I was 8 years old when my mother was diagnosed with colon cancer and hospitalized for a month for surgery and post-surgical complications. I worried that she might die and leave me motherless. I also worried that her cancer might be contagious and that I might very well catch it and die as well. I had no one to talk with about my fears. My father was preoccupied with my mother’s illness while...

Erika earned her Master’s in Social Work in 1997 and obtained her Clinical Social Work License in 2006. Before that, Erika’s passion for humanitarian work took her to orphanages and hospitals in developing countries; primarily through Mother Teresa’s Missionaries of Charity. A defining moment in Erika’s journey was meeting Mother Teresa herself in 1993 in Calcutta, India. This is Erika’s story of teaching children and young mothers self-healing through Havening.

Hello! I'm Fiona, a British woman who has been living in Africa for the past year. I recently celebrated my 60th birthday in Kenya. I don’t have formal qualifications for the volunteer work that has completely captured my heart, but I do have a lifetime of experiences – and I believe the "University of Life" is a worthy credential! I think of my life in two parts: "Before Africa" and "After Africa." Africa has changed me in profound ways. It's not just a place I’ve visited; it has become a part of who I am.