Visiting World Vision Sponsor Children
One of the most amazing things about my time in Malawi is that I am able to see parts of the world that most of us in North America only read about, or see on TV. I love that somehow I am linking a number of people with this part of the world. The best example of that was the opportunity that I had to act as a link between my dear friends, Scott and Kathryn Gray, and three young children that they are sponsoring in Malawi.
The whole journey began almost a year ago, when I was talking to Scott, and he mentioned that his family were sponsoring children here. I thought it would be very neat if I could visit the children, and bring them messages of joy and hope, as well as some gifts, from their sponsor family in Canada. So we started the long process of making this happen. I needed to get a police check in Canada. Once this was complete, I began the process of contacting World Vision here in Malawi to figure out a possible day. Then I began getting the presents.
Scott and Kathryn sent me the funds to buy a few things for each child and their family. At their request, I bought a soccer ball and some pens, pencils, and notepads for each child. After consulting with some friends over here about what village children would most appreciate, I also purchased some blankets and some soap for each family. Finally, I printed off some photos of the Gray family and the view from their apartment, laminated them, and gave one to each of the families.
Finally the day arrived. I was quite excited. The children were located in villages in Mchinji, which is a town that is west of Lilongwe (the capital city of Malawi), and is near the Zambian border. On the ride from Lilongwe, I discovered that the World Vision lady who was conducting the visits had gone to school with one of my coworkers. Charles (my coworker) is a poster child for “Six degrees of separation” in Malawi. He seems to know people absolutely everywhere. Which is quite handy when we need to get things processed, whether it be employment permits or customs clearing, or traffic tickets.
Anyhow, before the visits began, I had a meeting at the World Vision satellite office in Mchinji. There I got an overview of what WV is doing in the community. I learned that this community was 99% funded by sponsors in Canada, and that they have been working in this community for 10 years. Some of the areas that they cover include:
food security (both in livestock and crops)
health initiatives like child health, sanitation, water treatment, HIV awareness, home based care
training youth on life skills
building and maintaining educational facilities
Their focus for 2006 was on 20 of the 103 villages in the area. Their plan was to target specific communities each year for focused aid, and continue to help the other villages in a broad sense. At first I found it interesting that their focus was on community based initiatives, since I was always under the impression that they raised money specifically for individual children. However, seeing how closely connected the community members are to one another, it seems to me that the most effective way to help a child is to build up the community around him or her.
The last part of my meeting was a bit disturbing to me. I had to sign a “child protection” waiver that is issued to all people who visit the children. The warnings on this policy were quite alarming to me. Things like “do not bring pornographic materials to the children”, “do not have sex with the children”, and the like. I shudder to imagine the circumstances that have led to the creation of these rules.
Anyhow, once the waiver was signed and my questions were answered, we went to the village of the first girl, a young girl named Unesi. As we pulled up to the village, the truck was surrounded by children, singing, dancing, smiling, and carrying signs that welcomed me to the village and thanked me for my visit. They led me into the home of Unesi’s parents. I learned that the parents will often stay in one home, and the children will stay in other homes, separated by gender. Anyhow, myself, my guide/translator, and the WV worker for this village were welcomed into the home, given chairs to sit on. I sat down, a bit overwhelmed by Unesi’s family, and by the crowd of curious villagers gathered outside the door. I felt, as I would feel most of the day, uncomfortable receiving such a welcome and such adulation when all I was doing was representing my friends. Scott and Kathryn deserved the receptions I got, the smiles I got, the gifts I got. I can only hope somehow to pass some of this onto them.
So, we sat drinking a village drink called sweet beer (which didn’t really taste sweet enough, or enough like beer, to really please my palette, but I did my best to be polite) Actually, I remember specifically praying that God would allow me to stomach food and drink that I didn’t like the taste of, just so that I would not offend my gracious hosts. I got to meet many members of Unesi’s family: her father and mother, a number of brothers and sisters and nieces and nephews that came and went as we sat. I learned that Unesi likes to read, enjoys school, and would like to be a doctor when she grows up. Of course, as with any child, this can change. As the translator said to me, if she meets someone doing an interesting sounding job, then that’s what she would want to do. Strangely, I don’t think I motivated her to get into accounting.
After speaking some more and sharing our gifts (I gave the things mentioned above, and they insisted on giving me a live chicken), I was treated to some more singing and Bible verse recitations by the village children, and a speech from the chief. And though we had lunch scheduled for another village, they insisted on giving me a meal before I left. Again, I felt guilty being given food (and a chicken) by people who clearly need it more than I, but something I have been reminded of here is not to deprive people of the joy of giving.
Having enjoyed a meal of nsima (the main Malawian maize dish) and chicken, I moved on to see some of the work going on in the village. We stopped at a food bank, where the initial seeds are given by World Vision, and then the community distributes the seed, in return for a multiplied amount after harvest. The goal of the community was to be food secure in three years. This was very encouraging to me.
The next young girl I got to meet was Emily. I remember how shy she was, and also how young her parents looked. I remember being pleasantly surprised that she also has both of her natural parents. When I was able to get her to speak, I learned that she wanted to be a nun when she grew older. As I was conversing through my translator, I often found myself at a loss for words. Most people that know me would find it hard to believe that I would ever be at a loss for words. But I often have trouble knowing what to say when I find myself surrounded by people who lead a life I really know nothing about.
The final village I got to visit was the home of Teresa, the third sponsor child. I met Teresa briefly, and then I got a tour of the village, and was shown some of the mushroom farms that WV has helped them to set up. I asked Teresa and her mother about this, and they spoke about how growing mushrooms has helped them to have some income to take care of their needs. We had lunch together with Teresa and her mother, which was an amazing spread of food that again I felt embarrassed to eat. In addition to the chicken and nsima, there was rice (which I was thankful for, since I still greatly prefer rice to nsima), some greens, and a very tasty mushroom dish, topped off by bananas for dessert. After exchanging gifts (they gave me a bag of potatoes, a bag of beans, and a chicken), we headed outside so see some dances and songs by the villagers, followed by speeches from the chief and community leaders thanking my for my visit. I thanked everyone on behalf of Scott and Kat, said my goodbyes to Teresa, and then headed over to her school. I got to see a classroom, and also a tour of a community center that they are building nearby for the youth. Not exactly like the community centres I went to as a kid, but nonetheless it looked like a positive development.
So, my day came to a close. I feel truly privileged to have been able to do this on behalf of Scott and Kat. I will have to buy some chickens and vegetables in Canada, and make them a nice meal while showing them the pictures of this day, and trying to recreate some of the love, warmth, happiness, and appreciation I received from the villagers. I hope somehow that this little written tale does some of that as well. God bless the children of Malawi, and thank God for yet another amazing experience in a year that has been filled with them.
The whole journey began almost a year ago, when I was talking to Scott, and he mentioned that his family were sponsoring children here. I thought it would be very neat if I could visit the children, and bring them messages of joy and hope, as well as some gifts, from their sponsor family in Canada. So we started the long process of making this happen. I needed to get a police check in Canada. Once this was complete, I began the process of contacting World Vision here in Malawi to figure out a possible day. Then I began getting the presents.
Scott and Kathryn sent me the funds to buy a few things for each child and their family. At their request, I bought a soccer ball and some pens, pencils, and notepads for each child. After consulting with some friends over here about what village children would most appreciate, I also purchased some blankets and some soap for each family. Finally, I printed off some photos of the Gray family and the view from their apartment, laminated them, and gave one to each of the families.
Finally the day arrived. I was quite excited. The children were located in villages in Mchinji, which is a town that is west of Lilongwe (the capital city of Malawi), and is near the Zambian border. On the ride from Lilongwe, I discovered that the World Vision lady who was conducting the visits had gone to school with one of my coworkers. Charles (my coworker) is a poster child for “Six degrees of separation” in Malawi. He seems to know people absolutely everywhere. Which is quite handy when we need to get things processed, whether it be employment permits or customs clearing, or traffic tickets.
Anyhow, before the visits began, I had a meeting at the World Vision satellite office in Mchinji. There I got an overview of what WV is doing in the community. I learned that this community was 99% funded by sponsors in Canada, and that they have been working in this community for 10 years. Some of the areas that they cover include:
food security (both in livestock and crops)
health initiatives like child health, sanitation, water treatment, HIV awareness, home based care
training youth on life skills
building and maintaining educational facilities
Their focus for 2006 was on 20 of the 103 villages in the area. Their plan was to target specific communities each year for focused aid, and continue to help the other villages in a broad sense. At first I found it interesting that their focus was on community based initiatives, since I was always under the impression that they raised money specifically for individual children. However, seeing how closely connected the community members are to one another, it seems to me that the most effective way to help a child is to build up the community around him or her.
The last part of my meeting was a bit disturbing to me. I had to sign a “child protection” waiver that is issued to all people who visit the children. The warnings on this policy were quite alarming to me. Things like “do not bring pornographic materials to the children”, “do not have sex with the children”, and the like. I shudder to imagine the circumstances that have led to the creation of these rules.
Anyhow, once the waiver was signed and my questions were answered, we went to the village of the first girl, a young girl named Unesi. As we pulled up to the village, the truck was surrounded by children, singing, dancing, smiling, and carrying signs that welcomed me to the village and thanked me for my visit. They led me into the home of Unesi’s parents. I learned that the parents will often stay in one home, and the children will stay in other homes, separated by gender. Anyhow, myself, my guide/translator, and the WV worker for this village were welcomed into the home, given chairs to sit on. I sat down, a bit overwhelmed by Unesi’s family, and by the crowd of curious villagers gathered outside the door. I felt, as I would feel most of the day, uncomfortable receiving such a welcome and such adulation when all I was doing was representing my friends. Scott and Kathryn deserved the receptions I got, the smiles I got, the gifts I got. I can only hope somehow to pass some of this onto them.
So, we sat drinking a village drink called sweet beer (which didn’t really taste sweet enough, or enough like beer, to really please my palette, but I did my best to be polite) Actually, I remember specifically praying that God would allow me to stomach food and drink that I didn’t like the taste of, just so that I would not offend my gracious hosts. I got to meet many members of Unesi’s family: her father and mother, a number of brothers and sisters and nieces and nephews that came and went as we sat. I learned that Unesi likes to read, enjoys school, and would like to be a doctor when she grows up. Of course, as with any child, this can change. As the translator said to me, if she meets someone doing an interesting sounding job, then that’s what she would want to do. Strangely, I don’t think I motivated her to get into accounting.
After speaking some more and sharing our gifts (I gave the things mentioned above, and they insisted on giving me a live chicken), I was treated to some more singing and Bible verse recitations by the village children, and a speech from the chief. And though we had lunch scheduled for another village, they insisted on giving me a meal before I left. Again, I felt guilty being given food (and a chicken) by people who clearly need it more than I, but something I have been reminded of here is not to deprive people of the joy of giving.
Having enjoyed a meal of nsima (the main Malawian maize dish) and chicken, I moved on to see some of the work going on in the village. We stopped at a food bank, where the initial seeds are given by World Vision, and then the community distributes the seed, in return for a multiplied amount after harvest. The goal of the community was to be food secure in three years. This was very encouraging to me.
The next young girl I got to meet was Emily. I remember how shy she was, and also how young her parents looked. I remember being pleasantly surprised that she also has both of her natural parents. When I was able to get her to speak, I learned that she wanted to be a nun when she grew older. As I was conversing through my translator, I often found myself at a loss for words. Most people that know me would find it hard to believe that I would ever be at a loss for words. But I often have trouble knowing what to say when I find myself surrounded by people who lead a life I really know nothing about.
The final village I got to visit was the home of Teresa, the third sponsor child. I met Teresa briefly, and then I got a tour of the village, and was shown some of the mushroom farms that WV has helped them to set up. I asked Teresa and her mother about this, and they spoke about how growing mushrooms has helped them to have some income to take care of their needs. We had lunch together with Teresa and her mother, which was an amazing spread of food that again I felt embarrassed to eat. In addition to the chicken and nsima, there was rice (which I was thankful for, since I still greatly prefer rice to nsima), some greens, and a very tasty mushroom dish, topped off by bananas for dessert. After exchanging gifts (they gave me a bag of potatoes, a bag of beans, and a chicken), we headed outside so see some dances and songs by the villagers, followed by speeches from the chief and community leaders thanking my for my visit. I thanked everyone on behalf of Scott and Kat, said my goodbyes to Teresa, and then headed over to her school. I got to see a classroom, and also a tour of a community center that they are building nearby for the youth. Not exactly like the community centres I went to as a kid, but nonetheless it looked like a positive development.
So, my day came to a close. I feel truly privileged to have been able to do this on behalf of Scott and Kat. I will have to buy some chickens and vegetables in Canada, and make them a nice meal while showing them the pictures of this day, and trying to recreate some of the love, warmth, happiness, and appreciation I received from the villagers. I hope somehow that this little written tale does some of that as well. God bless the children of Malawi, and thank God for yet another amazing experience in a year that has been filled with them.
posted by Chuck @ 10:41 AM
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