Women's Day, WEP, Football Update, and more.

The difficulty within Breaking Ground right now is that we all are volunteers. For the Ground Coordinators (now two of us) in Cameroon we demand that the US Breaking Ground team dedicate the majority of their free time to reviewing our budgets, transferring funds, working on donor relations, writing grants, and updating the website to name a few tasks. The necessary element to note here is that everything gets done correctly, which with passionate volunteers takes more time than with a paid staff. In saying this after a couple stressful weeks, I thank the Breaking Ground administration on the US end because I am doing the fun part and they are supporting me through it with countless hours of thankless efforts. The website will be updated soon, and when it is I invite all of you to donate to my WEP projects. To potential donors, I would rather that you know the story and follow the progress of the projects than just give with anonymity. Rest assured, we are making sure things are properly completed rather than rushing. Good development is not done quickly.

The dry season is in full gear averaging daily temperatures over 100˚F. I am fortunate, as a couple hours north of Ngaoundéré it heats up to 120˚F during the day. Either way, it’s sweltering, but comes with a plethora of beautiful mangos! The irony is that I have a new allergy to mangos. Nothing serious, a small rash on my hand and lips appears only if I cut the mango myself. The consequence of my situation is that someone else has to wash and cut the mango for me. My childhood princess status has been revitalized; many will argue it never disappeared.


March 8th was International Women’s Day. I organized the BGF girls to march together in the town parade. It was fantastic: about 45 girls dressed in their soccer uniforms with the ones leading the lines juggling soccer balls. I marched in front with my Women’s Day fabric caba (imagine what mama wore on “Mama’s Family” the old TV series) and waved. The program was explained over a loud speaker and as we walked through the crowd. Women cheered.


Because of the February strikes, and consequent riots, I missed a couple weekends of games. Five minutes into the first game, a goal was scored off of a crossed ball and headed into the goal. I did a double take and looked at Etienne who smiled a welcome back nod in proud approval. I am confident that in five years we will have at least one player representing Ngaoundéré on the national team. The national team is currently composed of girls from Douala (the economic stronghold and port city) and Yaoundé (the capital).


That night, the town lit up. Women took over the streets, bars, and dance clubs. When walking down the street everyone wished me a happy Women’s Day and congratulated me for being a woman - it was fabulous. I possibly hugged every woman in Ngaoundéré. I danced on the street until 3am with my Women’s Day caba and a couple girl friends.

In conjunction with aerobics, I’ve started taking a ballroom dancing class that has replaced afternoon runs (look at Cameroon develop with activities!). Sometime during the wee hours of dancing on Women’s day the American song “Who Let the Dogs Out” screamed through the speakers. My dance instructor leaned over my shoulder and said, “Sarah, listen to the rhythm, it’s the lambada” and grabbed my hands. Who would have thought?

I don’t know if it was Women’s Day or the many radio interviews that I have now done, but I have suddenly and disturbingly found myself to be a well-known character throughout town. I will have lengthy conversations with people who seem to know a decent amount about my life, but I will have no idea who they are. People take offense when I don’t know them, so I just always pretend that I do. I ask about their work, family, and health like I have a secret note pad of details hidden under my dress. I have even been to weddings not knowing who exactly would walk out as the bride or groom. It’s overwhelming.

During the first season of Breaking Ground Football, Dynamo, a young team lost every game. My heart constantly went out to them as they never scored and continuously got pounded. During the second season they finished 4th out of 6 teams and recorded 3 goals. The Dynamo coaches invited me to practice with the team and play in a couple out of league games. I obliged and have been working with the team for a couple weeks. A benefit to working with them is that I have increased my knowledge in Cameroonian song lyrics, slang, and pop culture; however, the frustrating part is that every time I have the ball at my feet, the girls just expect me to do something incredible and stop to watch me. I yell a lot.

Saturday Dynamo’s coach scheduled a match in a village outside of Ngaoundéré. We met at 9am and waited about an hour for a bus to take us 30 kilometers outside of town. The second the bus door closed the girls broke out in song and dance. They made up cheers yelling “message” “yes” “message” “yes” “we’re going to win” “YYYYAAAAHHH!” The spirit was unbeatable and for the first time made me feel old.

We did a small tour of a factory that processes flour, oil and other corn and sunflower products. Most of the products are bought by the United Nations World Food Program and are shipped to Sudan. The village (around 1000 people) thrives on this well kept and managed factory.

That afternoon we faced our competition. Twelve girls dressed in yellow uniforms that they had rented for 2 500 Fcfa ($5) from a men’s team faced us ready to play. This I learned is why previously the BGF teams sometimes had uniforms and sometimes did not. Our first order of conduct was to walk around the field to get a feel for it. No lines, no nets, and a couple small bushes created our playing field. The tilt of the red dirt field caused the ball to slightly role anytime a free kick was taken.


Over three hundred fans came out to support the girls in yellow. During half time at least 50 kids surrounded our team huddle and listened as we discussed improving our game. At one point I took a throw-in and the referee asked me to please not score again as he didn’t want the girls to get discouraged. Subsequently, the girl I marked asked if she was positioned correctly and told me that soccer is tough.


After the game ended the two coaches came together and asked me to speak to the girls (Cameroonians love impromptu speeches - if only I had memorized the mighty ducks movie or anything with Steve PreFontaine). One coach asked the girls if they liked to play soccer, asked them if they wanted to continue and if they are hard working. After every question, the girls, who were standing in front of what appeared to be the rest of the village, screamed “OUI! OUI!” He explained that the Dynamo girls team is only a year old, that they have united to form a team and practice twice a week. He explained the merits of Breaking Ground Football and the program goals. He continued and yelled are you willing to work hard ? “OUI!” Do you want your own uniforms? “OUI!” Will you respect your body and your coach? “OUI!” She, this lady here, she is here for you. She believes in you and wants you to play. She doesn’t want you to use old men’s uniforms, she believes you deserve your own. The energy flew through the crowd. The floor was mine. I explained that if they can prove to me their dedication and love for the game, we will work towards getting them uniforms. The girls and fans behind them screamed.


We re-entered the bus and the singing restarted. The second time around, I sang all the words that I new and mouthed watermelon to the rest. I didn’t feel older; I felt that I was a part of something. A part of some magic that I call good, small-scale, locally initiated development. I had nothing to do with this village visit. The coaches are taking Breaking Ground Football to a new level - a new level that I am currently preparing for by restructuring the budget, having meetings about new team expansions, and finding more equipment. It’s a pleasure and it’s hard work. I have secured a great relationship with International Children’s Awareness (ICA) based in Canada who sent over 25 team uniforms and other soccer equipment to the program. Keep an eye out for a full soccer report coming soon.


The Women’s Entrepreneurial Program ended last Thursday and I was pleased to hear things like “ Madame Sarah, I be feelin’ you” from one Anglophone and “Madame Sarah, you may not give me money, but you have shown me the road and that is what’s important” (translation). I printed certificates of completion that the Women’s delegate handed out. Madame Pauline Kierne (of our current sponsored Fresh Juice business) prepared fresh pineapple, ginger, and foléré (a local plant) juice for over 75 people. The women in class pulled money together and provided ground meat sandwiches. After three hours of speeches, food, pictures and proper stuffy French-Cameroon etiquette, we parted ways. The women said if they had known the ceremony was going to be that much fun they would have hired a DJ and danced all night (the ceremony began at 11am). I have to remember that for many of these women, WEP is the first time in their life that they have been honored, especially academically. I can’t imagine what it means to them to have a certificate with their name on it.



The WEP graduates now have the opportunity to write their own business proposals and give them to Breaking Ground before May 1st. I look forward to reading them, but anticipate this time around that the projects will be twice as competitive, making selection much more difficult.

There are a couple women in WEP whose daughters play in the Breaking Ground Football league. Speaking with these select few has been exceptionally rewarding as I have a relationship both with the mother and daughter. I feel like I am systematically improving women’s empowerment within their household through leadership and educational activities. It also reminds me of my mom who always said she wished she could have played sports as a child, but couldn’t because there were no girl’s leagues in her small town.

With the rainy season fast approaching, the Menouet River Bridge Project, affecting 34,000 people in 4 villages located outside of Dschang in the West, was coming under threat. Cameroon weather and people are not concerned with time. You hear expatriates often say, “nothing works but everything works out in Cameroon.” With the rain approaching sooner than expected, the project needed $5000 to finish the first stage of the project and ensure that the work done thus far was not destroyed by rising water levels. On behalf of the communities of Foreke-Dschang, Fotetsa, Fossong- Watchang, and Fongo Ndgeng, Breaking Ground and I would like to offer a huge THANK YOU to Christ Episcopal Church of Ponte Vedra Beach who generously donated the money to complete the first phase before the rainy season! The community of PVB understands the necessity of bridges and the importance of this project. Words cannot explain the gratitude, but hopefully the pictures on our website will aid in explaining everyone’s appreciation from Cameroon. Check the site in the coming weeks for photos of the work you made possible!

In every aspect of my life things are moving, growing, and fantastically…developing. I have found a new house and will be moving out of my Cameroonian family’s home. Do not worry, it is only 30 feet away from where I currently live and I am setting it up for Breaking Ground. I will not be surprised if I continue to eat every meal with Mariamou and even move back in her home within a month. It’s fun living with a best friend and her family. For the next few days I will be painting walls, fixing doors, and budgeting for furniture! In the meantime, I am waiting in anticipation for the next Oxford family addition who will arrive any day now! My brother and his wife are expecting and our entire family is in anxious anticipation, even me over here in Cameroon. COME ON BABY!