RENEWED HOPE CHARITABLE FOUNDATION, INC.

Working Together For Zimbabwe's Future

May 21, 2003

Winter has arrived!  The nights are cold but the days are mild and it is pleasant for working.  The sun is warm and people seek the sun.  Winter brings wind and we have had a lot of that in the last few days.  It is good for running the windmill but it also blows a lot of dust.  Dust seems to penetrate every crack and crevice.

Saturday, we had a surprise visitor.  The MP was in the area and stopped in to see how things were going here.  He wanted us to know that everything was in place for the arrival of the maize shipment.  We anticipate that it will be delivered here to the school sometime next week.  We are looking forward to actually seeing it arrive.  Ralph will be going to Harare today and will check with the shipper concerning the location of the shipment at this time.

I am excited to report that the women in the sewing co-op, that I have been re-training, are doing a superb job.  The quality of their work has improved 100%.  Their sales will improve, I am sure.  In fact Monday they picked up another school that plans to order from them.  At the moment I have started training two of the women on making men’s long sleeved shirts for secondary uniforms.  I have put this off to the last hoping their skills would improve enough to make the shirts.  They have learned to do boys trousers quite well.

The sewing co-op now has orders for approximately 200 school uniforms.  They are working as fast as they can.  However, when they have used up the fabric they have in stock there is no more.  It is just not available.  The most recent fabric they purchased is a much poorer quality than what they have had in the past.  I see the possibility that they may have to close down for a period of time.  It is very disappointing to them.  For the first time, they were really beginning to make money.

The feeding program has started slowly at Inyagui and Guzha.  They are providing a nutrition drink only at this point.  Each school is in the process of constructing temporary facilities for cooking.  A more permanent facility will have to come later when cement is more readily available.

Sunday afternoon we loaded the two trucks with blankets and hygiene kits to distribute to orphans.  This time we traveled to Guzha to begin our distribution.  What an experience!  Here, we were making our way up the mountains (not the big  Rocky Mountains ) and through dense forest.  The homesteads, we found, were widely scattered and it was difficult to get to them.  The region is extremely poor and we saw few crops growing.  In some areas there were only huge boulders of granite.  We even visited homes where the rondavel was made out of bamboo woven together.  The inside was plastered with mud to keep the wind out.  The floor was only dirt. 

I was amazed at the distances these children have to walk in order to come to school.  They have to climb high hills (they call them mountains), wade rivers and pass through dense bush country.  As we picked our way, I wondered if we might see a lion or some other evidence of wildlife.  We were assured that there were not such animals in this area.  It was explain that the only wild life might be a wart hog. 

Some of the children seemed quite puzzled by our presence.  They seemed almost reluctant to take the things we brought.  I suppose they had never had anything given to them before.  These were children that may not have seen us around before.  Often our visits to the school have been other than school hours when we have gone specifically to confer with the Headmaster.

In one rondavel, I saw no evidence of any blanket.  I have no idea how they keep warm at night.  At one location the child was alone.  The grandmother who he stayed with was not at home.  When we arrived at our next location, there she was.  She had arrived home just after we left and had run cross country through the bush to tell us Thank you.  She even did a little fancy foot and sang for us as a way of expressing her joy.  At two different homes, grandmothers broke down and cried because they were so overcome with emotion.  We even had one little girl cry when she opened the hygiene kit.  This particular kit contained crayons, a coloring book, pencils and a couple of pens as well as hygiene items.

In the past week we have visited more than 125 orphans in their homes.  The conditions in which some of them live are difficult to deal with.  I chose not to go out one day because I just couldn’t bear to witness more of such conditions.  After a day of such visits, I feel totally drained.

The children who prepared the hygiene packs have no idea how much pleasure you have given many of the children who have nothing in life.  In some of the boxes there would be a toy car or a small toy doll or stuffed animal that would bring light into the eyes of the child receiving it.  One small first grade boy was living with a grandparent.  The conditions were marginal.  I gave him a new blanket and a hygiene kit.  Ralph wanted to take a picture of his smile but his face was hidden by the armload he had.  I reached out to help him hold the gifts so Ralph could see his face.  He refused to let me help.  I think he was afraid I would take the gifts away.  He turned and took everything into the rondavel.  Everyone laughed.

Today, we visited Guzha to take care of some details concerning the feeding program.

It was reported to us that the little boy who was afraid I wanted to take his things was the first child to arrive at school each morning.  In the past his attendance at school had been sporadic.  He had told his teacher that Mrs. Pippitt came to visit him and that she had given him a blanket and a toothbrush.  The toothbrush was only one of the items in the hygiene pack but apparently it was very important to him.

Last week a grandmother from another area came here for assistance.   She was trying to care for a 2-year-old grandchild and she had no clothes for the child.  Her own clothes were in tatters.  Since they were not of this area, Mr. Bondeponde came to us and asked what he should do.  It took only a glance to know that I couldn’t deny this woman some clothing.  Unfortunately, most of the small things have been handed out.  However, with the help of safety pins, we were able to outfit the child and we even found some shoes that would fit.  The grandmother was not wearing a sweater and I could see that she was cold.  So I found a sweater in the storeroom that I gave her.

Today, a grandmother came with a preschooler.  Their rondavel had burned during the night.  They had lost everything even birth certificates and other important papers.  She needed whatever we could give her.  The preschooler was an orphan.  We provided the woman with blankets for the whole family and we found a few pieces clothing for them as well.  I also gave a gift box to the little boy.  He found a toy elephant in the box and that is all he cared about.  He wouldn’t let anyone take it from him.  The grandmother knelt on the floor in front of me to say thank you.  She was so appreciative.  I had difficulty to keep from crying for her.

Ralph has been busy building cabinets for the sewing co-op and the knitting co-op.  Both groups needed a place to store supplies.  They were finally completed and delivered to the room a couple of days ago.  Ralph said the women were so happy that they were dancing and singing.  When the cooks in the Feeding Center saw what he had done, they decided they needed a cabinet too.  So Ralph has since built a cabinet for them as well.  Thank goodness for the generator we bought in South Africa .  It has made it possible for Ralph to use a skill saw for cutting such large pieces of lumber.

The knitting co-op came to me this morning to report that they had just gotten a lot of orders for sweaters from some of the secondary students.  None of the sweaters they have made to date were big enough.  So they are going to be busy trying to fill orders.  I am happy for them that it is working out so well.  I just pray that they will be able to afford they yarn required.  I also hope that there will be yarn in stock and that they won’t face the problems that the sewing women are facing in trying to get fabric.

The five women in the sewing co-op, that I have been retraining, are beginning to train the rest of the group this week.  They have informed me that it is hard work.  I think they may now appreciate what I have been going through with them.  I tried to encourage them to keep at it.

The first of this month Inyagui and Guzha began the full feeding program at the respective schools.  They are using makeshift shelters for cooking until a better arrangement can be made.  We had planned that they delay until a proper facility was in place but they chose to forge ahead.  Hats off to the community for forging ahead with the feeding program. They are hauling water from community wells by ox cart for the cooking centers, but the different villages are taking turns with providing the water.  Hats off to them.  The communities are organizing to plant and maintain village gardens to provide vegetables for the respective feeding centers.

Some of you may remember that in 2001 we had funded an outstanding young man so that he could attend a boarding school to complete his A-level education.  Washington was an orphan.  We asked him at the time to please help someone else when he found a job.  He has now completed his studies and is employed as a teacher at Nyamashato Secondary School .  He has taken an orphan and is providing for that child’s education.  We are so proud of him.

June 6, 2003

It has been a while since I began this journal and it is time it was on its way.  There is so much more to tell but there just isn’t time or space.  Thanks to all of those who have written to us.  I apologize for not responding but getting to a place to send is difficult and I just have not enough hours in the day.  All is well with Ralph and me.

In His Service,

Ralph and Roberta

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Renewed Hope Charitable Foundation, Inc. | a 501(c)(3) charity | P.O. Box 1476 | Castle Rock, Colorado | 80104-1476