We have just received a Xerox copier to send to the school for our teachers. We have been waiting for quite some time for a copier to come in from some place, and finally two weeks ago two of my friends, Lee and Ben, found one at the UF surplus purchasing warehouse. They have a policy that all items that come in must stay in the warehouse for up to two weeks, and at the end of this time period if it has not been bought then it can be donated.
When Lee and Ben found the copier, it had only been there for a few days, so they did their best to make sure it would not be sold. They took tape and taped up the whole thing to make it look broken, put a sign on it reading "May need some work" and then hid it behind a refrigerator. Friday afternoon Lee and I went back to the warehouse to find out that their plan had worked, and it was now able to be donated to us. While waiting for all the paperwork, one of the workers there told us a little about the copier. It is not all that old and has only had about 100,000 copies used on it. So it should last the school for a very long time. It came with a lot of extra toner, which is amazing since toner is very expensive - and for the school they will be needing more than just one cartridge. The only set back is that it is a floor model copier, which means it is enormous. It could be a problem getting this packaged and shipped. But the Lord has provided us with such a nice copier, I am sure that He can provided some way of us getting it over there safely and cheaply.

On Saturday, my good friend Jenny and I took Gustaf and Irene to UF's Florida Museum of Natural History and Butterfly exhibit. It was sunny and hot, so perfect time to just wander around the gardens and explore. Irene seemed to enjoy taking pictures of all of the butterflies flying around the atrium, and Gustaf spent a lot of time identifying the butterflies from the guide card. The butterfly staff also happened to be releasing new butterflies into the garden, so a small crowd gathered to watch.

We also explored the rest of the museum, including an exhibit featuring the jaws of a Megaleodon, the largest shark to ever exist. They had never seen fossils before, so it was also fun explaining to them about dinosaurs, mastodons and mammoths. A science lab stands adjacent to the butterfly exhibit, and a window allows museum guests to observe lab workers conducting scientific experiments. The microscope in particular seemed to fascinate Gustaf, as he had only studied a diagram of one in a book. I was impressed at how he knew the names of many of the components and he recited to me their functions as well! He also demonstrated his basic knowledge of cellular biology when we examined a magnified transparency of a cell nucleus. He definitely shows a remarkable memory and grasp of scientific ideas.

The museum also had a Native American exhibit, featuring the Seminole and Calusa tribes. Of course, Gustaf and Irene had never heard about American Indians (same as we Americans in high school never learned any ancient African history), and we enjoyed looking at the tools, jewelry and clothing on display.

Afterwards, Jenny and I took them to the Latin café, just in case they were craving some rice and beans and meat, more similar to what they eat at home. Although Irene decided she wanted chicken and rice, Gustaf insisted on eating a chicken sandwich and dousing it in hot sauceJ

I was sad to leave them, but I hope to visit them again next month.

Pictures from our outing are coming, I promise! Wait for it, wait for it…;)

Our fifth US volunteer of the summer, Eian Schnoor, has returned safely to the States. I met up with him briefly this last weekend in a isle at Target while I was shoe-shopping with Gustaf and Irene. He was excited to see the kids, and they were thrilled to see him again.
Eian spent five weeks in Tanzania volunteering at our city center and our shamba center, and he was joined by an international volunteer group who came to teach at Hananasif Academy and spend time with the kids. I just received a synopsis of the trip from one of the group members, Olivia, and would like to share clips from her retelling of the group's experiences...


"...I returned to the UK with so much on my mind that I felt I needed to write it down. So here is a summary of what we did, which I am going to send to as many people as I can. Following five weeks in Tanzania, there is so much on my mind that it is often difficult to remember all the details at once! However, what we did in Tanzania was amazing, and I personally loved every minute of it... This is why I have decided to write down a quite detailed account of what we did as a group, as well as the aims of the orphanage, and a little about the children and the man responsible for it!

Teaching

On arrival [at the Shamba Center], we gave the teachers a list of subjects we would be happy to teach, and a timetable was drawn up for us. We taught math, physics, geography, english, and science.
Also, Caley taught a civics lesson, during which we split them into groups and had a debate, getting them to represent different areas of the government...

The level of the students clearly depended on their backgrounds and the schools they had come from, as well as their ages. There is a 4 year gap between the youngest and the eldest.

At Shamba, and during the afternoons in Kinandoni, we had the opportunity to sit down with some of the children individually and tutor them.

An environmental class was taught by Lotte, focusing on disposal of rubbish and simple ways in which an effort can be made to reduce wastage..."

Building

Unexpectedly, we were able to physically become involved in building classrooms for the school. We helped dig the foundations, then fill in the gaps between the bricks with concrete that we mixed! They use cement that they order from town, some of which we ordered for them, and mix it with sand that they dig from holes close to the buildings!

Baba has a set plan in his mind for the structure of Shamba. At the moment, there is a large building with three classrooms, two of which are being used as dormitories. There is also a traditionally built building which was where they lived at first when the building began. It now serves as the kitchen and nyumbani ya kuku, or chicken house. The future buildings will be arranged with this one around a central courtyard, where they will have well tended grass and shade where they can study. One building is almost complete, while we began building its twin. These will be a library and laboratory on one side and an IT lab and a fourth classroom on the other. Opposite the large existing building will be an administrative building. Diagonally opposite each other at different ends of the buildings will be the girls and boys separate dormitories. These will be split into four buildings, according to the form they are in. Staff rooms have begun to be built, but the funds are quite low at the moment, so they have been stopped.

Farming

This is one of the main activities at Shamba, but we were not really involved in it! In fact the first afternoon we didn’t even realise to where all the children had disappeared! On the second day however, I took Josh and Scott to see the Passion fruits that Baba had shown Amina and I proudly when we first arrived, and we ended up helping some of the children plant watermelon seeds. In the afternoon, I returned to the farm and cleared a patch of land by burning the long grasses with a group of children. It was very hot work, but very satisfying to see the long yellow covering disappear eventually! The Farm is one thing which Baba is very proud of. Not only does he hope to produce food for the children to eat, but also to sell. The profit will go in part to the orphanage to continue with building and maintenance, but also in part to the children who can start to build up some money of their own, to save or use to travel!! They have watermelon, passion fruit, tomatoes…and hope to increase the diversity of their crops. Soon they aim to have a herd of cows, as well as pigs! And the number of chickens is continually increasing!! Baba is also hoping to install an irrigation system so that he can sell and produce fruit when the market wants fruit, in the dry season for example!

Worship

On the first night, I was dragged from the campfire by Furaha, and as we moved towards the buildings, we were joined by all the other children and most of our group. At first we had no idea what was happening, but soon the children began to sing and this was followed by prayers. At the orphanage, we had been to church, but not seen the children worshipping in this way before! It was one of the most beautiful experiences. It got dark at about six, and by the time we had formed this circle, the sky had revealed a myriad of stars (nyota), as well as the Milky Way. It was a though we were caught in a luminous bubble, and the experience was one of the most moving. Each morning at six, the children congregated in the classroom to sing and pray, Damas and David leading the service. Chris was asked to read and sing also. It was entirely student led. Chris, Josh and I joined them every morning. The songs will remain in my mind for a long time, I am sure of it.

Charity Dinner

While we were staying in Dar es Salaam, Baba had organised a Charity dinner in order to raise money for construction work at the orphanage. This highlighted the constant struggle that it is to maintain the programme, and to some extent how fragile it is. During the dinner, the children sang and danced, speeches were made and an auction was held. The money was used for cement, corrugated iron and wood for roofing. Any money goes directly to the orphanage according to what is most needed. For example, shortly before we arrived, the construction work on a well was stopped due to lack of funding, but was resumed as soon as possible [thanks to funds that came from a US donor immediately upon hearing the need] as this is one of the most important needs of the Shamba.
As we were leaving, it was just about to be finished. As part of the donation that we made to the orphanage, we ordered cement to be taken to Shamba, so that we could continue with the building. One other fundraising element is the production of CDs. Hezekia has written lyrics and with the help of some local Tanzanians and some American students has had the songs sung by the children and recorded professionally. These are available from the website.

A Few Students...

One of the children I got to know most closely is Furaha Mbeyela. She is 15, the same age as my brother. She is from Iringa, a province in Tanzania. Her brother is one of the teachers at the school, they both came to Dar es Salaam to look for education when their parents both died. Before we arrived in Tanzania, some of the students wrote us letters, to welcome us and introduce themselves to us, and hers was to me. Her dream is to become a doctor or a lawyer. She is very hard working and involved fully in all parts of the school. She has a beautiful voice and often led the singing during the worship. She is one of the better students, and is always willing to explain or help others with their work.
Another student, Fadhili Mukharami had been to a school where they taught French as well as English, and his French was actually better than the English most children spoke. It was nice to be able to have a proper conversation with someone! He is now learning French from three books that he has acquired over the years. His dream is to become a linguist, and speak many languages. I am looking out for intense language courses that it may be possible for him to attend, either in Africa or Europe in the future.

One of the orphans I spent most time with was Peter. He is 10 and very mature and serious for his age. Over the weeks it became obvious that he was trusted by the others, and also the adults. He was very quiet, not only because of the language, but also with the other children, although he was happy to play. He made some of the best toy cars, made from recycled materials and wood, with a long driving wheel. He also commandeered my camera most of the time at the orphanage! On the last day, when we brought the books, his eyes lit up and he tried to read a little to me! His pronunciation is very good!

A Day at the Shamba

A typical day at Shamba (while we were there) for the children!

05h30- Wake up call from our dearest kuku!
Children went out for PE (or ran back in with cries of Simba!)
06h00- Bricks carried from pile to building site
06h30- Worship
07h00- Assembly
08h00- Lessons (2)
10h30- Break, Uji (porridge) for breakfast
11h00- Lessons
13h30- Lunch (ugali and marahague)
14h30- Farmwork, or study
17h00- Study / bonfire
18h30ish â€" Food / dancing singing around the fire!
Then more study, if the generator is working!
11h00- Lights go out!


In closing, I am certain that the programme will be successful and yield more fruits than expected! In all senses of the phrase. As Hezekia himself says, we preach sustainable development, education in the developing world, all safely coddled at home. He is actually doing doing this, acting rather than simply speaking!
Not only is he fully involved in bringing education and opportunity in Tanzania, one of his long term aims is to initiate volunteer projects in Rwanda and neighbouring African countries by the students at Shamba. He is an incredible and admirable person, of which there are too few in the world. All of the teachers, Joan who has been working with the younger orphans since the start, Mama, and Mama Umba who cook the food for the 40 students…all of these people are admirable, working together and putting their efforts into raising and educating the children. Watoto ya Mungu as they call them: Children of God."

Eian Schnoor, other workers and a few kids on site, roofing one of our other buildings at Hananasif Academy.

got to spend the day with the kids today. they're doing great - healthy and happy.
tomorrow is there first day of school...will let you all know how it goes.

more soon.