Bomb blasts Beasts and Blessings . . .

Bomb blasts, beasts and Blessings . . .

First of all I’d like to send all of you, each person who loves us here at Tumaini a joyous and peace filled Easter holiday.  For our part, we will enjoy “ugali Canada” (mashed potatoes), gravy, roasted meat, a sweet banana “stew” and a wonderfully delicious carrot dish followed by, Nan’s Chocolate Fudge Pudding, after church services tomorrow.  Thank you all for making our Easter celebration possible and a special thank you once again to Mama Karen and the Just Ladies Travel Club for sponsoring our Easter safari.  We went a little early to ensure our Katy could join us (we miss you terribly) and fun was had by all!

It has been quite a week.  Last week was election day in this district.  The M.P. of this area died, and, instead of democratically electing a replacement for him, the national ruling party “CCM”  (Chama cha Mapinduzi, or “The Revolution Party”) unilaterally appointed the deceased’s son.  Some believed it not the right decision.  The opposing party (there is an election every five years in Tanzania, with the last in 2010), “Chedema” (The Democratic and Development Party) has a bigger voice than it has historically and in the end, won the election by a small margin.  Now we at Tumaini had very little to say about things to this point, other than to grumble occasionally about the early morning music blaring from passing CCM vehicles as they travelled to their temporary headquarters at the end of our dead end street.  The parade was daily and loud but so be it.  Tanzanians like their music BLARING.  What did become an enormous issue for us was what happened when rumors of said ruling party spread about them stealing the ballots at a voting station while the police turned a blind eye.  All hell broke loose and the accused were just down the street . . .

Blessings

We had begun our day with Harriri’s and Liadi’s Lutheran baptisms at our local church. We gifted them each with their own children’s bibles (which they haven’t put down and ask me to read regularly).   Our own Nelson and Mary have become God brother and sister to Liadi and the headmistress of our local public school, Kilimani, and her husband Mama and Baba Makawa sponsored Harriri.  It was a wonderful service, a wonderful morning and we all returned home in high spirits.  I had to run a quick errand afterward and when I returned, volunteers Milou and Ceri greeted me at the gate with solemn news.

While I was gone, rioters had marched up the street, past our gate, headed to CCM headquarters.  Hostile, angry, frustrated rioters with sticks beat people unfortunate enough to have crossed their paths and initially, our children witnessed the chaos from our front porch.  I was out and Oddo had gone to Moshi to attend a funeral.  Our volunteers wisely collected the children, brought them inside and inserted a video into our DVD to distract and settle them but everyone was fearful.

 

The rioters protested about how the government had allowed the ballots to be stolen and how they were refusing to announce Chedema’s victory on television.  We heard gun shots and what we would later discover to be the explosion of “smoke” bombs which continued  well into the night.  Everyone was concerned the riot would escalate and larger, angrier crowds would come to CCM headquarters.  If they did they would have to come right past Tumaini House.

At the service, a visiting preacher was speaking and we had permitted Kelvin, Neema, big Anna and Mwajuma to attend.  After the rioting began Raymond, Lohai, Jeremiah and I took the truck and rushed down to get them.  As we turned south from the main road to head down into the older part of the village, we came face to face with a massive crowd of angry protesters and realized immediately that the truck wasn’t going to get through.  The boys felt that perhaps I or the vehicle might be targeted and urged Jeremiah and I to come home.  They thought they could “blend” into the crowd, sneak past them and get to the church and get our children and that’s exactly what ended up happening.  It was a frightening night as we hunkered down, unable to escape the sounds of shouting crowds and explosions.  This continued into the night until a ferocious rain began which finally dispersed the crowds.  It was announced that Chedema had won and Usa River settled down.   

Eliza

Oddo’s daughter Eliza has experienced another episode where she can’t remember what has happened, where she sort of “blacks out” but is mobile.  I hesitate to share this but many people here (a surprising number) suspect it is a “possession” of some sort and she was taken for prayer.  There were no physical post episodic symptoms other than her inability to remember.  She initially complained of a headache, then rose and left the house, running all over the village until, exhausted, her family finally caught up with her.  She had no memory of her experience complaining only of being “tired”.  Following up the last time it happened Oddo discovered there were three other girls at school with Eliza waiting for their parents on the day he ran to pick her up, having experienced the same thing she had.  It keeps coming back to some sort of toxicity but . . .

Lohai and Liadi have completely recovered from malaria and Reward, although initially struggling with recurring dizziness after finishing his dawa (medicine), says that most recently he is feeling better.

For your information, the photos (not the baptismal ones the safari ones) I’ve included with this letter are taken by Kelvin (12 yrs. old) while attending safari with Baba Dave and Dadas Jordan and Connie.  They are spectacular hmmm?  We’d like to produce a “Kelvin’s Calendar” for 2013 with all proceeds coming to Tumaini of course!  What do you think?

I hate to ask, knowing that you are busy with Easter and our approaching spring, but, our car needs new tires and I wonder if someone might be willing to help us out by organizing a fundraiser specifically focused on generating approximately $1,000.00 so that we can purchase new tires.  For those of you who have been here you know how hard the “roads” are on the car.  The old ones are simply worn out. 

The rains have come.  Daily and nightly we experience a deluge for usually an hour at least.  Things are green.  We have water.  There is no dust.  We do struggle with the Nairobi Fly, a tiny, ant looking insect which when squashed on the skin (a natural tendency once discovered) emits an acidic body fluid which, within a couple of days causes the skin to blister and peel, like a streaky burn.  It is not too painful, simply uncomfortable.  Malaria will become more prevalent in this weather.

Welcome to new volunteer Line (Denmark) and thank you for running with our older girls.  Other than complaining of aching legs they are loving the attention!!  Thank you Mama Teri for visiting and caring and sharing and to Stine and Anna for your time here with us.  To Mama Teri and Baba Gary thank you so much for sponsoring Nelson.  As you know he is a very deserving young man who truly needs our help if he is to succeed in his studies as he so obviously intends to.  

Please keep Baba Raymond in your prayers as he has been diagnosed with throat cancer and is fearful of “modern” medicine, opting for “traditional” cures.  We are arguing with him now to come for proper treatment.  Also, please pray for one of our Mama Mzungu who is struggling with recently diagnosed cancer.

There is some chance the container has arrived already although we have no confirmation of that and it is not expected until next weekend.   As soon as I hear, you will.  We wait patiently for its arrival and I now intend to return to Canada on May 2^nd.

 

Your Tumaini children are well.  We are all home and busy and having fun “on holiday”.  The children watched “Home Alone” last night and Liadi does “the scream” perfectly!  It is hysterical!  Be well, God bless you and Happy, happy Easter! 

Dada Mdogo . . .

March 27 from Mama . . .

I don’t know if I can explain myself properly and do not want to offend because I will brag about family, but I must try so please bear with me.

My sister Pam left Tumaini last night with our newest Bibi (Janet) after three weeks of full on Tumaini loving.  We escorted them, with Pendo whom she sponsors, Said (pronounced Sieed) whom Janet helped with English, little Daniel who steals everyone’s heart, and Liadi.  We saw them off at the airport and I shared with Pam how proud of her I am.  How grateful I am that she invested the time, money and energy to come and share in her big sister’s vision.  Long before Pam came she spent hundreds of hours fundraising, speaking, scheduling events for me to speak at, shopping, laminating, screening and sorting donations to come to Canada and then on to Tanzania.  Her efforts resulted in my meeting a very special and caring family in the U.S. who sponsored the shipment of our soon to arrive (hopefully) container.  That family not only foot the bill to get it here, they worked diligently to help fill it with their own donations.  They were the depot all U.S. donations shipped to before coming to my family farm in Ontario, Canada.  Pam brought Bibi Janet and Mama Teri here to Tumaini and they in turn brought their own special gifts.  A friend bought us a much needed cow (pregnant and ready to deliver any day) which provides our children with milk daily.  Another friend supplied a ton of soccer/futbol equipment and many, many friends have embraced Tumaini as a result of her efforts and contributed physically and financially to the care of our family.

I marvel at her because I know our history.  I know her lifestyle.  We did not enjoy a love filled childhood.  Pam received very little affection growing up and NO assistance with her post secondary education.  She had to find her own way as our parents just didn’t care and yet, from somewhere within she realizes how important her giving is to these children, to Tumaini.  She is not wealthy and yet her family sacrificed her presence and the many of hundreds of dollars it cost for her to come here and help us.  Once here, she and Bibi were quick to reach out and provide assistance to numerous needs here in the village.  They purchased the sand to finish the front walk of the classroom we’ll finish painting today for kindergarten at a local government school and they PAINTED that classroom!  They paid the rent for Dada Omari whose sick infant forces her to stay home and care for her instead of finding day work which would have covered that rent.  They contributed to the gas for our children’s safari and bought us kuku (chicken) as a special treat for the children on their last Saturday here.  They worked with our weaker students daily to help them progress in their English and they joined us (49) excited and rambunctious and noisy and occasionally vomiting children on safari and forewent what would have been a much more luxurious experience had they travelled in a smaller group but they WANTED to be with the children.

Standing at the airport, watching my sister check in her bags and give us one more tearful (she’s a crier) wave goodbye, I felt such happiness and yes, I must admit, pride.  Africa is not for everyone and Pam has a few “phobias” she overcame in order to join me here.  She is not a bug person although she was virtually consumed by them while here.  She worried about the food and falling sick and coming face to face with a snake or a roach or a monster spider, and but for the snake she experienced them all . . . and she endured, with joy and love for these children we love so much.  She and Janet have some hilarious stories they’ll share and I think both of them will be back . . . I know we hope they will.

So back to the airport.  Waving her off, I was, and still am moved by the commitment, the sacrifice she made to join us here.  By the support she gives Tumaini every month to help us sustain ourselves.  And while I was standing at the airport feeling so very grateful to her I was reminded that each of you who comes to Tumaini makes the same sorts of sacrifices in order to be here with us.  I appreciate hers because I know her so intimately, much more than most other visitors/volunteers, but you, each of you, and the sacrifices YOU make in order to be with us, which I know nothing about, is no less significant, nor, less appreciated and that is the moral of this story.  It is so very important that each of you who visit Tumaini knows how terribly grateful we are for you having joined us.  For the gifts, large or small, you bring.  For the skills you share.  For the love you give.  I cannot appreciate your sacrifices to the same extent because I do not know you as well as I know my sister, but I hope you understand what I am trying to say . . . thank you!  To sponsors who month after month embrace that child you choose to help.  To those of you who work so hard to fundraise for us and send us much needed money to carry on our support.  To you who come and live with us and sometimes get chewed on by bugs and vomited on by children, and eat beans WAYYYYYY more often than you prefer . . . please accept a sincerely appreciative mother’s thank you. 

Month end exams are ongoing today.  Tony continues to struggle and we are trying to diagnose why.  He is willing and enthusiastic.  Simply, he doesn’t seem to grasp different concepts necessary for him to build a solid foundation and advance academically.  Latifa continues to work to catch up. The rest of class one continues to progress.  Gerehad and Nelson and Zawadi and Latifa and Liadi are all a year older this month and thank you to sponsors for sending gifts and cards and well wishes . . .

Awards will be presented at Amani school on Friday (Marko, Rwekiza, Josephat, Francis, Esther, Gerehad and Jenny) and our Haradali children will come home Friday night for a month’s break.  (Mwajuma, Mwanhamisi, Lucia, Baraka, Evalin, Lazaro, Emmanuel, Margaret).  Kelvin and Connie, newly cosponsored by the Egles family from B.C. Canada (Dave and Jackie and Jordan and Christopher), are on safari together and getting to know each other on a more personal level.  It is always our wish that sponsors and their child(ren) work to establish and maintain a relationship.  Cards, emails, letters, even the occasional phone call are always welcome!

Baba Dave Egles has wired our house for our new solar installation which will come, one day, in the container.  He has become our resident Mr. Fix It and daughter Jordan has toured local schools good and bad and will report to us her findings.

We are well.  Healthy for the most part and looking forward to the upcoming school break.  Lohai is completely recovered from malaria and we wait to see how Reward reacts after his dawa (medicine) finishes.  He most recent scan shows no parasite in his brain.  Thank God!  We (Oddo and I) rushed to the Chikira family (a family of orphaned children we outreach to) to pick up Wema (12 years old) convulsing with fever.  We rushed her to the hospital but there is no lab in the evening and so I brought her home, got her fever down with some dawa (medicine), fed and showered her and she is asleep beside me.  We will see Dr. Lyimo in the morning but I don’t fear malaria. THAT is a relief.

Hoping all of you are well and your preparations for Easter are coming together as you wish.  I had hoped to be home for Easter but the container delay prohibits that.  Be well and thank you again, to each of you Tumainites who love and support us daily.

Tumaini Safari 2012!

Enormous thanks to Mama Karen Albert and the Just Ladies Travel Club for providing us the funding to take 49 children, two mamas, 4 volunteers, Katy, Oddo and I on a WONDERFUL safari of the Ngorongoro Crater AND Tarangire National Park where we stayed over in their hostel. The photos speak for themselves I think!!

And the gang's all here!!  49 children . . . 62 in total!  Safari kubwa!!

Mama Teri (USA) and Bibi Janet (USA)

A happy busful!!!!

But the other 4 hours they HUNT!

Does she look hungry?

Right outside our bus . . .

Why do they call him the laughing hyena?  He doesn't look that funny to me!

A Mama Wildebeest running her newborn calf . . .

Mama Dee on a bad day . . .

What are all those kids doing????

I think she smells our peanut butter!!!

My co photographer Kelvin

After a bath . . .

How lucky were we to see all this?????

Katy and Bryson . . .

Two teen Maasai wandering warriors . . .

From inside the crater . . .

Just before Lohai went down with malaria . . .

Look close . . . an elephant watering hole and oh what a vista!

King of the Savannah

Hubby and wives . . .

Harriri says thank you to Mama Karen and The Just Ladies Travel Club . . .

5:30 a.m. from under the net . . .

The roosters are crowing and this time its little Rashid sleeping with Mama.  Yesterday morning, in their haste to climb down from their bunk beds, Tony pushed Rashid, who hit his head and split the back of it open.  He rested in my room yesterday, after we butterflied his wound together but he still wanted kulala (to sleep) with me . . .

Mama Pam, Bibi Janet and helpers doing laundry!



New best buds Tony and Rashid

Karibu to Teri from Springboro, Ohio who arrived safely last night (I was already asleep but will greet her this morning).  Teri is a friend of Pam’s (my sister), who, with Bibi Janet, have settled into the Tumaini routine with full hearts and energy for the children.  Pam asked how I prepare to leave.  How I hug each of my children and get on a plane and return to my other life.  I don’t even want to think about it, but, suffice it to say, it is difficult.  Just ask Katy who returns to Canada after almost six months with us.  We were discussing her departure yesterday morning and both of us choked up at just the thought . . . there will be no party, no send off for her as it is just too hard, for Katy AND for her little brothers and sisters.  We truly have become a family . . .

An always busy Harriri . . .

Our newest volunteer Milou . . . Karibu!

I would like to welcome Milou, from Holland, who is joining us through Projects Abroad a volunteer organization we collaborate with.  Milou had a shaky start in Dar Es Salaam to her volunteer experience of three months where her placement didn’t speak English and she found herself to be alone and terribly lonely . . . we are doing our best to ensure she feels welcome and welcomed and she too is settling into what I hope will become a full volunteer experience for her.  Her focus is to work daily with Teacher Winner to assist the children who struggle with printing, reading and math.  Children such as Tony, whose attitude is excellent but whose aptitude requires development, or little Latifa who is soooo bright but still requires help with printing.

An always happy Esther . . .

And speaking of Projects Abroad, they will be joining us here in a few hours to paint our parameter wall which is, if you look in the background of our photos, is a dull, dreary grey.  We hope to brighten the place up a bit here!!!

Dorris, our cow is about to give birth any day I think and Holdem still provides milk for us every day.  She will stop soon in order to prepare for the birth of her baby!  Thanks to our donors we will be starting a herd soon and Ranger, the cow that was so sick we felt we would need to euthanize her is VERY slowly beginning to recover.  Our veterinarian visits her every other week and treats her regularly and her lungs are beginning to clear.  We are cautiously optimistic that she may survive.  The children are in class and studying (Francis was number one in his class for both January and February, we are so proud).  We have good days and bad, (we have attitude in Tanzania also!)  but, MOST days  are positive ones and the youngest children are learning that this is their chance to have a real future. 

Thank you again to our friends who provided the opportunity to take our children on safari! We received a wonderful donation with instructions to gift the children at Easter and then the Just Ladies Travel Club (in the U.S.) visited us here at Tumaini House and added to the pot!  Mama Pam and Bibi Janet have gifted us with the gas money required to hire a special vehicle to take our masses (62 of us will attend) down into the Ngorongoro Crater, after seeing Tarangire National Park and a night over at a hostel in Manyara, near the village of Karatu!  You cannot imagine how excited the children are and all of us would like to pass a big Asante Sana on to everyone who helped make this possible!  You may wonder why our Easter is coming so early.  Dada Katy had to be included in our safari and with her departure next Tuesday, well . . .  thank you all, so very much for making this possible!

L/R Lohai, Nelson, Zawadi and Raymond with friends and family!

Yesterday was Nelson’s(Mary,Reward and Kelvin's brother) 18^th birthday and I persuaded him to join us for dinner and a birthday cake!  (He stays alone at his home in the village while he waits for his advanced level school placement . . . you may remember the District Education Office Demare Mchome trying to help us get he and Mzamiru both of whom excelled in sciences and math a good placement???) He messaged me yesterday before he arrived, to tell me this would be his first birthday celebration EVER and that he was very excited!  We will go together next week to town to choose an appropriate birthday gift for him . . . AND, today is Zawadi’s eighth birthday!  Zawadi wanted to enjoy his cake with Kaka Nelson and so they did so together, and thanks to the Crooks family who help support Zawadi for your continued love (and your birthday gift)!

Nelson’s sister Mary, attending second year university in Dar Es Salaam is struggling with both the flu and malaria.  She has received treatment but is very uncomfortable right now . . .

We are getting our ringworm contained!  Griseofleuvin seems to be a wonder drug for treating this impossibly difficult head fungus which “pulps” the scalp in large, scabby blotches, and although not really painful, is terribly embarrassing for our children to endure.  Emmanuel has struggled on and off since last year but he seems to be almost cured of it!  A Tanzanian Doctor Martha visited and inspected our children and advised we try it!  A Godsend I hope for Emmanuel, Gerehad, Martha and Anna whose scalps are virtually clear again!

 

We will need sponsorship support friends for (12 yr. old) Neema, who is the child I spoke about, HIV+ and who has lost 5kg. (9 lbs.) in just six months as a result of her living situation with a very poor Bibi.  She weighs the same as our seven year old Neema.  We have seen the fatal combination of malnutrition and HIV and what it wreaks on a child’s body, a child’s life.  We cannot allow it to happen to this little girl!  Bibi Janet has already offered to help where she can but Neema will require monthly support to the tune of $144.00 as will the little man sleeping beside me Rashid . . . both are darling and deserving little people.  Polar opposites of each other, Neema is outgoing, gregarious and a chatterbox, and so happy to be here . . . Rashid on the other hand is very serious and one can see fear in his eyes although he is just beginning to open a bit and even smiles on occasion!  Both need our help, for it simply isn’t available in their homes, living with desperately poor grandmothers.

Neema left, will be thirteen this year, Neema right is seven.  They weigh the same . . .

We’ve had a meeting with SOS about Athuman.  The village director and his assistant (Justin, whom we met on our initial visit) came to Tumaini and all of us sat down to talk.  As we suspected, neither we, nor they, were told the truth about Athuman’s situation and after a long discussion, sharing what each of us knows about the family, the children and the situations, SOS has decided to reapproach the family, tell them what they know and then SOS and Tumaini will attempt to return Athuman here, along with his younger sister Nasma and keep the siblings together.  I explained to SOS that we will need to find sponsorship support for Nasma before we can welcome her but how nice would it be for brothers and sisters to be here together?  And speaking of that, Gaspar has been assessed and is taking daily study in reading, writing and Kiswahili to start, from his own, one on one, instructor and Anna (who suffered the extraction of an abscessed tooth two days ago-don’t ask about the method) is hoping to feel well enough to join us tomorrow on safari!

I hope you are well . . . our container is now definitely scheduled to arrive on the 30^th, in Dar, and I hope to see my husband just before it does . . . it has been too long apart.  Every day our children, your children change and learn and grow and I have no words to express the gratitude I feel for the loving support you continue to show them . . . their English is remarkable and their spirits . . . they will survive their heartbreaking beginnings with your care and shine and each of us here, wishes each of you there, our love and our thanks.  Be well.  Know you are loved . . . and appreciated, so very much!!

Please consider helping us help this little girl. . .