Happy Family Children's Village - huge progress!

We have made huge progress with the construction of the Happy Family Children's Village (HFCV), which is being established in memory of Amir Visram, and we are so excited to share the details and pictures with you!

For those of you who may be hearing about this for the first time, two years ago The Small Things took on the challenge of starting a children's village.  Since Nkoaranga Orphanage already exists, why was (and is) this important and necessary?  

Buying the land (and admiring the stunning view!)

Well, despite the existence and operation of Nkoaranga Orphanage, it is only able to care for children up until the age of five, and for a long time, children who aged out of the orphanage had to return to their villages regardless of whether there was anyone there to take care of them or not.  Often this meant a very bleak outlook for the child.  In recent years, the sponsorship organisation, The Foundation for Tomorrow, was able to provide a great sponsorship program for some children; however, it was not possible for them to take all children from Nkoaranga as they also provide for children from other communities, and additionally, it sometimes meant the children going to boarding school when they were not emotionally ready to do so.

Building the foundations

The HFCV was our solution to this!  The village will house children aged five and upwards, initially in two family-style houses where they will be cared for by Mamas, and attend Dinka School as day-pupils.  Staff and volunteers will be able to live on site, as well.  In the future, there will also be a community centre, where families from the surrounding community can bring their children for day care, allowing parents to go to work; and a community garden where local families can grow their own produce.  Much further down the track (in years to come) we hope to have 20 houses, capable of housing around 100 children.

Ribbon cutting ceremony

This project would not have been possible without the generous support of Shazi Visram, the CEO of Happy Family Brands, and daughter of Amir Visram (whose memory the HFCV honors); and the Seedlings Foundation.  We want to extend a huge thank you to these people, as well as to all of you, who have supported the project since the time that it was only a dream in the distance.  We are so glad to still have you with us as the HFCV becomes a reality!

We are delighted at the success of the Pilot House (literally a pilot program operated prior to establishment of the HFCV) - it has now been successfully running for over a year, and we are confident that the routine we have established there will continue to bring happiness and stability to the children once they move into the HFCV.

Construction is well underway

The foundations, walls and roofs have shot up - a credit to the fantastic architect and builders who have thus far worked on the project!  We are thrilled with how the houses are looking!

Some of you may have been involved in the 'Fill a Box, Make a Home' campaign, which we recently ran.  This project got lots of people involved in filling a large shipping container with many essential items, which are not easily purchased in Nkoaranga or nearby, to send from the USA to Tanzania, to fill the houses ready for the children to move into.  Parcels of toys, books and household essentials are still arriving at the warehouse in the USA (although it is now too late to send anything to put into the container), and soon the container will be ready to leave!

Roofs on, houses watertight and ready to be filled

Our next step is to ask local craftsmen to make beautiful wooden furniture (like those below) for the houses, and we would love for you to get involved in this!

Specifically, our annual Spread the Love online auction, is almost upon us - we are so excited, please check out our Spread the Love auction website - and all of the money raised this year will go towards the HFCV, funding furniture and other household essentials.  Although most of the items in the auction will be open for bids (naturally, since it's an auction!), if you would like to purchase a specific piece of furniture for one of the houses, you can do this through the Fund-a-Need section of our auction.  Here, instead of bidding for an item for yourself, it is possible to directly purchase and donate a chair (where a Mama or volunteer may sit to feed a baby), bookcase (where well-loved books will be stored) or other piece of furniture for the HFCV.  You will know that your Fund-a-Need item has gone to a good home!

Auction 'Fund-a-Need' items to fill the houses

So, there you go!  What amazing progress we have made with the support of all of you wonderful people!  

Please check out our Spread the Love online auction which opens on 15 April to continue to support the progress of the HFCV.  As well as the option of directly purchasing a Fund-a-Need piece of furniture, you can bid for many fantastic items, including beautiful handmade Tanzanian goods, hotel stays, jewellery, paintings and much more.

Thank you a million!

Reforming Nkoaranga Orphanage - what's changed?

"We've given the Orphanage Reform Project a lot of thought, research and planning - in fact, it's been ongoing for almost a year!  The best part is, once the project is completed, the benefits for the Mamas and children continue to grow.  The welfare of the children and Mamas is central to our work at TST, and the Orphanage Reform plan is one of many steps TST is taking to ensure the health and wellbeing of all our children and their Mamas!"

Jess, Child Welfare Director

Why did we need a change?

Behind every improvement lies inefficiencies of a particular system. Although the orphanage has been running well for many years now, problems still arose. Issues included:

• Too few Mamas per shift
• Mamas and volunteers not doing their work properly due to lack of knowledge and a lack of evaluation systems
• Information not passed on from Mamas leaving for the day to incoming Mamas due to a lack of a handover process, for example, information about sick kids or food habits
• The children not having consistent routines during the day, resulting in eating/playing/sleeping habits being altered, making the kids unhappy and cranky
• Mamas not addressing the specific developmental needs of each child, since they had no information or system to share information, aside from day to day observation
• Kids not developing proper bonds with the Mamas due to staffing problems

The orphanage reform aims to address the above listed issues, and ultimately make life easier and better for our kids and Mamas!

We made four main changes to the way Nkoaranga Orphanage and TST is run.  These changes provide the structure through which other important issues and topics can be effectively addressed. We researched them thoroughly, discussed them at length with the Mamas, and we are proud to tell you about...

1. A daily schedule for different age groups

...creates a stable routine, and ensures that no tooth goes unbrushed, no mosquito net unused!

• We have developed a 'Big Kid Schedule' and a 'Little Kid Schedule'
• Schedules establish a stable routine for the children and Mamas
• Schedules ensure that children consistently receive a high level of care, preventing children feeling stressed due to an irregular routine, and teaching the children healthy habits such as hand washing and teeth brushing
• Schedules ensure that the developmental needs of children are met
• 'Learning Playtime' is quality time for the Mamas and kids to play together
• 'Development Time' is a space for Mamas and volunteers to help the little kids work on age-appropriate skills such as standing, crawling, walking, and talking, and the bigger kids with reading, writing, and drawing etc.
• 'Activity Time' will usually be art or music related and led by a volunteer, encouraging creativity within the kids
• 'Story Time' give the big kids time to listen to a book or traditional story told by a Mama(s), and have some calm time before bed!

2. Our first Child Welfare Director

...implements the reform and provides oversight, expertise, and advice

• Jessica, our new Child Welfare director, has extensive experience in child development and is working on getting her Master's in Social Work.  We are extremely lucky to have her!
• Her position involves ensuring that the Orphanage Reform Plan is implemented as planned and monitoring the health and development of all of the children under TST care
• In addition, Jess is the point of contact if any of the Mamas has immediate concerns about whether a child should be taken to the hospital, and will take care of any other child-welfare related issues
• Finally, our Child Welfare Director will provide an on-the-ground point of contact for the Child Welfare sub-committee of the main board, a committee she feels lucky to have! The experienced team assists with advice if there are any serious issues with the children

3. Mama-kids teams

...promote secure attachments, and ensure that each child gets the attention they need

• Mamas will care for the same group of children (wherever possible)
• Providing each child with one constant primary caregiver is important for fostering secure attachments in children, and helps to tackle attachment disorders which some children may develop when a primary caretaker is lacking in their lives
• Mama-kid teams also allow Mamas to keep track of and promote each child's development and wellbeing more easily. This ensures that each child gets exactly the care they need since each team Mama is fully responsible for her team kids
• An important aspect of the teams is that when each team's shift is over, the Mamas do not simply go home. They have to make sure that the handover is made properly; leaving no mess behind and updating the incoming Mamas on any issues with the kids. This makes life easier and better for the Mamas and the kids. 
• Colour coded uniforms / child clothes helps everyone keep track of who is in which team!

4. Staff training

...supplements existing experience in important areas, increasing confidence and competence

• We are extremely lucky to already have such experienced and committed Mamas working at Nkoaranga Orphanage - the dedication they show each child is truly humbling (and their chai (tea) tastes delicious!).
• The hygiene area is a big, but very well received, change. Each child has their own toothbrush in a cup with their name, as shown above. Although brushing your teeth may seem like an obvious habit for many, it is not for many people in Tanzania. The Mamas are very excited to use this closed off area for washing the kids' hands and brushing their teeth - and so are the kids! 
• Staff training focused on important areas and was designed to supplement existing knowledge
• Training in child welfare, including: child development, attachment disorders and positive discipline methods (a time-out chair and saying sorry) provided the Mamas with the theory behind good practice
• Training on family welcoming and volunteer procedures helped the Mamas to improve their interpersonal skills when dealing with relatives visiting their child for the first (or one of many) time, and in advising and guiding volunteers to help them in the most effective way, increasing the confidence and enjoyment of all parties
• The Mamas really enjoyed the training!

These changes are already allowing us to address topics which are integral to the wellbeing of the children at Nkoaranga.  We want to say a huuuge thank you for being a part of The Orphanage Reform Project, and making all of this possible!

If you have any questions at all about any aspect of the reform, or would like more information, please do not hesitate to contact us at Jess@thesmallthings.org.