The trip back home was arduous, to say the least, but that, of course, it comes with the territory of traveling to another continent via other continents, etc… I suppose the difference these days is I am not in my mid-late 20s anymore!!!! lol. One thing that really got me on this trip, in particular, was the triggering of my memory of the beauty in the world. Beauty in the land, culture, and PEOPLE! I have always loved to travel, and most of that love came from all the places and people whose paths have crossed. Meeting someone and ...

As in the developed world, the school year in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) lasts about nine months. Unlike in the developed world, most children in the DRC don’t get the chance to attend school – they don’t have the money and resources for basics we take for granted: school fees, school uniforms and shoes, something to write with and something to write on. On top of that, years of conflict left many kids with the scars of being child soldiers, refugees, and wanderers among the internally displaced. For less than $99, a child in the DRC ...

Mpala Mission is a vast complex something like a quarter mile long, with the residence of Missionary Sisters of Our Lady of Africa at the northern end. The Sisters arrived in 1898 and left Mpala in the 1950s. Over their years of service, they founded and ran important facilities including an orphanage, a medical clinic, and a primary school that, interestingly enough, focused on girls’ education. Malela’s photos show that some buildings of the mission now lie in ruins, but that the old classrooms remain solid enough to house a school (with teachers paid to some extent by the ...

Since 2012, the influx of the IDP (Internally Displaced Persons) population has more than tripled. Despite efforts of local and international humanitarian organizations, many basic necessities have yet to be met. The REEL Project will fulfill one of these gaps of sanitation. In May and June of 2015, TRP visited various IDP camps in the Kalemie and surrounding areas. After multiple interviews with the displaced persons, and local & international organizations, TRP’s mandate is to FACILITATE THE CONSTRUCTION OF 40 LATRINES in the Muhaya, Mwaluka and Malemba camps. The stats for funding a single latrine are as follows: The ...

One week and one day away before we depart for DRC, and already we are facing the problems…On May 11th I received word that we would most likely have to re-route our trip LAX-Dubai-Bujumbura due to social and political unrest on the ground there…Today, I got confirmation; we will now be flying into Kigali! Once we reach Rwanda we will overnight there, hopefully meet with UNHCR, travel following day to Uvira (DR Congo), spend approximately 5 days there assessing the Burundi refugee situation (also meeting with UNHCR and partner organizations) then overnight on a boat down Lake Tanganyika to ...

Due to the most recent influx of Internally Displaced Persons (IDP), it has been brought to our attention that there is still great need for an information campaign to put a voice to what has been happening. The REEL Project’s (TRP) newest project, “A REEL Media Project,” will be a research-derived media project, interviewing displaced and returnee populations in Kalemie and surrounding DRC areas. This project will provide true accounts of the plight of the returnees and IDP’s situations on the ground. It will also highlight the work and positive impact of the organizations that have provided assistance, which ...