Journal 5
October 20, 2015 Greetings from Zimbabwe,
This has been a busy week and I have delayed getting a weekly report off. In addition, I have had some computer problems or else it is the internet service here. Bryce worked on it yesterday from Houston but still not right.
The Rotary Club that Albert belongs to, recently had a dinner/dance fund raiser for two of their projects. Their major focus is on building a foot bridge across a very large river so that children can cross to school safely. The past records show that an average of five children lose their lives each year trying to cross to school.
Their other project is HCOC. So HCOC will get half of the money raised. This money will be used to equip the new poultry run that was started this week. On our way to Harare this morning we delivered 50 live chickens that had been ordered in Murewa. Albert had another 20 chickens dressed and frozen in the cooler for people at Rotary.
Last Thursday morning, I had an 8:00am meeting with the Secondary School Headmaster and senior teachers to talk about the Science Lab Building. Tom Staab has been working with a group of students at Castle View High School to help equip the Science Lab here. Presently, they don’t even have electricity and certainly no lab equipment. One option is to use solar power. The major concern that I addressed was security and maintenance of the building. They recognized the problems and promised to address them while I am still here.
Later in the morning, Dorothy and I drove to Guzha to present prizes to students who have shown outstanding progress in their studies. On the way to Guzha, we dropped Florence, the nurse aid, at Inyagui. She needed to spend some time with orphans and check on their medications. On our return trip we stopped at Inyagui to pick up Florence and to present prizes to those students also.
The children at Guzha were dismissed and gathered under a huge shade tree for the presentation. Since the new secondary school, Chenhuta, meets at Guzha, they gathered with the primary students. The top three students were given prizes. Each child received a solar light, a pen and pencil and a tooth brush and a tube of tooth paste. Some of these prizes were things that Erik had brought with him.
The children were so happy to receive the prizes. Many of the things that Erik brought with him were placed in the storeroom and will be used for prizes for the end of next school term. The teachers indicated it does give the children an incentive to try their best to achieve.
The rest of the soccer balls donated by CACC Physical Therapy in Parker were also presented to the soccer teams at Guzha as well as Inyagui.
I had to include the picture on the left. As we gathered under the tree at Guzha for the presentation of prizes, I looked down in front of me. In the midst of many bare feet were these feet with shoes, no laces, and holes in the sole and two shoes that did not match. Oh, how I wish we could resume Humanitarian Aid Shipments that we used to send. We often had boxes and boxes of shoes and they always found feet that fit.
Jarman is working on resuming shipments and feels he is beginning to find a way forward. It has been a challenge.
Poultry is becoming a demanding business here at HCOC. Every three weeks a new batch of 1,000 baby chicks is delivered. All these birds must be marketed. Yesterday, Albert was able to find a buyer in Harare that will buy any number of dressed chickens each week up to 1,500 birds. This project has certainly had its growing pains but seems to be moving in the right direction. They have improved the profit margin to $1.50 per bird. When the new poultry run is complete, it may be necessary for a new batch of baby chicks to be delivered every two weeks rather than every three weeks. Albert left at 5:30 am today to make a chicken delivery to the new client in Harare. It is Albert’s goal that the poultry profit will soon be able to pay for Primary School Fees as well as provide a meal of chicken for the Feeding Centers on a regular basis.
Maria Nyamunokora is a student at Cheunje Secondary Boarding School. She is being sponsored by a Renewed Hope donor. Maria has shown real potential. Recently she was awarded the top prize in Agriculture and in Geography. The prizes were a new set of sheets and pillow cases for her bed in the dorm and a new electric iron. We are so proud of her achievements. She wants to further her education after Secondary and would like to study Biology.
I found out a couple of days before the awards ceremony that she did not have a pair of shoes. I sent money to Cheunje for them to buy shoes for her when they went to Harare. As you can see in the picture, she is wearing her new shoes.
These kids are so alone. With so many it is difficult for HCOC to keep informed of the needs of individual children. I am so glad that I learned of her need before the big Awards Day Ceremony.
In June, Charles Makwangwara joined the staff at HCOC. Albert said that HCOC interviewed six candidates for the position. I had met Charles in 2013 when the audit was done at the Secondary School. He was familiar with the operation here. At the moment USADF is paying Charles’ salary. The present grant runs until March 2017. Charles has been such a help to Godfrey and has taken a load off of him. Godfrey is now able to concentrate more on administrative issues. He no longer has to work week-ends and nights.
Most of you probably don’t know that HCOC received a $100,000.00 grant from USADF (United States Agricultural Development Foundation) in June. Half of the money is to be spent on staff and operations development. The other half is primarily for the development of the poultry project. Electrical power lines have already been installed to the poultry project. They have purchased a large commercial freezer that will hold 400 plus chickens at one time. Another poultry run is being constructed at the moment.
USADF has conducted several workshops. One was a week long on managing Human Resources. Another workshop was on Financial Management. Another workshop was on USADF requirements. I won’t go into all of the detail that Albert has shared with me. I will only say that there has been an enormous change in the atmosphere around here. It is all very positive.
Another bit of news is that HCOC received a smaller grant through ELMA, a philanthropic group out of Johannesburg. It was for $20,000 and has very strict restrictions on what it can be used for. One thing it is funding is fabric for the making of orphan uniforms and yarn for jerseys. Albert is optimistic that this grant will be renewed and for more money. ELMA funded an audit in June. They sent a firm from South Africa named Grant Thorton. I am very pleased to say that HCOC passed with flying colors. I am certain this will play a role in a future grant.
Things have really changed around here. It is all positive. I can’t believe how far things have come in the last four years. God works wonders when we put our trust in him. Albert is such a Godly man and is surrounding himself with a staff that puts God first. The 15 minutes of prayer in the morning has changed some of our workers lives. It is so exciting to witness all of this.
This is way too long. I must close but felt it necessary to share the information. Please remember HCOC in your prayers. What a difference they are making in many children’s lives. Without HCOC these children would have been cast aside, many would have perished. Praise God for providing so many dedicated workers.
In His Service, Roberta