Hi. First, many thanks to all of you who have been so darn nice about your concerns for everyone on the island. Things are still rough in certain parts of the country, but more aid is coming in. FEMA tents are popping up all around, and there are organizations delivering supplies as well. Water is still not safe anywhere, so we have been boiling all of our water.



Many of the other volunteers are affected. Some are teaching in the dark because power is being rerouted. "The other married couple" here are teaching in gymnasiums so many of them are lacking basic school supplies, which is very frustrating for them. The students at the schools where John and I teach are pretty much unaffected since they all live on the same mountain as we do.

One of the volunteers here, Jessie, teaches at a high school whose students have been deeply effected by the tsunami. She has started a relief fund for the students and families at her high school. This is a great way to donate and be sure that all of the money will go directly to those in need. Trying to volunteer here is still difficult because things are so disorganized, but we are hoping to help Jessie purchase and deliver supplies for her project.

Visit to make donations http://www.firstgiving.com/astsunamirelief.

On a lighter note, John and I attended the White Sunday service at a local Catholic Church yesterday. It is a day all over the island where all of the children wear white and put on little plays for the congregation. Most of the service was in Samoan, but we still got the idea. I saw a bunch of my students and it was great to see them in an out-of-school context, with their families at church. I will post pictures from White Sunday soon.

Bye!