Fall 2015 Update
Hujambo to ALL of you!
It seems as if our bruised blue-green planet has more places of injury, needing humanitarian care than ever!
Sometimes we wonder if “The African Children’s Book Box Society” is just a little unsung project of our dreams! However Anne and I are returning to the reality of Mufindi, Tanzania for the 9th year, October 15th until November 30th. Birgit Castledine, our newest director is already there, sending information reports. We have the possibility of a ‘gifted’ technical school and Birgit is looking into all the specifications and numbers.
51 orphans are still living at the Children’s Village, needing support.
Carrot Seeds, please!
Geoff and Jenny Knight, the on-the-ground managers of the NGO, started a shamba (food garden). In the valley below the six orphan houses, a natural stream flows and serves to irrigate the carrots, lettuce, onions, beans etc., and even delectable, delicious, tiny strawberries!
The sewing school continues to graduate able seamstresses and tailors too. Having the ability to earn a living amidst crippling poverty creates motivational joy.
Luhunga Secondary students constructed their first ‘hands on’ model windmill. We shared both the ‘true story’ novel and the picture book of The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind by William Kamkwambe. The entire class of adolescents broke into applause upon learning that the young 14 year old boy from Malawi, had triumphed over poverty and true starvation, to ‘make’ electricity.
The dangerous, falling down Ikaning’ombe kindergarten classroom has been repaired and refurbished. It is a kindergarten classroom, an afternoon library (once we purchase the books) and an inviting gathering place, a magnet for students to listen to even just one story.
And of course, we continue the Charity’s original purpose of providing African children with their own syllabus books and culturally relevant stories… Nelson Mandela said it best, “It is my wish that the voice of the storyteller may never die in Africa, that all the children of the world may experience the wonder of books.”
Both children and teachers receive book boxes with joyful enthusiasm.
It is our belief that education is the main force that propels people from poverty to true self-reliance and our book box program continues as the core project for our society.
And so, ‘Dear Donor’ these are just some of the activities your precious shared dollars support. You all make an essential difference to this poverty stricken community of 45,000 people. Villagers have become more self reliant, optimistic and hopeful… and, best of all, there are less HIV/AIDS orphans! In this most tenuous of environments your kind intervention makes a difference. Our last quarterly donation for Mufindi left a despairingly hollow ring in our funding treasure chest.
We are hoping you might have heard it too!
