Misangu School



Here are some before and after pictures of the work we have done and a good demonstration of why we needed 3 weeks to complete the task.



Andrew was the only person brave enough to go on the roof to repair and seal up the leaks in the houses.

These are the brand new classrooms which is where the majority our time and money was spent. With a growing school, more classrooms were necessary and will hopefully encourage more teachers to work at Misangu.

There were 30 new desks built, painted walls and new blackboards installed.

Here is Tom and Rob reinforcing the initial doorframe with new wood to withstand the pressure of the concrete walls.

This was the principals house and one of the homes in better condition.

The houses that the teachers are living in are in unbelievably poor condition. Holes in the roofs, which allows the dust and rain to fall on their belongings. Many panes of glass were broken, some even missing. Doors that do not close properly, bricks falling out of the walls, and termites destroying beams and walls. We fixed support beams, propped up door frames, replaced glass, and with the help of the teachers and their families, painted the inside walls white to brighten them up, and installed new curtains.

We also white limes washed the outside of the homes to clean up their appearance. This certainly helped somewhat but there is still much to do to make them what we would consider livable.  

Even though we could not do all we felt was needed, the sense of appreciation from the people living in them was amazing. The things we take for granted like indoor plumbing, electricity and indoor cooking facilities are luxuries in many of these villages.

After experiencing how these villagers live it will be very hard for me to complain about life’s inconveniences back in Canada. We call a plumber to fix something and get upset if they are half an hour late showing up. The teachers here have been living with holes in the roofs and walls and no plumbing for many years, some up to 10 years.

Knowing that we truly made a difference in the lives of these families made it all worth the effort.

(Submitted by Rob DeSmit, Nick Versteeg and Monica MacNeil)

 

Lake Malawi and Hippo Lodge

Hi Everyone

Sorry there hasn't been any updates lately, I spent the last month touring around Zambia, Victoria Falls, Botswana, South Africa and Kruger National Park and didn't have access to a computer. I felt a little disconnected from home, but well worth it.

Here are some pictures of the reainder of our stay in Malawi, hope you enjoy.  :)

Our weekend away started off with a stop at Hippo Lodge where we booked a river cruise to see the wild life.  We saw herds and herds of hippos lounging in the water and also came across a family of elephants.

In this picture you can see the father, mother and the baby. It was truly a beautiful sight.



After we drove another 2 hours to Cape Mac Lodge in Lake Malawi. There we were greeted by a young singing and dancing crew on the beach. I even joined in on the dancing.



The entire weekend was really just time to relax in peace and quiet with beautiful surroundings. This was not hard since every night the sky was filled with beautiful sunsets.

In the morning hundreds of people lined the waters edge to prepare for the day. This picture was taken at about 6 am and as you can see they use the lake for everything from washing dishes, bathing and even brushing their teeth. Due to parasites in the water, none of us chanced swimming in the lake despite its temptation.

The weekend away was truly a delight and totally worth the 4-hour drive through bumpy roads and despite lack of directions. I recommend including Lake Malawi in your itinerary if ever visiting the area.

More to come!!!
(Submitted by Rob DeSmit, Nick Versteeg and Monica MacNeil)

Sports Day!

Today was sports day at the school, with boys playing soccer and girls playing netball.  There were uniforms for all teams, which we had brought from Canada.  We had enough to outfit the boys in grey, red, green and green-blue stripes.  The girls got red, orange, grey and blue outfits. 

The soccer wasn’t quite the World Cup but all the boys teams played with great enthusiasm and skill – and they play barefoot.  The blue-green team won the playoff and each member of the winning team got a Frisbee with all players receiving pens.

There was great excitement at the girls’ netball games.  After each goal or special play there was a wonderful roar of excitement by players and spectators.  When the red team won the playoff there was great jubilation as teams and spectators began running and singing around the school.  The winners received sandals and all players received a new pen.

These student games were followed by two adult games.  At netball the female teachers and wives of teachers took on the Rotary ladies supplemented by a few ringers.  After great thrusts up and down the field in the hot sun, a goal from Monica and 3 attempted goals by Maureen standing on a chair to reach the net, the locals won 5-1.  On the soccer field we had the male teachers against Rotary and carpenters.  Again there was lots of energy and enthusiasm and the game was called for exhaustion with the teachers winning despite the hard effort given by the “elders”.  I got to run the video camera rather than play.

With the skill of the players and the spontaneous support of the spectators, it was a superb day for all.

(Submitted by Jack Robertson)

The Shopping Trip of A Lifetime

Tom mentioned we take the ladies to town for the curtain material.  Six of the wives and a female teacher were taken to Zomba with four of us and Agnes, the secretary at EI who comes out to cook our lunches.  These ladies had showered, arranged their hair, put on their best clothes and arranged for the husbands to babysit.  And the close by market had nothing for us.  So we returned to the school to “explain” to the five remaining men that we couldn’t try another day, we had to go now, they would have to wait three hours for their ride home but we were going NOW.

Picture this – a store floor space 2m by 4m, all twelve of us in there, bargaining over prices, needing 65 metres!  Each house needed a different length and they all had the sheets we had prepared with their needs.  While the person was cutting we knew they wouldn’t have enough so the next two stores were checked out and we moved on, all of us into another 2m by 4 m store. I’m sure the other shoppers thought we were crazy.  But 65 minutes after starting we had seven of the happiest women, laughing, and chatting to each other.  The driver dropped the four of us at Annie’s but he said the women sang the whole way home.  When they got out of the truck, laughing, singing, dancing as only Malawians can, I think we were forgiven for the long wait by the men. (Submitted by Maureen Bird) 

Sweat Equity and Community Service

As is our previous experience new and exciting opportunities just seem to happen. This week a number of emotional and very worthwhile things have “popped up” that have enriched our experience and hopefully have improved the life of members in the communities in which we have been working.

The first  one to be  mentioned was a reunion with Felista. Felista is a 14 year old girl whose legs were immobilized by Polio. She lives 3-4 km from school and without the wheelchair she has to haul herself around on her knees in the dust and dirt of the school yard. Last year a couple of the SE team arranged to buy her a new 3 wheeled hand powered bike. This was a life changing experience for her. Felista could now become independent. When we arrived this year we re-met her but noted that she was having difficulty moving her chair because all three tires and tubes were tattered and torn. Arrangements were made to have the defective tires and tubes replaced and a new padded seat put on her bike. Johnny from Africycle generously supplied the expertise in getting the bike back in working order. It warmed our hearts to see her very shy smile as she peddled away. She can now resume her social friendships in her community

Another opportunity arose as a result of our decision to upgrade the teacher houses. One must realize that small things can make a great difference in a situation where there are only 11 teachers for more than 2000 students – yes – that’s right there are no extra digits. Not only that but the houses are extremely different from North American standards. So while some of us painted the houses the teachers wives were taken to the market to buy material for new curtains. They returned singing and laughing – not only for the new material, but because of the opportunity to go to Zomba market. This doesn’t happen very often.

Others of our team have had the chance to go out on Home Based Care – a unique experience to visit home bound sick patients in an environment radically different from Canadian communities. This is a truly eye opening experience as you travel with community volunteers who themselves are all HIV positive but on ARVs and commit themselves to caring for others in their community

All in all this experience is a unique opportunity to gain a true appreciation of how fortunate we are in Canada. Thanks to all the clubs and individuals who support the volunteers who pay their own fare and take their own time to provide this Rotary Service. (Submitted by Tom Sears) 



These are the teachers houses. Its heartbreaking to think that these teachers who are working so hard day after day have to come home to a house that is unlivable. It looks as though they have been subject to a fire and abandoned, but these great teachers have the entire family living here because the school board tells them the area to teach and provides them the homes. Due to financial situations the teacher cannot afford to renovate or move to better accommodation's.

This is Andrew discussing the necessary work which we will be completing while at Misangu School.





This is where we are staying while in Zomba Malawi called Annies Lodge, with decent food, great staff, hot showers and very comfortable rooms. As you can see we are far from roughing it. Lets be thankful for what we have and remember that things could be much worse.

This is a girl named Felista, who Maureen and Tome met last year on a trip. She is a disabled as a result of Polio but still makes it to school everyday. When we got there her bike tires were flat and her seat was broken, so we surprised her with new tires and a new upholstered seat. It was a beautiful moment to see her reaction when she saw it for the first time, needless to say we were all choked up.

This is Pat with a lady form the World Food Program who cooks maize and soy bean porridge for over 2000 children daily at Misangu school.

Hope you enjoy everyone and keep watching for updates.

Monica

Friday - our first real workday at Misangu School!

The two-classroom block is walled and parged and they were starting on the roof. Nick and the teacher Matthew had primed the senior students the day before about a vegetable garden so when we arrived they had large bunches of tall strong grasses to make the fence to keep the animals out. The young boys had their machetes (this is not a Canadian no tolerance school) and in short order they had a beautiful fence completed. More work to come on this project!
Nick then joined the painters who had completed the first coat on the first new classroom and were starting on the first of the teachers’ homes. These buildings have probably not been painted in over twenty years and being small, get a lot of abuse from movement. We only got the first house half done but our plan is to paint all of them with two coats. They are very depressing so a bright new look should boost spirits. We asked for a ladder to reach the peak and had to wait a bit – they built it for us, big, heavy and twisty! But we held it firmly and it worked.
Andrew met a huge group of new friends among the carpenters who are building 60 bench/desks with hand tools. It takes an hour what we can do at home in two minutes. But at $2.50 daily they aren’t in a hurry. We’ll see next year how they stand up to the use.
Some observed in a grade 8 class of life skills. The ABCs. Abstinence, Be faithful, and if not the first two, use Condoms. Safe sex and health education are very much encouraged by the government, which is taking an active part in HIV/AIDS education – a very important thing to counteract the stigma of AIDS.
We ate at the school – it may have been the first time some of us had goat.
We meet at 5:30 to plan the next day, eat and then socialize. And good news, at least some of the missing 15 bags are in Blantyre and more may come Saturday! The bag of Jays shirts arrived which have helped and some people bought pants in the market. By Maureen Bird, Toronto.

Thanks for following everyone and talk to you soon,
Monica