My plans for Zawadi la Tumaini started in a coffee shop in downtown Toronto.
I was living in the city doing an internship with Dignitas International. When my mind would wander, I would find myself drifting back to the children I had met at Watoto Wa Baraka in Makuyu, Kenya. It was clear to me that I needed to do more to help the orphaned children of Kenya.
It started off with jotting notes on my computer over a cup of hot chocolate. In the first day of planning, I got through five cups of hot chocolate, wrote the mission statement/vision for the organization I hoped to start, and made notes on what I’d like to see in the first year of operation. The plan was simple initially.
One year later, I am living in Kenya, and more than $18,000 has been raised for the Zawadi la Tumaini orphanage.
On Dec. 28, Geoffrey Ndungu, the director of Watoto Wa Baraka, and I travelled to Iiani, Kenya.
After fours hours of driving, we arrived. We drove to the home of Zachariah, the man who sold us the land. After meeting him, I knew right away that he was a kind man who would be a great asset to Zawadi la Tumaini.
When he heard about my plans to build an orphanage that would operate programs for the community, he was thrilled, and drastically brought down the price of land.
After waiting more than seven months, seeing the land was better than I ever could have imagined.
Behind the property you can see several mountains lush with green vegetation. It’s breathtaking. The property sits just off the main road, giving us easy access for vehicles.
Since Zachariah currently has crops planted on the land, that will have to wait until the harvest in early March.
We are currently looking at two options for the orphanage layout.
Option one: family feel – building several small homes to create family living. This would include one staff member living with a maximum of eight children in each home.
Option 2: One volunteer dorm and staff dorm with singular rooms, one boys dorm, and one girls dorm. This would create an organized structure, and see everyone live together in one area, rather than separate homes.
I’ve decided rather than building temporary buildings for our first year of operation, I’m going to start off with permanent ones. This will save us money in the long run, but it does dramatically increase our operating budget for the first year.
I am so thankful to everyone in Sudbury who has supported my vision for Zawadi la Tumaini. I wouldn’t be here today without the community of my community. Together we are changing the lives of children throughout the Makueni County of Kenya. The future of Zawadi la Tumaini is slowly unfolding and I look forward to seeing our progress in the coming months.
For more information on the new budget and updates on Zawadi la Tumaini, you can visit: http://zawadilatumaini.tumblr.com.
Hanmer resident Jacqueline Villeneuve will provide monthly updates to Northern Life on her work and efforts to build a home for HIV/AIDS orphans in Kenya. Type her name into the search bar at NorthernLife.ca to learn more.
Posted by Arron Pickard
