Virtues Mentorship in Victoria, Canada

At the end of May, 2010, nearly 40 Virtues Facilitators and Master Facilitators gathered in Victoria, British Columbia for four days of sharing, deepening and growing in the Virtues. Participants came from across Canada, the US, Honduras and Africa. Many wonderful things happened and I hope to share some of them with you over the next few weeks.



I made a short video of Richard and Bibiana Andabwa and have posted it on YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4Roxd_BM4g (Title: Virtues Project Kenya)

Leadership for Virtues

Many of our Virtues trained teachers and community leaders have gone back to their place of work as the only Virtues practitioner. This is very hard to do. As I read the following article I thought of you as you try to spread the word about Virtues and how the five strategies can transform lives.

In your school or community the first follower is crucial. It takes courage to be the first follower, as you also stand out, opening yourself to ridicule. Being a first follower is an underappreciated form of leadership. the first follower transforms a lone idealist into a leader. If the leader is the flint, the first follower is the spark that really makes the fire.

A second follower is attracted, then a few more, and then suddenly everyone wants to be a part of what is now a movement. So if you want to start a movement, remember the importance of nurturing the first few followers. Be public and easy to follow.

Sometimes leadership is over glorified since it's actually the first follower who is the key catalyst. There is no movement without the first follower. We are told we all need to be leaders but that would be ineffective. The best way to make a movement, if your really care, is to courageously follow and show others how to follow.

Reminder: March 13

Emmaloba primary has recently trained student Peace Keepers. They are delighted by the positive changes in discipline and behaviour. Come to a deepening session at Emmaloba primary (Maseno area) where we will cover: Setting Clear Boundaries and Peace Keeper Training. If time allows we will also look again at Spiritual Companioning.
The session will start at 10 am in the school. Refreshments will be provided.

All trained Virtues practitioners are welcome.

Patricia replaces Richard

Richard Andabwa was admitted to hospital two weeks ago and has undergone a serious operation. He is now progressing well and we thank everyone for their prayers.
Because of Richard's health, Patricia conducted the training for police officers in Kimili. Again, the session was short, but the particpants all said that this session will be of great use to them in their families and communities.

Wecome to Kolanya High School teachers

On Tuesday, March 2, Patricia, Lydia Atemi and Esther Bokelo conducted a training session for the teachers of Kolanya High School in Teso District. Although the session was shorter than usual, which meant that we were not able to do many of the interactive exercises, the evaluations were positive and we hope these teachers will stay in touch with us.

Recent training

Last week Richard Andabwa and Patricia conducted a Virtues community training for 40 Anglican clergy in Kakamega. A guest in the group was a senior police officer(provincial staffing) She has arranged for Richard to do a session with trainee police officers this Friday. Patricia conducted a training for 15 teachers and community members last Saturday at Mwiyenga (near Musoli). We will do the second session this coming Friday. Members of both these groups will be invited to join the Virtues Society and to participate in the email list.We all look forward to hearing news from anyone.

New facilitators and an email site

We welcome newly trained facilitators in Kakamega, Emuhaya and Nairobi.

Virtues practioners in East Africa now have a means of coomunication by email To join the Virtues Kenya email group, send your email address to patriciacrossley5 (a) gmail,com. Or go to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/virtueskenya and request membership