YOU can help Save Africa too!

Getting to know the kids and staff at Save Africa the past two weeks has been such a pleasure.  We have a lot of fun playing games and running around- no day is like the day before and although I am the “teacher” here, I have been learning so much more from these kids than I feel like I am teaching them.  Each day is rewarding in its own way whether it’s realizing someone can now write the letter ‘G’ because you took the time to show them how or you finally got the little boy to stop crying by putting a simple flower in his hair.  These moments are what help us get through the days and remind ourselves we are making a lot of small differences because sometimes it is difficult to find those moments amongst all the chaos.

Working at the orphanage has been a lot harder than I originally envisioned.  There are a lot changes that need to be made and a ton of obstacles to overcome along the way.  Matt, Karina, and I have been trying to brainstorm some overall goals for the orphanage and figuring out ways in which we can meet those goals in our short 3 months here.

Yesterday, we removed the barbed wire fence that surrounded the front yard of the orphanage.  Yes, you read that correctly- there was a barbed wire fence in front of a school that houses 50 kids.  The kids were tripping over it, cutting their hands and feet open by walking into it, and some were even sitting and swinging on the wire.  The teachers and project managers didn’t see anything wrong or frightening with this fence but we immediately asked if we could take it down and replace it so that they could avoid further injuries and infections.  Next week we will be buying and putting up chicken wire in its place so they are still following the required property boundaries.

The barbed wire fence

Something as simple as pencils cause huge problems at the orphanage because there are not enough for all of the kids to have their own.  Once the teacher hands out the exercise books, the kids go crazy trying to get their hands on one of the few pencils that are circling around.  If they aren’t so lucky, they have to wait around until the others are done and this usually leads to fights and more distractions.   Most of our time is spent shooing kids away from jumping on us while trying to help the kids with pencils complete their exercises.  We have been trying to bring pencils with us to school everyday but the kids go through them so quickly because they lose them or sharpen them too much.  We have also been shopping around for a sturdy pencil sharpener to screw into the wall so the kids can’t play with it or lose it but we have yet to find exactly the one we are looking for.

Waiting for a pencil :(

As I have mentioned in a previous post, the group is divided into a baby class and a pre-unit class.  The pre-unit class is more advanced and teaches the kids reading and math skills.  The teacher in the pre-unit class seems to have a good grasp over the children and is able to deliver lessons that are at the level of all the kids in the class.  The baby class is where we have seen most of the issues because there are 35 kids in the class and they are all at different stages of development.  The older group knows the alphabet, counting, and can write well but they are not at the pre-unit level yet while the younger kids are struggling to keep up since their fine motor skills have not been completely developed.  Because there are so many kids in the baby class, the younger ones go unnoticed and are not given the full attention they need to learn letters, numbers, and writing skills.  This week, Karina, Matt, and I divided the baby class in half and took the younger children outside.  From there, we split them into three groups of 5 so that each of us could give more attention to them.  We are hoping this method will be more efficient in helping these kids learn how to write and recognize letters and numbers.  It will also allow the teacher in the baby class to create lessons that are a little more advanced for the older kids.  We will be buying more pencils, notebooks, and exercise books so we can create new lesson plans for the younger groups and hopefully get some of them writing so they can join the baby class again.

Clothing and food are not plentiful amongst the children at Save Africa.  The program coordinators try to have breakfast and lunch available to the kids everyday but sometimes they are stretching to find something to give them.  The food they are fed is not the most nutritious so we are going to start cooking some meals at home to bring into school for the kids- rice, beans, pasta, and some other traditional Tanzanian dishes.  We would also love to be able to buy/donate some children’s clothing to the orphanage since most of the kids wear the same ripped and dirty clothing everyday.

A long-term goal for the orphanage is to buy another bed for the children to sleep in.  Of the 50 kids that we work with on a daily basis, 12 actually live there full time.  They have two sets of bunk beds for the older kids and 4 or 5 of the younger ones all sleep in one full sized bed together.  They are quickly going to outgrown that so we would love to be able to put money towards another bed.  In the near future, they have also talked about adding on another room to the orphanage- either a bedroom or a kitchen.  Right now, all the laundry, cooking, and cleaning is done outside.

The backyard at the orphanage where all the laundry, cooking, and cleaning is done...hopefully the site of a new bedroom or kitchen.

At the end of most chaotic days, we leave frustrated and exhausted however, I know deep down that we are really making a difference to these kids.  It is obvious that they do not get the love and attention they need at home so they look to us for hugs and affection. I love being able to put a smile on their faces by just listening to them but I can’t be here forever.  Hopefully the small changes we are making will improve the overall environment and turn those frowns upside down!  In general, conditions at Save Africa are not great and I would love to see some big changes over the next few months.  I think that most of the goals we are setting for ourselves are attainable with a little bit of fundraising.  If you have been at all affected by my descriptions of the orphanage and Africa so far, I ask that you please consider helping the cause by donating.  Unfortunately, receiving packages here is unreliable so the best way to help out is to donate money so we can buy everything we need here.  I will begin to keep a running list of exactly what I am spending the money on so you can see the difference you are making!! Just a few dollars goes a really long way so any amount is appreciated J