who's who part 1

As people here at Mukinge get on the internet and take a peek at this
blog, I'm reminded of how often I don't mention the people that I work
with. Part of that is intentional, because I always found it to be very
boring hearing stories about people I'd never met and would likely never
meet. However, it does a disservice to the amount of work everyone puts
in and makes it seem like I'm working in a vacuum, which I assure you
that I'm not. So, at the risk of causing trouble with my brief
portraits of the people that I work with, here's the brief bios of the
admin people and doctors I work with:
Jairos Fumpa: the man in charge, although he refuses to be called the
man in charge, but rather the 'acting' man in charge. That probably
gives you an idea of the kind of man he is: humble, hard-working. He's
been here for a long time now, and is the glue that holds the place
together, the man with the memory of why we decided to do things that
way from 10 years ago. Be careful, though, or he'll whisk that cataract
out of your eye before you can blink. Has about the most outgoing 5
year old son you could ever imagine, who loves his bright yellow
Nigerian outfit.
Kingsley Kuwema: the man trying to keep up with the onslaught of HIV in
the area -- a race against time and before the west gets tired of
funding the effort here in Africa. He runs a math course for adult
education on the side of his house. If you think your building project
was bad, he has been building a house now for ten years in a nearby town
and still hasn't finished -- but he's a man with vision like that. Good
thing for our HIV program, too.
Lynn Hacker: our jack-of-all-trades administrator, nursing supervisor,
OR coordinator, and anesthetist. She's from Wisconsin but her accent
places her someplace between Norway and New Zealand after living out
here for so long. Makes her own bread and seems to have a miraculous
supply of things like decaf coffee which she shares liberally. She
hosts a rather rag-tag group of us every Friday for videos which range
the gamut from a little cheesy to very moving. I'm not sure exactly
where Spy Game fits on that spectrum, though.
David Friend: more African medical experience than the rest of the
doctor staff put together (including our Zambian doctor!). A man with
the ability to make the word 'hmmm" express a thousand different
emotions. Gets big and strong by eating nshima (Zambian corn meal mush)
every day. Somewhat of a health nut (of course, by my standards running
50 feet is a health nut) by getting up around 5:30 every day to go
running in the 40 degree weather. He's the deputy pool director while
he's here.
Edgar Mutimushi: my closest match in terms of experience and medical
training; finished his medical internship last year and reported here in
January out of that. Always with a chuckle and a smile, and a maniac
UNO player (okay, perhaps I exaggerate a bit). Has a very sweet wife
who shares my love for How To Cook Everything.
John Griffiths: you won't see a pair of bushier eyebrows around, but I
should speak softly lest he trounce me even more thoroughly than normal
on the tennis court. I was toying with the idea of making a John
Griffiths day of the week calendar featuring a different button missing
on his shirt daily; the practice of getting them all buttoned in the
morning is difficult for him. Easily the most analytical of us and
well-read; always tracking down answers and challenging you (in a
friendly way) to defend your decisions. Perhaps has a little bit of
poor judgment, however, as he engaged in a American poetry trivia
contest with me, an American and English major. Adopted 2 children from
Russia for a total of 5.

Next week: part 2: the RN's and other folks around the area.