Day Seven
8.7.2017
Once Barama, the farm manager, arrived, we could leave the safety of the chicken coop and dig into our last day of work. Gary and I decided to walk the perimeter of the fence to get an accurate measurement of how much was left to do.
The sand is much easier to walk in when wet and it was actually enjoyable to jog along the perimeter of the fence in the drizzle holding one end of the 300’ tape while Gary ran ahead with the other.
Barama joined us and eventually the other three farm workers found their way to us and walked along. We made some adjustments to the plan in the Southwest corner where the gate is and cut up through the scrub by the road down and up the gully and to the Southeast corner where the completed portion of the fence started.
We had planned for 3,800 feet of fencing, but measured that we would need to construct 4,000 feet. With the extra materials we had packed in the Farm in a Box container, we calculated that we had just enough for the whole perimeter.
I had Barama come into the storage room with me so I could show him some of the other items I had packed into the container: pH tester, tools, harvesting knives, row covers and seed starting tools. We put the large map up on the wall so I could talk him through some of the tree plantings that needed to be done while he rains were here.
Now, on Wednesday, as Gary and I are headed back to the U.S. there is much to reflect on. Much progress was made over the past seven days, and the farm is in much better shape than it was on arrival.
The second of two shipments of sustainable farming equipment has arrived in Senegal! And Our Farm In A Box Program Manager Chris Newhouse is hard at work with Gorgui Dieng of the Minnesota Timberwolves to expand access to health in the player’s home country. This journal entry is part of a series that depicts Chris’s personal experiences as MATTER and the Gorgui Dieng Foundation dig in and begin to start constructing a demonstration farm for sustainable agriculture outside of Kebemer. The project will save lives, improve community livelihood, and help build a sustainable future for Senegal.
