TC West grad works for change

Margaret Mimnaugh's correspondence carries the words of Mahatma Gandhi as both a homage to and reminder of his enduring call to action. A member of the Peace Corps serving in Uganda since February, the 2003 Traverse City West High School graduate is in her own way striving to live up to the sentiment.

Living in the small village of Bulera, Mimnaugh works with both students and teachers at the primary school. She oversees the curriculum and works with the nine teachers who serve 550 students.

Nicknamed "Omusana" by her host family, which means sunshine in Lugandan, Mimnaugh started the Omusana Foundation earlier this year to raise money for student lunches, books and supplies.

Fully supportive of her vision, Mimnaugh's family is a key part of the foundation team.

"When she arrived there, there were about 50 students who ate lunch every day because their families could afford the cost of a meal," said Peter Mimnaugh, Margaret's father. "One of her first goals was to somehow provide a meal for all of them and we've been able to do that for three semesters now."

Her parents in Traverse City, including mother Sandy, organized a fundraiser for the holidays to help their daughter's pupils. Starting Dec. 20 and running through Jan. 4, Bowling for Bulera will be held at Timber Lanes Bowling Center in Traverse City. Anyone bringing a minimum of $20 pledges for the Omusana Foundation receives two free games plus shoes.

Group events will be held today and Jan. 3 from 3-5 p.m. where Mimnaugh family members will be on hand representing the foundation. Pledge forms or more information about the foundation are available by calling (231) 941-1516 or e-mailing omusanafoundation@gmail.com.

"It is amazing how many a few dollars can feed, right now it's about seven dollars to feed one child lunch for a year," said Peter Mimnaugh, noting the lifestyle in Uganda is a stark contrast to the standard of living here.

A nephew helped the family complete the paperwork to form the nonprofit foundation, which has been attracting an increasing flow of donations as word spreads. Money raised will also be used to help repair damage to the school caused by vandalism.

"There are people from all over the country and even from outside the United States," said Mimnaugh of donors. "We have no administrative costs, the only fee we've incurred was an international transfer fee."

An education major until her senior year, Margaret Mimnaugh graduated from Grand Valley State University in 2007 with a degree in nonprofit administration. Her decision to join the Peace Corps did not surprise her parents, who noted that growing up Margaret had always been active in the community as a volunteer.

"She really does want to be the change in the lives of these students and children, make the world a better place," Mimnaugh said. "They're so used to people dying and not growing up and starving all the time. (She's showing them) there is a bigger world and a different way to live and education is extremely important to achieve that."

In the midst of her 28-month Peace Corps commitment, she will return home for good in the summer of 2010. Her parents hope to visit her before then but the costs for the self-described "working-class stiffs" -- Peter is a tool and die maker and Sandy a special education assistant -- may be prohibitive.

Even without a visit, they know that their daughter is doing what she loves and being the change to the people of Bulera.

"She still has the same energy in her voice," her father noted of periodic cell phone conversations. "It amazes me that she's still so excited about what she's doing."

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Margaret Mimnaugh, a 2003 graduate of Traverse City West High School, joined the Peace Corps in February and is living in Bulera, Uganda, where she works at a school with nine teachers and 550 children. Special to the Record-Eagle