How things have changed!  Since my last update (which was far too long ago), another huge change took place in Doumbouo.  Our fundraising efforts for the public library in Doumbouo were fruitful.  On June 11^th, we started construction of the new building and only a month and a half later, on July 29^th, the library was inaugurated Bibliothèque Publique Lindsay Clarke de Bafou-Sud.  Your final donations permitted us to put all the finishing touches on the facility.  Our construction crew installed a ceiling under the aluminum roofing sheets, painted both the interior and exterior of the building, and constructed several tables, benches, and sets of chairs, complete with a miniature table and set of benches for the children's corner.  Our devoted volunteer librarians registered, catalogued, labeled, sorted, and shelved over five hundred books.  A special thanks to our many American friends who collected and mailed books and school supplies!  I cannot thank you, the contributors, enough for making this final project such a success.  The progress we made together is encouraging – and we don't plan on stopping here.

The other big change: I am back in the United States.  Although I am sad to be gone from Cameroon, I am continuing to work in cooperation with friends in Cameroon and several other SIT Cameroon alums, including Sarah Oxford and Brendan Schwartz.  We are in the process of submitting for our official non-profit status so we can continue to execute projects like those in Doumbouo.  The benefit to you, the contributors, is that your donations will be tax-deductible.  Our first official organizational meeting is approaching, and by the New Year, we hope to be preparing to send our next "Breaking Ground" volunteer to Cameroon to start a new project.

In the meantime, those of us involved in the organization (namely myself and my brother, Matt) are settling into new homes and new jobs.  Keep an eye out next week for new pictures and updates to the webpage: www.breakinggroundcameroon.org.  Within the next two weeks, pictures of the library and detailed financial reports will be posted for you to view.  Thank you for your patience as we get organized, and most importantly, thank you for your involvement!  I will probably never get the chance to thank all of you in person, but please know how much your contributions are appreciated.  None of this would have happened without your compassion and generosity.

Please feel free to contact me at any time with questions about the projects or suggestions about running this new organization.

Grand merci!

-Lindsay