Tour of School Projects (Post #10)

 When I visited the school, I got to see most of the projects first hand.

  

The first project people are very proud of is of course the chicken farm.  Bringing eggs to the plates of school children is one huge accomplishment for MUG.  The chickens are beautiful and very well cared for.  There are 3 different rooms that house different ages of chickens on a rotating basis.  These in this picture are now laying eggs.  I was very impressed with the operation, which is meticulous about good hygiene and cleanliness.  There is a pool to disinfect shoes before you enter.  Visitors must wear masks and only a few people enter at at time.  To think there was nothing here just a few months ago is astounding.  There is a lot of planning to do in order to keep this project sustainable, but it is very impressive.

Next we toured the extensive school gardens.  The garden consists of a number of different plots around the campus, taking advantage of different areas open for cultivation.  Each spot is tucked away by small hills that protect it from traffic. But each crop is labelled and clearly thriving.  The climate and soil there allow for multiple plantings, so Nicole has a rotating crop schedule to have at least 3 harvests in each plot every year.  This only puts a small dent in the need for food in this area, but it is also set up to teach students best farming practices so they can take new knowledge home to their families and spread new skills beyond the school.

 

I did see the area where soap is made on Sundays and where the soap lies to cure.

      The soap project is one of the most successful to date, although it has outgrown the space and capacity we currently have.  This is one area where we have big plans for expansion and community development.  We hope the soap project will eventually be 100% self sustainable and a source for economic prosperity for the community as a whole.  All the teachers and many parents want to get trained in soap making soon.

The girls corner is stocked and ready when girls need a space to wash or rest during menstruation.  At first, the students were reluctant to use this resource, but since we started a few reproductive health classes, we now notice the pads and supplies are almost gone!  Another success slowly growing.

These are the water tanks that collect rain water.  Currently, we help provide tablets to chemically treat the water for drinking purposes.  However, when I was there I heard that even the treated water is not completely safe for drinking.  So in the next phase, we hope to research innovative solutions to bring good drinking water to the school population.  There are many organizations working on water issues in this region.  And I must admit, clean running water and plumbing is easily the luxury I am most grateful for as I return home.  It is exhausting to think about water all day, every day. 

Along the same lines, these are the latrines at the school.  There is a building a little ways apart from the classrooms.  It seemed fairly well maintained and clean, but quite rudimentary.  It is also difficult to imagine that these facilities support over 1200 people daily.

       

One of the top priorities for the Nyabirehe principal is to alleviate overcrowding.  This small building houses the nursery school with children ages 3-5 or 6.  

 This year, the nursery has 155 students and they all pile into this one small classroom.  There is no furniture, so the children sit on the hard concrete floor, tight together like sardines.  The nursery teachers are young and energetic, trying to teach through song and movement, but it seems impossibly difficult to have so many students in so little space. So the principal is requesting help to build more classrooms.  

   

This is what the other classrooms look like.  Still not much room for all 60-100 children per grade, but a start. 

One project we have been thinking about for a while is building a sports field and playground at the school.  There is no playground of any kind in the whole cell.  Children would have to travel several miles to get to a place to play on a decent sports field or play area.  But as I said, they still find ways to play.  Here, some older boys came to use a small area to play a soccer game during these days of their school holiday.  

They play barefoot, but with vigor!  They were running fast and had high competition.  There were even other students who came to watch the game and sit out in the sunshine.  One young man happily showed me their ball, made of rags and scrap plastic.

  

    

I really hope we can find some funding in the next year to flatten out a real field.  The students want to play soccer, volleyball and basketball if they have the right equipment.  I also heard there is interest in track events like javelin and shotput and running, if they had the ability.  And the younger students could really use an outdoor playground to build strength and social skills.  I took for granted all the hours I took my daughters to different playgrounds around the US.  It is hard to imagine a world where that does not exist.

One of my favorite moments was when I gave the principal the gift of soccer balls for the school.  When I handed them over to him, the principal got very quiet. Then he looked at me and said, "These are new."  Yes, they were not even pumped up yet!  He then got a little emotional and said, "They are not second hand."  No.  They are new.  This man could not believe that I brought him something new, just for his school.  I think this is the moment we won him over to trusting that we were here to do good.  He got such a a big smile and hugged me hard.  After that, he was really on board and now works to tell his teachers that they need to work hard and earn what we bring them.  Such a small thing to us can really transform people.  This is the reason I do what I do.  It was a moment I will not forget.