I got the best surprise I've had in a long time today, when on opening the door I found two HUGE boxes filled with incredibly beautiful, soft, organic kid's clothes from Fred's World in Denmark. Fred's World is an amazing friend of The Small Things - their founders have now sent two loads of beautiful, high quality clothes to our kids. Add to that the similarly gorgeous baby clothes donated by Phil at green gorilla, another organic Danish clothing brand, and we are getting spoiled! I'm so happy to know that each of the kids will get their own, brand new Christmas outfit this year!
Fred's World
green gorilla
If you have kids, or have siblings or heck, good friends with kids, go take a look at the green gorilla and Fred's World websites this holiday season. And thanks to the fabulous Marie for setting up this great partnership. We are very grateful!
We know the Fred's World clothes hold up well, because they arrived this summer just in time for our safari! The kids were so excited to try on their new outfits, and they made a beautiful, stylish little troop as we visited the snake park and the game lodge! Check out some fantastic pictures below taken by our volunteer, Claire, from the trip.
Ester in head to toe Fred's World!
Zawadi (left) and Miriam (right) in their Fred's World gear
David in head-to-toe Fred's World, posing
in front of a zebra on our mini safari!
Ester in her cardigan and Fred's World shirt/dress
Baracka in head-to-toe Fred's World
Neema showing off her belly AND the Fred's World shirt
Coming to Tanzania as three privileged people has made us more appreciative of everything we have, and allowed us to recognize our good fortune and focus on what is truly important. Straight away we all felt a sense of connection and love between everyone at Nkoaranga orphanage.We take for granted all the necessities that the orphanage so strongly depends on - we don't realise how lucky we are to have access to the basics whenever we want in our countries.
Nkoaranga orphanage offers a community and access to education, which is vital for these children in their process. Education is extremely important for the children and they are so lucky to have the school house and access to our own wonderful teacher. We volunteers look back to our home towns and recognize many younger individuals that abuse the opportunity of education, which can change lives here. It's not something we will take for granted again!
Peter and Shujah
The most important factor the orphanage offers is their home. The passion and hard work of everyone involved in the orphanage (and The Small Things!) is the reason for the success and happiness of the kids. This success comes from the pure love and attention that the kids receive from the mamas, volunteers, and each other. They all want to please, and all depend on this nurturing to thrive.
The orphanage offers good nutrition, medical care, and a healthy environment for these children, which in this society is nothing to be taken for granted. They are bathed and changed continuously, and all the children are very well fed - don't let the fact that they chant "CHAKULA!" or "FOOD!" before each meal trick you into thinking they aren't! The children have a strong bond with each mama, and it's heartwarming to see these relationships. The mamas are extremely hardworking, and the orphanage could not function without them.
We each have our own personal memories of the orphanage - below, we will each write about some of our favorite moments.
Ester shot by Claire
Claire: My name is Claire Wyatt, I'm sixteen years old, and coming to Tanzania has completely changed my perspective. I encourage any young people to do something like this when the opportunity arises, because it puts your priorities in order and makes you realize what's truly important. I come from a big family - I have two brothers, two sisters, and three step-sisters. Before I came here, I was always grateful for having such a big family, but now I appreciate it even more. The orphanage feels like one big family, with all of the children (and their big personalities!) forming strong bonds with each other. Pendo is definitely the little mama, and Simoni is everyone's cautious grandfather. My fondest memory comes from a day when I was sitting in the house, which looks onto the orphanage. I watched little Ester (2 years old), who had wandered outside on her own, and started to cry. I was about to go comfort her, but before I could act, I saw Loveness (age 4) walk up to Ester and wipe her face, pick her up, and take her inside. This moment brought home to me how deep the bonds are between these kids, and how they look out for each other. It made me realize that while they may not have parents, they do have a family in each other.
Stine and Ebenezer
Stine and Peter: Our names are Stine and Peter, we come from Denmark and we chose to volunteer over a year ago. We didn't have the slightest idea what to expect - we were totally overwhelmed by the love and the trust the children put in our hands from the first moment. This alone would have made the trip worthwhile!
Our greatest moment was to see the development of baby Ebenezer, who suffered from a bad bout of pneumonia when we first arrived at the orphanage. Stine in particular felt drawn to him from day one. He is over three months old but his size is similar to a newborn, despite how much he's grown since first coming to the orphanage. We noticed straight away his trouble breathing, and after a short period of time, Stine felt a strong passion and responsibility and passion to act as his mother would have. She spent most of her time at the orphanage caring for him, and she felt a strong connection whenever their eyes met. After just a few days she could tell he recognized her as well, and felt safe. During our stay, though, he was extremely ill and struggled to keep weight on, as he was also having stomach trouble from his antibiotics - we felt very worried for his health. However, we and the mamas took him to the hospital to be treated, and we are confident he will make a full recovery. We know he is in very caring and capable hands to monitor him as he recovers. We are also very grateful to The Small Things for allowing us to stay involved in his journey to recovery, and to continue to watch him grow and thrive.
We have so many wonderful memories and we are very motivated to go home and take action on some of these critical issues. We feel a strong responsibility to find a way to help. We have met so many wonderful and welcoming people on our trip. Even though they have their own struggles, and most have far less than anyone from our home country, Denmark, they are so happy and generous. We could and should learn from their example. We want to take their attitude and apply to our own lives, wherever we are. The kids will always be in our hearts - there is nothing like hearing them shouting your name in excitement when you enter a room!
While we are here, though, there are some projects that we and The Small Things would really like to take on, that we can't currently afford. These will be continuing into the future, but here is a brief summary.
English classes: The mamas have thrived in their English studies, and it has made a big difference in their ability to communicate with the volunteers. They have asked us to extend the courses for another three months. To pay for 14 mamas' classes for three months, including all transportation, costs approximately $1,000 dollars.
School uniforms: The kids have been out of their adorable school uniforms now for a while, because they have been worn to pieces. To purchase new material and sweaters, repair existing uniforms, and pay for tailoring, will cost approximately $500.
Chickens, rabbits, garden: While Marie and her mom financed the building of a new (amazing!) chicken coop and food for six months, there is still some more work to do to make the entire area optimally productive. The new building requires new fencing, and the replanted garden needs fertilizer. Baba Nicky, our resident expert on agriculture and raising animals, also wants to create a small rabbit area and buy a few rabbits, which will, in time, be a great source of nutrition for the kids (and a lot of fun for them in the meantime). These projects together will cost approximately another $400.
Micro Grants: as you know from our last post, the Micro Grants project is going incredibly well, but still needs support. Every dollar helps deserving families in the community to support themselves and become self-sufficient business people.
Please consider donating if any of these seem like worthwhile projects to you!
As many of you know, I am currently studying at the London School of Economics in the Master's of Public Administration program, focusing on International Development. I have never in my life encountered such a breadth of interesting, talented, intimidatingly intelligent people with such fascinating and diverse life experiences, all of which they bring to bear on the program. I feel incredibly lucky to be a part of it! They're also charitable and extremely generous - the program's Student Association, MPASA, has a Philanthropy wing, and each year the entire program votes on a charity to raise funds for. This year, they chose us at The Small Things!
Souraya
Joachim
Leo
Through the efforts of our two fearless second year leaders, Souraya and Leo, as well as our newly elected leader for next year, Joachim, as well as the amazing participation from the class, we managed to raise over $5,500! This was achieved through a number of creative avenues - from pub quizzes to bake sales to scavenger hunts to candygrams to hoodies to gambling! Here are a few highlights of the year's events.
Blackjack and "Pin the Tail on the Beaver (LSE's Mascot) at
Games and Poker Night
Jo (front) and Merce (back), two of our departing second years, showing off the charades slips at Games and Poker night
One team crammed into a London phone box
during the Scavenger Hunt
Another team rocking out in an intersection for the Scavenger Hunt
Ebenezer Ndogo, one of the preemies
being helped by the one-to-one care
After talking to the group and the board, we've decided to use $2,000 of the money raised to complete Light Up the Night! That means that thanks to the students of the LSE MPA, we will be able to put solar lighting in the hospital maternity ward as well as the orphanage, making things much safer for the 30 orphanage kids as well as for hundreds of laboring mothers each year. The rest of the money will be divided between various other projects - part will go towards paying for a new mama's salary for the next three years in conjunction with Western Union and Millie and Mikarla, part will go towards the new cooker and dryer for the orphanage, and part will stay in reserve for unforeseen expenses, like paying for one-to-one care for premature infants.
Pray, who was badly burned
in the fire that inspired Light
Up the Night
We at The Small Things are all incredibly grateful - but I want to personally thank each and every one of my incredible classmates for their participation in this huge gift to the kids of Nkoaranga orphanage. I want to thank you for choosing us, despite the complications of being a US registered nonprofit operating in the UK. I want to thank you for spreading the word to friends and family - Team Least Squares from the Pub Quiz (Tolu “T-Statistic”, Faisal “F-Statistic”, Sarah “Stata Star”, Joachim “Joint Hypothesis”, and Hayk "Histogram Hero") were particularly wonderful ambassadors. I want to thank the people who baked and helped us harass random passerbys for the bake sale - especially Molly, Kyla, Josephine, Liz, Merce and Josepha. And of course, none of this would have been possibly without the incredible leadership of Leo, Souraya and Jo, and the hard work of the rest of the Philanthropy team.
Andrea, one of the kids headed to
school in January
Most importantly, I want to thank you all for coming out to our events and making them such a pleasure. It will be up to the class to decide which nonprofit they choose to support next year - while we would be incredibly grateful to be chosen again, it would also be fair for people to choose another of the many deserving nominated charities. But please know that you've made a huge difference for us this year, and the projects you've sponsored will affect mothers and children in need for many years to come.
First daughter, Magnolia Zinashi,
chowing down with Ababi (dad)
This wonderful family is currently in the process of adopting a second daughter (this one with some special needs) from Ethiopia. Instead of taking out a standard loan or asking for unrestricted donations, they came up with a very cool and innovative concept - the "Give it Forward" loan. They ask people to donate towards their adoption costs - however, each month, they pay back an installment of those costs (usually $200), plus 10% interest, plus a 10% matching donation from an anonymous donor. These payments go to charities voted on by Finding Magnolia's readers - and this month, they chose us! Thank you so much to everyone who voted for us - we love this entire concept and the idea that each donation to this wonderfully family is effectively doubled, as it helps them with their adoption now, and then has a second impact as a donation to a charity as they pay it back. What a cool idea!
We have decided to put their $240 donation towards Project Education - we are now more than half of the way to the total amount we will need to raise to get all four wonderful kids enrolled next year! In case you need a reminder, these are the fantastic kids we are working to get into The Foundation For Tomorrow's amazing program, which puts them in high quality Tanzanian boarding schools, with fantastic extracurriculars, emotional and academic support, and care and transport over school breaks. This donation will help with the two years of up-front tuition required to enroll each child - however, we are still looking for long term sponsors for most of these beautiful kids. A quarter sponsorship is just $19 per month! Take a look at our beautiful kiddos, and then check out the Project Education page for more details on them and the program.
Andrea, our sweet silly boy - one quarter sponsored
Abdulli, our sensitive little man - not yet sponsored
Pendo, our loving girl - fully sponsored
And David, our little firecracker - one quarter sponsored
Mosey on over to the Project Education page to find out more about the program and how to get involved and help give these wonderful kids the future that they deserve. Thank you again to Finding Magnolia and everyone else who has helped us come so far!
Ok, so I know a big company isn't usually an angel... but in this case, Western Union's "World of Betters" competition allowed us to throw our name in the hat with an idea about what we would do with $1,000 to make the world a better place. And then many of you wonderful people voted for us on their site - and we won! We picked up $1,000 towards funding a year's salary for a new mama, who we're hoping to hire this summer. A good chunk of the rest of the money is coming from our wonderful friends Millie and Mikarla, two Australian volunteers who partnered with us to re-do the playground. We couldn't be more grateful for their help with both projects!
Cantate dancing with the toddlers
For those who haven't been there personally, please trust us when we say that hiring new staff is possibly the MOST valuable thing we can do for the orphanage. The mamas work incredibly hard, but as it stands, there are often only two on duty at any given time - meaning that one is cooking, cleaning, and washing all the clothes, while another is watching the kids. Given that there are currently four babies under a year and another six under two years, think about how much time and attention the older kids get under the current system! This isn't the fault of the mamas, and they work hard to counteract it through group play, singing, dancing, and more - but it's just not always possible to engage that many children directly with only two adults. And, of course, if a child is sick and needs to be brought down the hill to the hospital or the water or cooker or washing machines are down, one mama will have to spend their entire shift working on that problem rather than being with the kids.
Mama Linda with sleepy Ester
That said, things are getting better. Mama Linda has already made a big splash with the kids, and almost certainly saved little Peace's life during the month she spent with him giving one-to-one care. We're hoping to find someone just as wonderful as her to fill the second spot we'll have open this summer! Luckily for us, although difficult for the community, there are almost always very talented people left without jobs, even once they've attained credentials such as the child-care certificate required to work at the orphanage. We're looking forward to finding just the right fit for our kids.
Mama Andrew with Shujah
We have also been lucky to have a number of wonderful volunteers come forward through the site, in addition to those who are out there through great volunteer organizations. However, volunteers are always a bit of a mixed bag, because unless they live on the property (as we do when we go), they often choose to be there during a very limited time-frame, usually 9am-4pm, which are in fact the easiest hours of the day! That can supplement, but never replace, the importance of having enough mamas hired to take care of the kids in every hour of the day and night.
Now, just for fun, a few videos: Mama Cantate feeding the kids with mangoes (which are 'tam,' tasty), trying not to let them get their hands all sticky - a losing battle - and Mama Farajah singing and dancing the "Train to Moshi" song before bed with the kids (and no, I have no clue why Zawadi looks so serious!)
Thanks to everyone who voted for us, to Western Union, and to Millie and Mikarla!
It has been a long time coming, but finally on April 29th my gala dinner and silent auction for "Light Up The Night" (details) took place at at The Westin Bear Mountain Golf Resort & Spa in Victoria, BC.
"Light Up The Night" The evening proved to be a huge success; and thanks to the generosity of all who attended, and made a donation in lieu of attending we were able to raise $608.00 for food which includes: bananas, pineapples, rice, oil for cooking, meat, fish, chicken, toothbrushes, and underwear. This will help to stock the pantry and provide them with a surplus to use in times of need. Thank you to those who purchased 3 containers of baby formula. This will help with our new baby Ebeni who is very weak and struggling right now. I feel fortunate to be able to return in less than 2 weeks to assess the needs of this little one and help where I can.
$1100.00 was raised for education and an additional $7292.00 for the electrical work and solar panels for the orphanage. With the $60 already donated, that brings us to a grand total so far of $7352!
Thank you to everyone in my local community that contributed to the silent auction tables. Thank you to The Westin Bear Mountain Golf Resort & Spa in Victoria for sponsoring my event, and taking a chance on a girl with a crazy fundraising idea! I can't even begin to thank the members of my team at work who have provided the funds for David's first year of education; and I feel blessed to be a part of sponsoring this amazing kid.
Many people are wondering where "The Mosiac Ladies" ended up. Well, the beautiful quilt that was made by my amazingly talented mother was auctioned off with all funds going towards "Light Up The Night". It will be a lovely house warming gift from one sister to another. Don't worry if you missed out on this beautiful piece of fabric art, there will be a chance to bid on another one...more details to follow.
"The Mosiac Ladies"
I can not even begin to express my thanks and gratitude to my family as I have planned this fundraiser, whilst working on my degree. Their support has been more than I could have ever asked for. From the very beginning my mom has been hands on assisting where she could. Thanks to my dad for taking some wonderful and memorable photos of the event.Thanks to my sister and brother in law who out bid many people and took home 8 silent auction items; the record for the evening! Without them this night would not have been possible. Last but not least a tremendous thanks to my boss at work for giving me the time off so I could return to Nkoaranga, and spend 7 more weeks with the children and mamas; I can't wait!
My family ~ my cheerleaders!
I wish that I had the words to express how thankful I am for everyone that attended the evening and made it possible, but there are no words to express what I feel and how grateful I am for all of you. I think that Mother Teresa says it best, "We ourselves know that what we are doing is just a drop in the ocean. But the ocean would be less because of that missing drop. We can do no great things, only small things with great love." That's what we are all about at The Small Things as we work to enhance the children and mama's lives at Nkoaranga, one small thing at a time.
My brother in law, my beautiful sister and niece.
My "oldest" sponsors, my grandparents
Neela, Sandra (my mom), and Deborah. Deborah made 50 pairs of pants and shorts for the children this summer.
My work team and some of David's new sponsors
To contribute to "Light Up the Night" and help us reach our goal, click below!
