MamaDee

Monday, July 23, 2012

Tumaini Thanks YOU!

Six year old Kendall . . .

Six year old Kendall Mychajluk, at HER birthday party, asked, not for gifts but Crocs and socks to be donated to our children at Tumaini!! Big, big thanks go to her, brother Carter, Mom and Dad and her party-goers who collected more than fifty pairs of shoes/boots and more than 150 pairs of sox!!! Asante Sana Kendall and Happy Birthday from watoto Tumaini!!

John (and Diane) Cooper

Incredible thanks to John Cooper, of Strawberry Tyme Farms, (and Mama Diane who visited us at Tumaini House and fell in love with our children), who celebrated his 50th birthday recently where, in lieu of gifts, asked for donations to Tumaini Children's Foundation! I was still in Tanzania awaiting our container arrival but heard that fun was had by all and more than $2,000.00 was raised to help our children! Oh yes, and a goat! Thank you so very much John and Diane for loving us!!

St. Stephen's Elementary School, Caledonia, ON

Enormous thanks to Mrs. Wuergler and St. Stephen's Elementary School in Caledonia where the young and caring students pictured above raised more than $750.00 to help us at Tumaini! From our children to each of you . . . Asante Sana kwa upendo!! Thank you very much for your love!

HOPE FOR CHILDREN WITHOUT MOTHERS!

Thank you SO very much to cousin Dianne and her team, Mamas Becky, Diane, and Kathy who attended and spoke about their experiences at Tumaini House for a wonderful and love filled luncheon where support monies were raised to help our new Neema (dangerously close to full blown AIDS and horribly malnourished) and Rashid who is fighting AIDS now and also suffering from terrible malnourishment!! Thank you to supporters who so generously donated door prizes and gifts! Asante Sana!

Everyone had fun at the DolMor Euchre Evening for Tumaini!

DolMor Salon Euchre Night . . .

Asante Sana to Mama Lisa (sponsor of little Tony and Tumaini director) for organizing our first euchre night! Tumaini dada Katy and friends joined in with friends above for a fun filled evening where much needed monies were raised to help with the ongoing care of Neema. Thank you so much for caring and sharing and to CD989 and Gerry Hamill for visiting us and broadcasting live!

And just a bit about our little ones . . .

Our youngest little man Liadi (now four) was recently ill, vomiting. We are extremely pro-active with our youngsters because bacteria, malaria, dehydration is so devastating, so he and Christina were rushed to Dr. Lyimo's office and treated. No answers yet as to what it was but both are on the mend!

Mary

Our precious Mary . . . you may remember when we first brought this wonderful young lady to Tumaini that she was in failure with her ARVS. (Mary is HIV+). Her CD4 count (used to measure depth of infection) was just 21, and she was deathly ill. Her meds were changed to a second (and final) tier. Mary suffered quite an adjustment to her new medications, with continual stomach pain, bloating, nausea and fatigue, BUT, she has mended.

With the love and sponsorship of Aunt Mayre (who has supported Mary from the beginning) and Tom and Diane Goodman, Mary thrives today. Her CD4 had climbed to 403 from that terrifying 21 and she is a happy young lady. Mary just this week experienced a setback and Oddo rushed her to the Nkoranga Hospital (where Harriri had his surgery). She was treated and released and is feeling better today. Without you Aunt Mayre and you Tom and Diane, this little girl most likely would not be with us today . . . for your love and support . . . Asante Sana!

Christina

I shared with you earlier that Christina recently struggled with malaria. I can understand why, as she is a "flailer" when she sleeps and often, a foot or an arm are hanging outside of her mosquito netwen I check on her. Our girl was treated and recovered from that, only to fall ill more recently with vomiting from some unknown source. Vomiting, in Christina's case is particularly scary for us caregivers because she suffers from hydrocephalus where excess fluid produced in her brain builds up pressure, eventually killing the sufferer. In Christina's fortunate case she has a plastic tube running down the side of her skull and neck and into her abdomen where the fluids are drained and expelled with normal body waste. The fearful part in her case is that vomiting is an indicator that her tube has malfunctioned and pressure is building in her skull. Luckily, Dr. Lyimo is familiar with her case and explained that in this case, her tube was fine.

FYI, Christina, whom we initially thought was learning challenged due to her drooling and behavioural patterns, has become one of our brightest students. She enjoys making others smile and is constantly writing "love" letters to those she cares about. Today she is feeling wonderful, in class and possibly anticipating her upcoming month long break from school in August, although, with Christina, and her love of writing, she may not want a break!!

RASHID

This little man came to us in January on a full time basis. We had been outreaching to him and our newest "Neema", two children from Majengo area, very near the Kilimanjaro Airport. Rashid and Neema, who have lost their respective parents to AIDS, were living and suffering terribly with their grandmothers (Bibis). We provided milk, eggs and vegetables to them and bus fare which enabled them to attend their monthly clinics. Both suffer from HIV.
Rashid is initially a quiet and serious little man who opens up lovingly once he becomes comfortable with a person and although quite sick presently fighting AIDS, still finds time for a smile and a hug several times daily. He couldn't understand when I said goodbye and rushed away from the dinner table where I was doling out kisses before leaving to catch my flight. I found him outside sitting on a half assembled play station we received in our container, sobbing quietly. Rashid's English is not strong yet (he's only been with us since January) and my swahili is not great so it was difficult to explain that I had to leave but would return to him and all of the children as soon as I could. He didn't understand collapsed into my arms and wouldn't let me go. It was a tearful and wrenching goodbye for he, Harriri, who struggled with letting me leave and of course myself. I cried all the way to the airport.

Sister sponsors Mariel (l) and Robyn (r)

With the good food we provide at Tumaini, proper dosing and timing of his meds and some time, our little Rashid should be good as new soon! It took us two years to bring Mary's CD4 count from 21 to 403. Let's hope this little guy progresses more quickly and with the help of new sponsor Robyn (sister to past volunteer Mariel), I am certain he will! Thank you Robyn!

BIRTHDAY GIFTS FOR ESTHER

New sponsors for Esther, Sten, Caroline, Camilla and Lotte Hummelshoj sent beautiful packages not only for her birthday but LEGO for the rest of the children, so they wouldn't feel left out. I have to share with sponsors that we've experienced challenges receiving packages. These were "intercepted" once arriving in Tanzania and only released once we threatened further investigation/action. It is frustrating for you, our sponsors to send gifts the children don't receive, not to mention expensive. Please be cautious if you'd like to send a parcel and let us know in advance so that we might follow it!

Our Container Finally Arrived!

After months of waiting, our second shipping container finally arrived at Tumaini! I will include more photos in my next blog but this is a photo of the much anticipated container backing up to a "ramp" (think large pile of dirt), where we were able to offload our tractor. It would have been tricky to drive it out the back door once we reached Tumaini and have it drop four feet from the floor of the container to the ground hmmmm? What an experience being an (old, by Tanzanian standards) white woman driving through town with a beautifully updated, shiny tractor! It was like a parade with our Tumaini truck flashing in front and my partner Oddo coming up the rear in his vehicle! The traffic police didn't even give us a hard time! More on our container to come but Thank you, thank you, thank you to contributors large and small for purchasing and shipping, filling, filing, following, and then offloading once home at Tumaini! We are a VERY grateful family!!

My Last Night before returning to Canada . . .

Many of you ask about my "home" while at Tumaini, my days, my adjusting from there to here and back to there again . . . Above is my bed and netted within are Harriri, Rashid, Glory, Esther and Liadi who ALL "slept" if you can call it that, over on my last night. I often have sleepovers with a child or two (they rotate), but this was crazy fun and helped ease the pain of separation for all of us. Not much sleep, but togetherness and some silliness shared.

It is tremendously difficult to disengage from these children I love so much, from my Tumaini family, and return to my Canadian one . . . this last return was especially difficult for me. Surprisingly so. My heartfelt thanks go out to each of you for your support, encouragement and patience while I readjusted to fit back in here in Canada. Special thanks to my family and personal friends for reaching out and providing a hug here and there and here again when I needed one. This truly is one of the toughest jobs I could imagine and I couldn't imagine doing anything else . . . thanks to each of you from the bottom of my heart for helping us to make this possible . . .

Thursday, July 12, 2012

Tournament of Hope! September 23rd, 2012. Please join us . . . sponsor a hole . . . donate a prize! Thank you!

Monday, April 16, 2012

From Mama under the Net . . .

April 11^th from Mama . . .

Anna lost her first tooth today. Actually, I helped her lose it with some dental floss. She was very brave and said it didn't hurt a bit!!!

I came across a few giggle machines hanging out in my bedroom this morning!

Anna, Glory and Esther . . .

Pendo, Liadi, and Rashid have all been sick . . . Pendo with a temp reaching 39.7 at one point suffering a severe throat “infection”. I’m thinking tonsils will be in order. Liadi went down with a stomach virus which had him vomiting, Rashid with malaria and big Anna with typhoid, probably from unsanitary drinking water at Makumira Secondary School. All are convalescing but Anna’s seems to be lingering.

Long time Tumaini supporters Ranger Safaris Ltd. (Josephat, Rwekiza, Marko, Yusuf and Georgie) stopped by to say hello and gift our children with Rotary dictionaries (illustrated no less!), and always appreciated footballs! Special thanks to Abba Moledina and son Ali, (not pictured).

Mama Glory, 30 years old, is in trouble. Having misused her first tier ARVS (and Glory’s), Mama (and Glory) found themselves in failure. I have written about how, when Mama Glory is healthy she decides she no longer needs her ARVS and stops taking them. The result is that she goes into failure (the virus mutates and is no longer recognizable as the target of the medicine), thus the ARVS no longer work to suppress HIV from blowing up into AIDS. Glory and Mama were both moved to second tier, however, and here’s the crux of the problem. Mama has now experienced failure for a second time and there is no third option in this country. Her viral load is off the charts and her CD4 count is plummeting. There is little to nothing Dream (the local AIDS clinic) can do to help. Bringing a third tier into this country is simply too expensive. I marvel at this fact because we have multiple tiers in the west giving us a plethora of options for treatment but not here. The doctor explained that it is like watching a person drown while not knowing how to swim.

Connie and Liadi surprised me with a gift a couple of days ago. They have been “refreshed” every day since, and although I love it . . . . Things are becoming a bit more barren outside.

A certain, slightly crazy and often silly young lady (Evalin) is seen here talking on her “Blackberry”. She dialed the “number”, and began “chatting” away with Baba Steve in Canada.

Most of you know that Oddo has worked for over a decade helping street boys in Arusha. I had the pleasure of meeting three of them this past week when they finally reconnected with Oddo after losing touch for a few years. David Shabani is one of those young men. Leaving home at just nine years old, (his drunken father kicked him out), David got on the public transit (daladala) and travelled from Manyara to Arusha. The fare was free because small children travel for free on the bus. Imagine finding yourself, at just nine years old, alone, on the streets of a big city, knowing no one and having not a cent in your pocket. Imagine how terrible life with an alcoholic father (his mother and two siblings had left already) must have been to make him leave.

David slept on the street, under bridges and scrounged for food. There are numerous “mamas” on the curbside who prepare and sell food to passersby during the day and David offered his services to these mamas, cleaning vegetables or washing dishes in exchange for food. He survived that way for two years. During our conversation David showed me a six inch scar running down his abdomen just below his belly button. He was slashed by an angry older boy who wanted to take the food he had. A kind Samaritan picked him, bleeding, off the street and took him to a hospital where he was stitched up. They cared for him for a couple of days but then returned him to the streets. David was rescued by a teacher, Mr. Mdaki who found him on the streets and brought him to a care centre where Oddo was working as a counsellor. Oddo and David met and began making different choices. A home visit was made but David’s father had moved away. David witnessed a murder at the age of ten, while he was still on the street . . . a boy “Obedi” just fifteen years old was killed by an older boy and David witnessed it.

Asked if he ever picked pockets or robbed people on the street David vowed that he had not, explaining his fear that “something bad might have happened to me if I had”.

David presents as a kind and gentle person with an easy smile and Oddo declares him to be “quite a football player”. He speaks nostalgically and with sadness when he remembers his buddies still on the street. “They just don’t want to try. They want to continue to drink and smoke (marijuana), or worse. They’ve given up hope for a better life.” David hopes to be educated in hotel management and then press his best friend to help him with a job. He watched his house buddies leave home to return to school, but felt lost again, with opportunities for himself. We’ll do what we can to help this young man get where he needs to go . . .

Enormous thanks to Mrs. Peter’s 5^th grade class for your letters and pictures. Check your mail. Ours are on their way!!!

L/R Neema, Emmanuel and Christina . . .

Harriri and Esther with their letters from Mrs. Peter's class . . .

A local Widow’s Group makes place mats and bowls out of banana leaves. I’ve purchased a few and will bring them home and make them available to those of you who may be interested in purchasing them.

We barely avoided catastrophe. Gerehad decided to snatch our iron, left cooling downstairs after one of the older children ironed their uniform, took it upstairs to his room, laid it down onto a foam rubber mattress covered with plastic (for a bed wetter) and plugged it in. He couldn’t figure out how to work the dial to turn it on and finally abandoned it. I found it and Gerehad spent the rest of the afternoon in his room thinking about the dangers of the choices he made.

Nelson left for Dar es Salaam yesterday, headed to school, Form V (11^th Grade). He met up with brother Reward and sister Mary, who are each in university in the city. They helped him shop for a mattress and blanket, and then escorted him to his new school, Minaki. Before he left Nelson brought his school form to me (in Swahili) and asked for a photo. I initially thought he needed one of himself but he wanted a passport sized one of me explaining that I was to sign the papers as his mother, for that is how he regards me . . . there were no words for a moment or two while I struggled to swallow the egg in my throat . . . although it will be interesting his explaining how the woman in the photo is his mother . . .

And speaking of mothers (and fathers) heartfelt thanks go out to Mama Teri and Baba Gary for embracing this most deserving young man in support. There are few more deserving young men on this Earth than he, I think . . . Asante, Sana!

Babu Michael and Bibi Dorris, Dorris had her baby and it’s a girl!! We are a bit worried because Mama’s placenta hasn’t released yet and mama won’t let baby near to nurse. Her udders were about to burst and so we “cautiously” milked her, filled a soda bottle and fed our new baby FIVE small soda bottles of mama’s milk. The vet is on the way . . . I hope . . . We’d like to name her Maziwa (for the MILK she’ll be giving us one day!) Asante tena and remember that a second baby is due in the months to come . . . all we can say is thank you so much for helping us care for our Tumaini family!!!

I am hoping you are well. The container has arrived and is in Dar awaiting clearance which will be Oddo’s work. He leaves tonight with Bryson and Raymond and hopefully will be home by Friday with container in hand. Wish us luck. The corruption here is shameful with little regard for the care of orphaned or vulnerable children. Say a prayer that we meet someone, anyone, who cares that we are working so hard to help little ones here in need . . . be well!!

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Easter Fun and Special thanks!!!

Volunteers Milou and Ceri organized a competition where the children (teamed up with our older children as Captains) ran around looking for questions and then were given a clue to the next . . . SO much fun and at the end, with pipis (sweets) mailed to us from U.S. friends, (Juhrs family I believe), we worked hard on acquiring some interesting tongues!!!! Thank you, thank you, to Ceri and Milou and to all of you for loving us!!!