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

First Impressions of Zomba, Malawi

My overwhelming initial sensation of Malawi is the ever-present smell of wood/charcoal burning. That seems to be the primary source of fuel for cooking in homes, restaurants, at the open-air market and even the Lodge where our group is staying.

Then I was struck by the awesome beauty of the landscape. What looks like a vast arid prairie land from the air, with occasional rivers running through, is contrasted by lush greenery and “flower trees” everywhere on the Lodge grounds all the way up the hazy hillsides.

It’s true what they say about the deep red soil – dustier than the hard red clay we know in Canada – more loamy – yet with the appearance of fertile soil with capacity for good crops.

Yesterday (September 16, 2010) was our first day out in the field. I have seldom experienced such a joyous welcome from strangers. Many in our group have been here before, so the persistent warm welcome characterized by fantastic “story singing” in unison were songs of gratitude for all the help this amazing Rotary group has provided in the past. In other years the group has built schools, latrines, provided supplies and support for health clinics but the gifts have reached far beyond the “bricks and mortar” of these buildings and support.

Songs of thanks filled the air to welcome Canadian friends who have made a lasting difference in the lives of so many families here in Zomba, in partnership with Dignitas International and Emmanuel International.

At the Kachere community centre, women who greeted us with wonderful song and dances, warm embraces, friendship, joy and tears are single mothers whose lives have been transformed. Support and opportunity have helped them form collaborative support groups so essential for them to provide better care for themselves and their children. They now have their own community centre (with latrines) where they provide collective care for their infants and preschoolers. They have planted a garden and trees.

At Namasalima Health Clinic, the women from our group had the privilege of visiting with Ruth, the nurse who is in charge of this particular HIV clinic for young women who are pregnant or have already had children. Ruth is an amazing woman who has established a wonderful rapport with those who come to this clinic. It is clear that she is seen as a trusted and knowledgable clinician who has their best interests at heart. This clinic is operated by Dignitas International to provide essential HIV testing, anti-retroviral treatment and follow-up monitoring for those who have tested positive for HIV. Babies born to these young women (mostly teens) are also tested for HIV at 6 weeks of age. One of the clinic’s many goals is to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV. As community women have heard by word-of-mouth that the clinic is a safe and supportive environment to help them, the numbers of those attending have steadily increased.

At every location where Rotary has provided aid and support, there are friendly, warm faces with open arms and eyes filled with joy for the caring that they have experienced from their Canadian friends. Beautiful, beautiful children are everywhere, often with shy smiles staring in wonder at these white people who have suddenly appeared in their lives.

Submitted by Robbi (first time in Africa)

We have arrived but 17 bags have not

Hi everyone

We are safe and now in Zomba, Malawi. We have arrived, but 17 bags of luggage have not. Its amazing how little you can get by on when you need to.

Today we visited several places we worked at last year, sush as Kachere and Faith Trust which are community based organizations.  There we were greeted by Mary and Florance who run Kachere and others who gave us a huge welcome with singing and dancing and are happy to see everyone back again. It was great to see how well the projects were doing. The garden and water systems have been improved and some children were there in their pre-school programs.

We also visited the health care clinic Namisalama. The women assisted in the clinic with pregnant woman, many of whom have HIV/Aids, but are in great spirits. Dignitas works closely with this organzation. The men went off the review the work to be done at the Misangu School. 2 classrooms will be added, because of the student enrollement increased by 400 students since we were here last year. Much of this increase was because of the18 new latrines that were installed last year as a result of our visit.

We will be building and painting classrooms, and there are children everywhere. One classroom has 170 students, all who sit on the floor. The new classrooms will be for standard 8. They will receive desks we will be building over the next week.

We visited the market for the first time today aswell and bought several items we will be bringing to the school and clinic.

We will keep you posted over the next few days. We have an early start tomorrow morning at 7am to start the day before it get too hot.

Talk soon,
Monica and Chris

The day is almost here!!!

Hi Everyone

The day has almost arrived and I think we are as prepared as we could ever be. Monday is the big day and we have a few long flights ahead of us. We will be flying out @ 6pm on Monday, September 13th, stopping in Amsterdam and arriving in Johannesburg the following day.

We are very excited and cant wait to get this unforgettable experience started. Check back next week to hear all about our first few days.

Thanks to everyone for all the love and support.
Monica