Tanzania: Learning in New Places!

This morning we were on the road at 7:00 a.m. The ride to Go Go Public Elementary School was an interesting one. The trip took us much longer than it would have for the same distance to be traveled at home because of the many stops. When you stop at a red light in Dar es Salaam, you REALLY stop and by that I mean for up to 15 minutes.   All due to construction and a lack of infrastructure, similar to many Canadian cities.  While we waited for the traffic policeman to allow us to go through, we watched many people walking between the cars selling various goods, shovels, peanuts, potato chips, maps (very large maps) to name a few. Along the way there were rustic stands selling almost anything you could imagine.

Upon our arrival we were greeted with lots of hugs from Mama Wandoa, her son Benjamin, her daughter Wendy and her grandson Jerome as well as many volunteer helpers . The trucks containing the backpacks and the mattresses were already unloaded and we were ready to start our day.

Being a retired teacher, I needed to see the inside of a classroom. So during a lull in activity I found one of the teachers sitting at her desk in an empty classroom. It was about one o'clock I was surprised to find that the 100+ five year old students that she teaches had already finished their day. She invited me in to look around.  There was nothing there but a cement floor -- no desks, books, toys, activities and certainly no computers. Sadly, the children sit on straw mats on the floor. The walls had a few hand made charts yet this wonderful teacher was excited to show me what they were studying. After leaving her classroom I was introduced to the assistant to the principal. He was an enthusiastic young man who clearly loves his job and thought nothing of the fact that he had 250 students in his class. I laughed thinking about what our Ontario teachers would have to say about that! He introduced me to his class and the students gave me an enthusiastic welcome.

From there I headed to meet the principal. He was so warm and welcoming. He asked if I knew of a school in Toronto that might like to partner up with his school so that they could learn more about life in Canada. I said I didn't have connections with Toronto schools but I would be more than happy to hook him up with the students in the school that I retired from in St. Thomas.  He said that the children are learning English; yet they have no books to read. I walked away from him knowing that I would do my best to make that connection for him and his amazing students as well as finding a way to send him some used textbooks. What a gift the textbooks that are too old and outdated in our schools would be to this community.

The day was long but it went by quickly because the children were such a joy to work with. Seeing them meet up with their parents with their bedkits made me forget about that dusty bumpy road that got us there. I will think twice before I complain about some of the trivial matters that I find irksome. I have shoes on my feet which is more than some of these children.

For the record we distributed 765 bedkits to deserving students.  The chaos was well controlled by the volunteers and the incredible logistical challenges were somehow overcome by these same volunteers.  For us it was relatively simple and straightforward but we all knew that the efforts of others were making us look like heroes!  And we are grateful to them for all they do! They must love the children as much as we do!

Kay for Team Tanzania 2017
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Tanzania: On The Go!

Team Tanzania 2017 has been on the go with our first distribution today in Gogo! 785 children and their families are sleeping better tonight thanks to the many donors who make this all possible.

Our bright-eyed team departed Toronto Pearson Airport on Tuesday, and we arrived in Dar es Salaam Wednesday afternoon (not as bushy-tailed). After claiming our luggage, we were immediately greeted by the big smiles and open arms of Mama Wandoa, Benjamin and Wendy. No time to spare, we jumped right into business, visiting Mama Wandoa’s house which housed the backpacks full of bedkit goodies, and met with one of the men responsible for sewing garments and backpacks for the bedkits.

Our first distribution site was in Gogo, just over an hour’s drive from Dar es Salaam. We arrived to crowds of excited children and parents, waiting in anticipation. Well… they weren’t the only ones excited, so were we!

Team Tanzania 2017 is half distribution newbies, and half veterans. Working together, we soon found our distribution groove, and did a lot of high-fives with the children along the way. As a newbie myself, I was fortunate enough to help out in an array of distribution tasks. But by far, the most special task I performed was interviewing parents and children who had just received bedkits.

With a strong focus on sleep habits and quality of sleep, I was able to connect one-on-one with nine families. Mothers, fathers, grandmothers and their children spoke with me (with translation help from Benjamin) about their lives and how well they sleep at night, prior to receiving a bedkit. I learned more about these families than I ever anticipated, holding back my emotions as I was moved by their stories and inspired by their strength.

What a wonderful start to our distribution journey here in Tanzania. My cheeks already hurt from smiling so much, and I can’t wait to get started on day two! 

Lyndsay Wallis for Team Tanzania 2017
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Sri Lanka: Distribution Completed!!

The distribution is complete!!!!  The team distributed 800 bedkits today to reach a grand total of 5,000! 

After our distribution, we had the opportunity to visit a boarding house where approximately 20 girls reside while they attend local schools.  Their families live outside the area.   Several of the girls living in this boarding house received bedkits today and are thrilled to be given this generous gift.  

Team Sri Lanka 2017
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Sri Lanka: Day Five Complete!

Day 5 is successfully completed! So many happy faces right from the beginning today in Sri Lanka. We started off this morning with an O' Canada sing-a-long and the kids absolutely loved it!

800 little ones will be returning home for a happy night's sleep after today. 😊

Mariah, a science major, has also included a diagram of a heart from a mural on the side of a school.  We've seen plenty of these types of visuals at schools throughout the distribution.

Mariah for Team Sri Lanka 2017
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Sri Lanka: 855 More Bedkits Given Out!

Another successful day here in Sri Lanka.  Although it's Sunday, we had a full turnout, distributing 855 bedkits.

Teachers accompanied some of the children who came by bus

Parents were on hand to collect others with their bedkits in tow

Children receiving their bedkits 

Waiting to catch buses home

Happy faces all around . . .

Team Sri Lanka 2017

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Sri Lanka: Bringing Joy!

Today was the hottest of three distributions. Full Moon Celebrations were going on in the District. The SCAW team are doing a fantastic job bringing joy and a better night’s sleep to 850 children.

Happy faces preparing to receive their bedkit

Various methods of travel for parents and children taking home their bedkit

Various methods of travel for parents and children taking home their bedkit

Various methods of travel for parents and children taking home their bedkit

Can always count on an ice cream vendor to keep the children cool with a treat

Faces of two Sri Lankan children about to have a Suwa Nindak. (Good Sleep)

The young child’s expression tells the story!

Team Sri Lanka 2017

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Sri Lanka: Our Distribution in Pictures!!

Another successful day!  Working with our local Sri Lanka partners, we distributed 850 bedkits.  

Here are some photos!

Neil watches welcoming ceremony with children presenting betel leaves to us on arrival at their school gate.

Very excited children lined up to get photos and receive bedkits.

Brian with three teachers who accompanied their children by bus from another nearby village.

Children outside after just receiving bedkits.

Time to take the new bedkit home!

Mariah with some of the children who helped out at the distribution.

Team Sri Lanka 2017
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Sri Lanka: We Are Hard At Work!!

We arrived early at our first distribution site to be greeted by young students gifting us Betal leaves.  We then were marched into the school grounds by the school band.

Once children had received their bedkits they waited with friends to board their buses back to their home villages. 

We were fortunate to visit the home of one of the bedkit recipients.  We were able to see how the young boy receiving the bedkit will be able to benefit from it’s contents. 

A great first day of distribution filled with lots of smiles!

Team Sri Lanka 2017
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Sri Lanka: We Are On Our Way!!

Here is Team Sri Lanka at Pearson International ready to take flight yesterday evening.

We'll be distributing 5,000 bedkits next week.  Stay tuned to follow our adventures!!! 

Katie Sandiford for Team Sri Lanka 2017 Post your comments here:

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Uganda: Mission Accomplished!

Team Uganda and The Inner Wheel of Kampala successfully completed our last bed-kit distribution on Friday in Banda. What a marvellous sight to see the smile of the 5,500th child receiving her bedkit!  We were all trying to make the most of our last day playing and singing with the children, and capturing those special memories to take back to our friends, family and future donors.

A long bus ride followed where we stayed near the 'Source of the Nile'.  The Inner Wheel women planned a special reception at the hotel where we shared tea and tasty treats.  The highlight of the evening was a round table discussion with each volunteer sharing a touching personal story experienced during this distribution.  There were many laughs, a few tears and lots of fun! Saturday morning we toured the 'Source of the Nile'.  We ventured onto a small wooden boat to experience the birds and plants before visiting the exact spot where the Nile River begins from Lake Victoria.  It then flows 4000 miles before reaching the Mediterranean Sea. 

Sunday was a day of closure with the Inner Wheel Club of Kampala.  Team leaders met to review the financial records and evaluate the success of the bedkit distribution.  Then everyone attended a lovely dinner and an evening of fun to celebrate the conclusion of our journey together.  There were silly skits and lots of laughs, as well as sincere words of appreciation for the great contributions made by both the SCAW travelling volunteers and the Inner Wheel women.  They had a lovely cake made to acknowledge the contributions of both teams working together to successfully deliver 5,500 bedkits.  The SCAW team presented the Inner Wheel women with Canadian maple leaf scarves as a token of our appreciation for their hard work and partnership.  These amazing women have been partnering with SCAW for about 25 years, working tirelessly each year to register the neediest children, purchasing and packing the chosen bed-kit items, and then joining us for the actual distributions of bed-kits.  We are lucky to be connected with such a dedicated group of passionate women.

This morning we visited the uniform factory where the clothing was made for this year's distribution.  Unique Uniforms is a modern factory that designs, cuts, sews, irons, and embroiders school and workplace uniforms.  It was interesting to hear how the owner of the factory started his business with only 2 sewing machines and is now able to employ 135 Ugandan workers. 

Well, this is the end of our journey.  Thank you for following our distributions over the past two weeks and offering your support from Canada.  It makes a difference to know that others care about our work to improve the lives of 5,500 children in Uganda.

Signing off!

Team Uganda 2017

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Hand in hand, we grow together

We've come a long way since our first distribution outside of Kampala 10  days
ago, growing personally, growing along with the others from SCAW, and growing
even stronger as a team with the women from The Inner Wheel of Kampala. They
pave the way with their planning and organization, and we are pleased to join
them hand in hand.
Today was our second to last distribution.  We've seen 5,000 happy children  and
 have 500 more to go. We are excited to have changed so many lives by delivering
the bedkits on behalf of the so many who have donated.  Each village makes a
point of asking us to bring back their  thanks.
Before the distribution each day, we have lots of fun playing with the children
and mingling with their families.  Memories we will cherish forever.   As you
can see, the  pictures speak louder than words...

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Another joyous welcome!

Team Uganda awoke very early to be on the bus by 7am.  The rocky hills of Tororo were beautiful to see in the early morning sun as we passed crops of rice, matoke, coffee, sugar cane and maize.Two bed-kit distributions for 500 children at each site were planned for today.  

We set out from Tororo and drove about 1 1/2 hours on very bumpy dirt roads in rural areas.  The sites were amazing with more small round homes with thatched roofs. Children, and parents alike, were excited to see a big bus coming into their community.  The first distribution was in Bumufuni.  We were greeted by lots of women dancing and singing; we enjoy joining in their dances and they think our efforts are quite amusing!  The children were happy to be dressed in their colourful new clothes and welcomed us with lots of clapping and cheering for the 'bazungu' (white people) who had arrived to bring them gifts.  After completion of the distribution, we were provided with a wonderful hot lunch of Ugandan dishes at the home of a local couple before heading off for a one hour journey to the second distribution centre in Magale.

In Magale, we received another joyous welcome from parents and their children.  At this centre a young boy of about 7 years of age bravely stepped up to recite a poem for us.  We couldn't believe it as he recited a long speech in English, demonstrating his knowledge of spelling in his second language.  He was followed by a young girl who also welcomed us with a short speech.  SCAW always encourages Ugandan children to attend school, and we were thrilled to see the competency and confidence of these children.  Everyone wanted to participate in the excitement, as you can see from the picture of the rooster who also wanted to pose for a bedkit picture.

Our Inner Wheel partners explained that some needy families had refused to register their children to receive a bed-kit, believing that the promise of such a generous gift  must be a scam.  It was sad to see their faces when they saw other children walking home in new clothing with a comfy mattress, wash basin, blanket, sheet, sandals, mosquito net, water bottle, lunch container, tooth brushes, a backpack and school supplies.  These parents were told there could be another opportunity for their child to receive a bedsit in a future year.  

We have now delivered a total of 4000 bedkits in 8 different villages and looking forward to our scheduled rest day.  Then on Wednesday we begin our last few days of distributions to provide another 1500 children with treasured bedkits.  

To all those who donated money for bedkits in Uganda, your gifts have been appreciated more than you can imagine.  Your $35 gift has made a world of difference for a needy child living in poverty!

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Uganda- A Touching Moment!

Today the team visited the district of Suni and we were once again greeted by
singing and clapping children and parents singing traditonal African songs.
Much dancing ensued! We were happy to distribute another 500 bedkits, and were warmly thanked by the area priest.

A very touching moment came at the end of our visit. Three children came forward
to give us a gift - in this case 3 eggs. They have so little and yet they wanted to
give us something in thanks. The same gesture was made several distributions
ago. We received bananas and fruit from children who had just received a bedkit.
There were hugs all round. We then managed to "re-gift" these generous items
to another family further down the road...and wouldn't you know it, they turned
around and gave us corn!

Only 1000 more bedkits to go.

Debbie Stelzer
Team Uganda 2017
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Uganda: A Hot But Great Day!

Today was a very hot day, but it was balanced out by the amazing reception we received as we arrived to our site.  The women greeted us with dancing and singing in their colourful clothing, while the children sang joyful African songs.  It was so great to see how the children naturally switched places to lead the rest of the school in the songs.  One would sing and the rest of the children would respond in song and dance.  

Today we saw a few more children who were suffering from malaria.  They were very weak as they sat for their photos.  Many of the children smile for their photo but it is clear that it can be difficult to smile when you are sick, hungry and tired.

Agatha's family provided us with a delicious lunch today at their home.  What an honour to spend some time with her family and meet her 103 year old father!

Now this evening we are preparing for two distributions tomorrow.  We will give out 1000 bedkits!

P.S. Check out our video from earlier this week. Click here for blog!

Team Uganda 2017
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Uganda: Memories Being Made!

Everyone was very excited today as we woke up in a new location. We had a fantastic breakfast buffet awaiting us down in the lobby as we prepared ourselves for another amazing day. The drive was short and as usual every minute worth it. Warm waves and big smiles always coming from the door steps and yards of the children and families as we make our way. We again were greeted with such a warm reception and songs of joy that only being here can you truly appreciate the beauty of such happiness and graciousness. The people have to see us when we enter the bedkit site. Another day that brings such joy to all the children. Nothing can beat that smile and the look in their eyes when they are walking towards you, to receive their kit. As they approach me, I give them the biggest heartfelt high five that I have ever given! Hoping that this memory will last forever for them, as it will for me. 

Ty Gauthier for Team Uganda 2017
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Uganda: Our Fourth Distribution!

Today marked our 4th distribution and a long travel day. Hitting the road at 6am, we traveled four hours to the village of Bwoko. Even though it was quite the drive, it was very rewarding and emotional. The women of the village greeted us with a beautiful traditional song and dance, that is native to the area. It was simply amazing to see! 

The greeting just ensured us of the work we are doing here in Uganda and how much it means to each and every individual. The children could not stop smiling and the parents dancing. 

I had the privilege of completing a few surveys with some of the parents and children who received a bedkit today. During this process, a reoccurring theme was present. The bedkits were everything and more; we weren't just giving a gift to this one child. It was a gift to the entire family, sometimes as large as 17 family members. 

I'm so thankful to be apart of this experience and with such a great group of Inner Wheel ladies. Their passion for the children, to ensure they become something more than the situation they were born into is exactly the type of people we want to work with. This is what makes the difference. 

Sheyndl Gauthier for Team Uganda 2017
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Uganda: Gimbo

Today, day 3 of our distributions, we headed to Gimbo, just 25 km from Kampala.  Travelling to the destination of the day brings new sights and sounds of the beautiful Ugandan countryside.  Lush green hillsides with maze, matoke, and root crops, to name a few.  Today we were challenged with very narrow, and dusty rut filled roads we had not encountered on prior days.  Thankfully our driver Hussan delivered us safe and sound.  

Driving into a location for the distribution is one of my favourite parts of the day, and a sight to behold.  Mattresses and bed kits piled high, children and their families lining the road in greeting and excitement of what's to come.   All are dressed in their Sunday best and singing in celebration.  It's hard not to get a little emotional each time.

Theresa Cheverie​​​​ for Team Uganda 2017
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Uganda: Muduma

Today was a beautiful day in Muduma, Uganda about 50 K from Kampala. We enjoyed our ride out with the amazing ladies of The Inner Wheel led by Harriet, and of course our SCAW Team. The local Church provided a wonderful setting for our distribution of 500 Bedkits to local children. The team was able to entertain them with bubbles and photography of the children and their families. The children looked great in their outfits and the distribution went very smoothly and in a timely fashion. The other volunteers there were a tremendous help in making things go very smoothly. Thanks very much to all involved.

Debbie Stelzer for Team Uganda 2017
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