People Answering a Need

Recently I have noticed a pattern among the places we have visited here in Iringa.  People come to Tanzania, fall in love with the place and want to do something meaningful.

Focolare is an organization that employs women who make beautiful handmade batik items and by doing this help families under difficult circumstances.  Focolore is in a structure similar to a large pole barn.  The building has one large room and smaller rooms with workshops and a showroom.  The showroom was in a room with sale items artistically displayed.  Their inventory was low due to Christmas purchases-a good thing.   Nearby in another building was an after school program for disadvantaged children.  Friends visiting from the Iringa volunteered to play and learn with the students.  Unfortunately the after school program has been suspended due to the poor condition of the classroom building.    

Focolore showroom with craft items for sale.

 In one corner of the larger room an artist was working on making dolls.  Another area was the batik processing area.  

Woman making dolls.

Doll, a work in progress.

Not far away is a cooking school run by an Italian Catholic Sister.  Sister Aldophina is legendary and has been here many years.  She strikes me as a woman of strong principles with a warm heart.  Her cooking school is a two year program that provides an education to disadvantaged girls who need to find a skill that can provide them with a way to support themselves.  Cooking and needlework are taught here.  Ten years ago  we were told that those who did needlework were HIV positive and were not cooking students.  I hope things have changed for these students and they have a brighter future now.   

Needlework in progress

Needlework in detail.

We were at the cooking school on Saturday morning and many students were at a special event at the nearby church.  A few girls were doing needlework and  two others were unloading newly delivered fresh produce.   On weekdays, the girls learn to bake bread, bread sticks and other tasty items on a wood burning stove.  Sister Aldophina had a chest freezer filled with the items for sale made at the school.  Each delicate meat and spinach ravioli was no bigger than an inch square and each was individually spaced on spans of light green cloth.  My purchase was weighed to determine the cost.  She also had samosas, meat pies, pesto, and meat tomato sauce.   We will return the cloth for reuse at a visit in the future.  She also accepts canning jars like the ones holding orange marmalade, my favorite, which is labeled Product of Iringa Young Women.  After our purchases were made two students carried our purchases to the car.

Our purchases were taken to the car by these students.

Next stop is Nyambaali.  Lutho and Buna found a way to provide daycare and therapy for children with cerebral palsy.  Their home is designed to hold a daycare facility.  Their program includes a two day and a three day program.  Lutho and Buna have two Italian children and have adopted a Tanzanian child and have two more Tanzanian children living with them.  Tanzanian families with special needs children experience much stress and daycare provides a needed break for the families and also provides therapy for the students.  The three Tanzanian women working with the children are trained as therapists.  There is a home style atmosphere at the daycare where the three therapists also have their younger children with them.  The daycare also has a visiting European student working with the children. 

Therapists working with children

Lutho in red shirt with visiting friend and Gary Langness

There is another story here.  A number of years ago Huruma Orphanage had a student, Janeth, who had a big  crisis.  She was a student at secondary school in Iringa and had failed her Form Two exam.  The orphanage sought help from the Langness family and funds were found for Janeth to attend the two year  cooking school.  Sister Aldophina made an exception to her class size limit to include Janeth.   Janeth graduated and was placed at Nyambaali as the personal cook for Lutho and Buna's family.  The day care has its own separate cook.  Janeth works in her own kitchen which is separate from the other buildings.

Janeth's Kitchen

Gary's greeting is special because since their last visit Janeth has had a child.

Gary and Carol Langness and Janeth with her baby.

Beautiful healthy baby girl.  

Here are just a few examples of how one person can make a difference.