Help One Now is excited to partner with local leader Tresor Yenyi and Mwangaza International to build, establish, and sustain a number of HOPE Centers in the DRC. These HOPE Centers will build community and alleviate poverty by hosting after school programs for vulnerable children, serving teenage moms and their babies, providing clean water, literacy programs, job training and more. The work is complex, but the goal is simple: to strengthen communities in the Congo and keep families together!

Tentative Schedule

July 12th: Leave US

July 13th: Arrive evening in Congo

July 14th: Full day in Congo (cultural context, learning from leaders, time with children)

July 15th: Full day in Congo (time in the N’sele community with leaders and children, Hope Center vision)

July 16th: Travel from Congo to Uganda. (Flight from Kinshasa to Entebbe, and then a 3-4 hour drive to Jinja. Arrival time will be sometime in the evening)

July 17th: Full day in Uganda (Time with Pastor Edward. Quality time with children from church and community)

July 18th: Full day in Uganda (Time at His Mercy School. Quality time with children at school.)

July 19th: Full day in Uganda (Adventure/Fun Day: Rafting the Nile River or visiting an island on the Nile for shopping and sightseeing)

July 20th: Leave Uganda

July 21st: Arrive in US

Shots
Contact your physician or a local travel clinic to find out which shots would be best for you. YELLOW FEVER IS REQUIRED & the following are typically recommended:

·     Typhoid

·     Hepatitis A

·     Tetanus-diphtheria booster

If you take prescription medicine, make sure you bring enough for the entire trip. Be sure to leave it in their original containers. The following medication is recommended as precautions:

·     Malaria Medication - There are several prescriptions available. Please check with your travel nurse.

·     Cipro - This is an antibiotic that your doctor or travel nurse can prescribe for you to use in the event of severe diarrhea that does not resolve with Immodium

Please notify Help One Now of any food allergies or medical conditions if it might be important to your safety.

Phones/Communication
There are international data plans available; however, it is important that you check with your provider to make sure Congo and Uganda is covered in the plan.

The safest way to avoid huge roaming charges is to turn off your data when you leave the States and use wifi for communication. If you have an iPhone, you can send iMessages over wifi for free.

Insurance
Help One Now will purchase trip cancellation and medical evacuation insurance for each of you. You will receive an insurance card to print out and keep with your passport a week before your departure.

Smart Traveler Enrollment Program
You will each be registered with the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP). This is a free service provided by the US Government for citizens traveling abroad that will allow the US Embassy in Congo and Uganda to better assist you in the event of an emergency.

Packing List
Passport
Shot record
Snacks - there may be times when it makes more sense to eat snacks for lunch on the go, so please plan accordingly
Sunscreen
Mosquito repellant
Water bottle
Jacket 
Closed toe, sturdy shoes
A journal in which to write and reflect
Above all else, try to pack lightly in order to maximize transportation space

Upon arrival in the DRC, you must present a passport with an expiration date further out than six months and your visa. Upon arrival in Uganda, you will receive your visa at Entebbe airport.