
in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Some of the dis-
placed people are living in temporary camps within the
find shelter
after flee-
ing their
homes.
seeking safety in Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi.
crease in Congolese refugees coming over the border.
Our assessment team found conditions in the Nkamira
Transit Camp in Rubavu to be extremely poor. Clean
water and food is in short supply, and many people
have travelled without even the most basic posses-
sions--including clothing. The camp was set up to
house 2,500 people but it is now home to almost 8,500,
with more arriving every day."
Distributing nutritional food for mothers who breast-
feed their children is a priority.
of food for 10,000 internally displaced persons.
situation.