The Foreign Service Journal, December 2018

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | DECEMBER 2018 51 that of one man who was robbed on his way home after selling his camels for $3,000. He was devastated. He asked for USAID’s assistance to get mobile banking to the area so that these transactions didn’t force them to carry large amounts of paper currency. A female trader also raised concerns about the long dis- tance she had to travel to get veterinary services when her goats and sheep showed signs of infection. In one of the villages we visited, a lady stated she had only been eating one meal a day and would sometimes go two days without a meal. Her children looked really thin and miserable. Following this field trip, I returned to the office with a deep- ened desire to make a difference in the communities we work with, especially for women and children. At the time, a partner- ship to link various U.S.-funded activities in northern Kenya had just been formed called the Partnership for Resilience and Economic Growth, or PREG. I took the lead to motivate and chal- lenge our development partners and staff to improve the way we do business in northern Kenya so that we have a greater, more meaningful impact on the communities we serve. I am often referred to as “Mama PREG” for my nurturing yet tough-love approach to keeping the partnership focused on continual progress. Small changes I make in the way I think and work have the potential to make a big impact. As W. Clement Stone said, “Big doors swing on small hinges.” This is the mindset I promote and champion in my work, and within the partner- ship, I challenge all members to leave a legacy in the work we do every day. The Merille livestock market is an example of PREG’s success. There I was able to directly address the challenges I had heard about on that previous REGAL site visit. In 2015, the Merille livestock market was being rehabilitated. As part of my work, Dorine Genga.