The Story Continues

Hi everyone in every corner of the globe, hear my voice of joy and gratitude. I am Eric Otim, one of the first 100 students to receive a Legacy Scholarship from Invisible Children (IC) and a former Roadie on the northern California team.

And now…. the Communications Intern with IC Uganda!

I want IC supporters to know that whether you see it or not, you are changing lives daily: you changed mine. Your donations have brought significant change to education in Northern Uganda.

I appreciate my Legacy Scholarship Program (LSP) mentors’ guidance, active involvement and dedication to reaching my school and village.  It’s what kept me courageous and focused – knowing that someone out there cares. Through my mentors, I gathered strength to overcome the hurdles I faced.

After six years in LSP, on October 28^th, 2011, I graduated from Uganda Christian University with a bachelor’s degree of arts in Mass Communication. My graduation was super nice and now gives me opportunities that have changed my life completely.

I chose Mass Communication because I have a passion for unearthing the truth that some people try to keep hidden. One day, I want to be an author of fiction and nonfiction that will transform my society.

Joining an IC Roadie team for spring tour 2011 was marvelous. Thank you host families, friends and well-wishers in the US.  Your hospitality and sacrifice are IC’s lifeblood. I enjoyed my advocacy moments with you, feeling like part of your own family. Congratulations on all we’ve accomplished together.

This week my story with IC continues. Let’s join hands to change the world!

-Eric

The Scholar

The Roadie

The Intern

Behind KONY 2012 tour: Team CalVegas

TEAM CalVegas
Los Angeles County, San Bernardino County, Riverside County, Ventura County, Santa Barbara County, St. George (Utah), Las Vegas
MARTHA PELAYO, CHELSEY ESCHEVARRIA, COURTNEY MCGUIRE & LOGAN RICHARDS

Self-proclaimed team motto: “We throw glitter, we make it rain…we love CalVegas, bang-a-rang!”
[Sidenote: they also have a team handshake – ask them to do it on stage at a screening]

Good afternoon Team CalVegas. Please state your name and where you’re from for the record.

Courtney McGuire (CM): I’m Courtney and I’m from Portland, Oregon.

Chelsey Eschevarria (CE): Chelsey, Tarpon Springs, Florida.

Logan Richards (LR): My name is Logan and I’m from Mineral Wells, West Virginia.

Martha Pelayo (MP): I’m Martha and I’m from Monterrey, Mexico.

Martha, does anyone ever tell you that you look like Miranda Kerr?

MP: No, who is that?

She’s just a Victoria Secret supermodel who is married to Orlando Bloom. No biggie. How did you all learn about Invisible Children?

CM: I watched a Fall Out Boy music video and saw a link to IC. I went on youtube and watched The Rough Cut.

CE: My freshman year of college at UCF, I went to a screening on campus. I interned this past summer and was a roadie last semester.

LR: A friend invited me to The Rescue in Huntington, WV. I went and then watched The Rough Cut, and then booked screenings at my college (WVU-Parkersburg).

MP: Roadies came to my school and I saw The Rescue. I went to LA in 2010 for the Bamboozle Festival and met Kenny and Alex. Then I hosted a screening at my school last semester (ITESM).

Any personal habits that your teammates will be annoyed with after tour?

CM: I can’t wake up in the morning; I sleep like a rock

CE: I have lots and lots of energy. And I’m a stickler for time.

You should be in charge of waking Courtney up from her deep sleep. It’s time! It’s time! You’re welcome in advance for solving your problems.

LR: I’m stubborn about not eating fruits and vegetables, and I’m on a team of vegetarians and vegans. I goof off a lot and like to say random things that don’t sense. And I’m really talkative.

You don’t say.

MP: I can’t stop laughing when I start (proceeds to laugh…and laugh).

What is your favorite football team? As with other roadie teams, if you don’t have one, I will choose the Chargers for you by default.

CM: I don’t watch football. So, Chargers?

You betcha.

CE: Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

LR: The Boston Red Sox.

MP: Pittsburgh Steelers.

I’m not really happy with any of your answers, but this is not about me. What is your favorite food?

CM: Dessert…any kind.

CE: Leaves…salad…vegan.

LR: Chicken…carnivore.

MP: Berries.

And finally, who is your celebrity crush?

CM: Male or female?

Either. Both.

CM: Emma Watson and Darren Criss.

CE: Tim Allen. And Taye Diggs. I have jungle fever.

LR: Natalie Portman and Drew Barrymore.

MP: Angelina Jolie.

Oh, Angelina. Yes. She really does surpass all reasoning. Well Team CalVegas, good luck on your adventure. Stop at nothing.

______________________

Team CalVegas wants to come to your town. Book a screening by calling them at (619) 562-2799, Ext 195 or fill out this form.

Behind KONY 2012 tour: Team NorCal

TEAM NorCal
Northern California (anything north of Bakersfield), Nevada (not Las Vegas)
ALEX GARCIA, DAWIT ALEMAYEHU, HANNAH FORDHAM & ALEXANDRA MIKRO

Self-proclaimed team motto: “Ubuntu” – Afrikaans (language of South Africa) for “love of each other”

Team NorCal, hello and welcome to my office. Tell us where you are from.

Hannah Fordham (HF): I am from Canyon, Texas.

Alex Garcia (AG): Las Cruces, New Mexico.

Alexandra Mikro (AM): I’m from Chicago, Illinois (fists in the air).

Dawit Alemayehu (DW): Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Dawit, how many times a day do you have to spell your name for people?

DW: Every time.

Can I call you Chuck?

DW: Sure.

Very good. How did you all learn about Invisible Children?

HF: My brother Tyler was a roadie in 2008.

AG: Two years ago when I was a freshman in college at New Mexico State University.

AM: Working in refugee resettlement in Denver, Colorado.

Chuck: My sophomore year at Concordia College in Minnesota, I watched The Rough Cut with a friend.

You’re going to be together on the road in a confined space for months. Any habits your teammates are going to be annoyed with after the tour?

HF: I like to sing out loud. And I’m the driver so I get to have control of the music. I have every Glee soundtrack.

AG: I tend to lose things.

AM: I get really fixated on things…and forget about other things I have to get done. I have a one-track mind.

Chuck: I like to always talk about what’s trending on Twitter.

This should be an interesting road trip for the four of you. Hannah will be singing, Alex will lose his mind, Alexandra will be fixated on Hannah’s singing, and Chuck will want to start the trend #annoyed. What is your favorite food?

HF: BBQ.

AG: Italian food.

AM: Thai food.

Chuck: Chicken fried rice with extra hot sauce.

Good luck with the smells in your van…If you could have lunch with anyone, dead or alive, who would it be?

HF: Robert Pattinson.

AG: Patrick Switzer…he’s a longboarder.

Thank you for clarifying before I had to ask.

AM: Nelson Mandela.

Chuck: Friedrich Nietzsche…he’s an author.

And finally, what is your favorite football team? If you don’t have one, I am putting the Chargers by default.

HM: Dallas Cowboys.

AG: New England Patriots.

AM: Chicago Bears.

Chuck: The Indianapolis Colts.

Good-bye and good luck, roadie friends.  We’re proud of you already.  Stop at nothing.
_______________

Team NorCal wants to meet you. Book a screening by giving them a ring at (619) 562-2799, Ext 184 or fill out this form.

Legacy Scholarship Program: Prepping for exams

Legacy Scholarship Program students Walter (left) and Patrick (right) review their notes from the academic seminar with their Mentor, Geoffrey (center).

Walking into a room of nearly 400 secondary school students, you might expect some doodling, passing notes, maybe even a laugh here or there.  But as I entered the auditorium at Gulu Central High School on Saturday, I found a room full of students, pen and paper in hand, scribbling down information as they absorbed every word the speaker was saying.

Since 2009, the Legacy Scholarship Program (LSP) has been hosting academic seminars for secondary school students who are preparing to take their exams.  This seminar was focused on students about to graduate from secondary school, and covered topics like History, Math and Geography.  Taking place every weekend for one month, the LSP brings in experts in examination who provide the students with methods and approaches to answering and interpreting questions.  “We found that many students in the past had trouble with their exams because they didn’t understand how to approach the questions,” Koyo explained, a full-time LSP Mentor who organized the event. (more…)

FP: Rediscovering Congo

From Foreign Policy:

BY JASON STEARNS

These are strange, exhilarating times to be working on the Democratic Republic of the Congo. For the first time since full-fledged war broke out in the central African country in 1996, the American public seems to be waking up to the brutality of the conflict there. Over the past year, there has been a flurry of activity inside and outside the Beltway — in congressional hearings, Oprah shows, and Broadway theater. The country’s ongoing rape epidemic is finally getting front-page treatment. Congress passed a bill specifically on the Congo, and lawmakers and corporate boards in California, Pittsburgh, and universities around the country may soon follow suit.

For those of us who have been writing about or working in Congo for over a decade, this attention is anachronistic. Past is the height of the war, when nine African countries slugged it out through the country’s jungles, savannahs, and highlands, splitting the country into half a dozen fiefdoms. Since 2003, the country has been unified; troops from Rwanda, Uganda, Zimbabwe, and Angola have (largely) withdrawn. Elections were held in 2006, confirming Joseph Kabila — who had taken over after his father’s assassination in 2001 — as president.

Read the rest by clicking these words.

Welcoming familiar faces

If you’ve seen the Rough Cut, Go, or any of our Bracelet DVDs, chances are that you recognize some of these faces.  But these students haven’t just appeared in Invisible Children media, they are a part of our Legacy Scholarship Program, and are working hard to achieve their goals.

The Legacy Scholarship Program employs mentors who deliver psychosocial support to students geared towards excellent academic performance.  Mentors act as the communication link between students, their school, and their guardians, with the purpose of helping our students jump academic hurdles.

Grace Ocwee is a Mentor for our scholarship students that appear in Invisible Children media.  Recently, she had a meeting with her mentees and their guardians.  The purpose of this meeting was to assess their performance and provide encouragement as they work to perform well in school and achieve their goals. (more…)

Faces of IC Update: Innocent

We met Innocent in 2004 with the release of Invisible Children’s first bracelet video.  In the video we came face to face with a child impacted by the LRA – determined to rise above difficult circumstances and change his community.  “I never had any idea the way my life would change when I met the filmmakers,” he said   “I thought we’d be friends, but I didn’t know how they would impact my life.”

Now, six years later, Innocent is studying at Kampala International University and majoring in Statistics and Economics – an accomplishment made possible through Invisible Children’s Legacy Scholarship Program (LSP).  Though he’s studying math, his primary aim is to become a politician.  He believes that having a good understanding of basic economics can help solve some of the world’s biggest problems.

In early 2010, Innocent took a short break from his studies to join the Legacy tour and advocate for northern Uganda and the Legacy Scholarship Program (LSP).

During the tour, Innocent was inspired by those he met in the U.S. and their dedication to northern Uganda.  Now that he has returned, he’s making plans to take action within his own community.  He and Tony are in the planning phases of a street cleanup, which will take place in Gulu and Kampala.  “In Uganda, I feel like we are always on the receiving end.  But there is no reason why we too can’t help others,” he said.

Innocent’s friends in Uganda speak highly of him.  When I met with Innocent he had just arrived in Gulu and accompanying him, was one of his closest friends.  During the interview, I asked his friend to describe Innocent.  Smiling, he shyly responded: “He is such a nice friend – he is so caring and always gives people his time.”

And with that, Innocent left the following parting message:

“To people in the US: Keep up the great work of helping.  I’m the chief example of how your help benefits everyone, especially long-term. The more the help, the better the life is for everyone.”

Faces of IC Update: Jacob

In 2003, Jacob got involved with Invisible Children when he was featured in the Rough Cut.  His involvement sparked a relationship that would change his life forever. Interestingly enough, it was Jacob who initiated the relationship with the three filmmakers.

***********
“I remember seeing three men in the bus park walking around with a local lady.  They wanted to learn about night commuting,” Jacob began when we sat down with him recently.  “I overheard them say they needed English speakers.  Out of curiosity, I approached the guys and told them I spoke English.  They explained the movie to me and asked if I would get involved,” Jacob explained.

“I met with them, but after they left, just like everyone else, I didn’t expect to see them again.  So, that’s why in 2005, I was shocked to see them in Uganda.  The filmmakers told me that people watched the documentary and were so inspired to help that they wanted to come back and make a difference,” Jacob recalled.

(more…)

Faces of IC Update: Sunday

“Well, they call me a role model,” he said, bashfully looking away and making eye contact with his mentor, Grace, who couldn’t help but reveal a proud smile.

I had just asked Sunday how he was perceived at school and within his community.

“Maybe it’s because I like helping people,” he continued. “I know I don’t have material things, but I have the brain and heart to help.”

*****

We first met Sunday in the black ‘bracelet video.’ At the time, he was 15 and living in the IDP camp that he had called home since birth.

Now, Sunday is 18 and has just taken his exams to continue on to his final two years of secondary school.  Not only was he confident in his exam results – we learned that Sunday was the top student in his class!  His next goal:  to reach University and study medicine and pharmaceuticals.

“Medicine is so important. I want to focus on changing the lives of my community,” he explained.

As Sunday spoke, I noticed he was holding a novel, The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind.  The book tells a story of a boy, much like Sunday, who used his gifts to impact his community.

Sunday wasn’t just reading the book – he was slowly taking in every detail.  “The boy is just like me,” he explained. “He was the boy who invented something to help people. I can learn from him.”

Since the age of 15, Sunday has been an inspiration for many.  With a clear mind and a strong heart, Sunday is poised and ready to make a difference in northern Uganda.

- Jessica

Faces of IC Update: Grace

We first fell in love with Grace when she debuted in an Invisible Children bracelet video.  She was, as the narrator described, “a girl who physically couldn’t dance or sing, but had a smile on her face that I could not forget.”  The video taught us about Grace’s past, and the struggles she went through spending time in the bush and later becoming a child mother.

(more…)