The Story

Stephen Lewis was awarded the President’s Award for his inspirational work in raising awareness and understanding of international issues, especially HIV/AIDS in Africa at the annual conference of the Canadian Society for Training and Development (CSTD) in November 2005.

In his acceptance speech Stephen spoke of the unbelievable loss of human capacity in Africa due to HIV/AIDS. He closed his passionate presentation with a plea to members of CSTD. He challenged them to use their skills in whatever way they could to address the crisis in Africa.

His challenge resonated with many people in the room that evening. Thus began the story of what a dedicated group of people can achieve when they pool their resources and creativity.

Teams of volunteers were formed to raise funds, determine what competencies would be needed in those going to Africa and how to determine the best candidates. Further efforts were expended to find a partner in Africa that would be receptive to what CSTD could offer.

After a conversation with Stephen Lewis and members of the Stephen Lewis Foundation, it was decided that a train-the-trainer program would be the most useful contribution that members of CSTD could make.

From the creative work that went into the fund raising and the packaging of the initiative, the name Bridge to Africa emerged and that is the moniker that has stuck. To date, CSTD members have raised over $28,000 for this initiative. The names of the contributors can be found by clicking here.

Thanks to the efforts of a dedicated team at St. Francis Xavier University (StFX), the team is equipped with a comprehensive lesson plan and extensive materials for a five-day Train-the-Trainer program developed from StFX’s internationally recognized Diploma in Adult Education program.

The initial search for a partner resulted in establishing a relationship with an organization near Durban, South Africa and plans were made to go there in the spring of 2008. Unfortunately, in October, 2007 we learned that they were no longer able to proceed.

As the hunt for a new partner continued, a casual conversation at a CSTD Chapter planning meeting resulted in contact being made with a Toronto based organization, Youth Challenge International. Founded in 1989, YCI’s mission is “to build the skills, experience and confidence of young people to effect positive change in their communities”. Their website can be accessed by clicking here.

Through contact with YCI, we have linked with Kwacha Afrika whose website can be found by clicking here. Kwacha Afrika is a youth community based organization in the Coast province of Kenya which is very involved in addressing youth issues, especially the spread of HIV infection among youth. They have identified the seventy-two participants

While our original partner in South Africa had meeting and accommodation facilities, in Kenya we have had to rent meeting space and places for the team members to stay. This has added nearly $14,000 to our expenses. Contributions continue to be welcomed as it appears that we will be approximately $7,000 over budget.

The six programs will accommodate a maximum of 12 participants each. Three will be delivered in Mombasa and three in Malindi. While the exact founding date of Mombasa, a city of 800,000, is unknown, it is believed to have been a prosperous trading town as early as the 12th century. Malindi lies approximately 120 km up the coast from Mombasa. A community of approximately 120,000, Malindi has been a Swahili settlement since the 14th century.

On February 22 the team of four CSTD volunteers will travel 12,600 km from Toronto to Kenya.

The team going to Kenya was selected from more than twenty individuals who were willing to invest a month of their own time to try to make a difference. Leigh Geraghty (Peel-Halton Chapter) and Mary Lou Di Paolo (York Region Chapter) will lead the programs in Mombasa. Alison Alexander, CTDP (Toronto Chapter) and Peter Taylor, CTDP (Durham Chapter) will be in Malindi.

The team is confident about their preparedness for the trip. They met with Bill Goggin and Aimee Fortier from StFX in January and went over the extensive program materials. Since then they have been holding regular conference calls to address any areas of uncertainty and the logistical issues that have arisen.

In January the team members travelled to CFB Borden where Major Regan Legassie, CTDP, Commandant, Canadian Forces Training Development Centre and a colleague shared their experiences of training in Africa. A photograph of the team members and their advisors is posted. The other photo is of Allison Alexander who was unable to attend the meeting.

We encourage anyone who wants to better understand the drive and commitment of the Bridge to Africa team members, to read Stephen Lewis’ book Race Against Time or to listen to the 2005 Massey Lectures from which the book emerged. If your time is limited, please take 58 seconds to click here and listen to his inspirational comments.