RENEWED HOPE CHARITABLE FOUNDATION, INC.

Working Together For Zimbabwe's Future

February 10

Dear Readers,

Last week we took the last of three trucks loads of things that were on the containers to Guzha.  The trucks loads were the Orphan Care Truck not our little truck.  Everything has already been put into service.  What an experience to see the elation on people’s faces.  Sunday afternoon, Mr. Bondeponde got a group of boys together and hauled the last two truckloads of things from the shipment to Inyagui.  Finally things are beginning to thin out around here.  

Sunday evening one of the village Headmen came by to welcome us back.  He wanted to extend his thanks for the jeans we had distributed to Inyagui and Guzha.  He said that men who had nothing to wear now had two pairs of jeans each.  It is their appreciation that keeps us going.

We still have a way to go inside the Feeding Center to get everything sorted and stored.  All of the canned food has been sorted and most of it has been shelved.  However, they are still assembling shelving.  It is a slow process when the workers have to be taught how to do it.

Last night Mr. Bondeponde asked that I work with the cooks and help them learn how to use some of the canned food.  So today we are experimenting by adding some of the canned tomatoes, particularly those with Italian seasoning, to the cooked beans that were shipped.  I’ll be anxious to see how the children will react to that.

Yesterday, I spent the day making oven mitts for the cooks.  They had no potholders of any kind.  They wanted something that comes up the arms a way to protect them from the heat when they are stirring the big pots.  I used the cut offs from the jeans that we had saved.  I found some towels that were shipped and were not in very good condition.  Those worked perfectly to line the mitts. 

The cooks love the big pots that were sent and especially the blue enamel canner that someone must have donated.  It works perfectly for cooking the vegetables.  They can now cook only one pot of sadza and not have to cook it in three or four batches.  They are amazed how the big aluminum pots do not stick with sadza as badly as the pots they had been using.  They are also easier to clean up afterwards.

Ralph made two trips to Murewa yesterday; so much for conserving diesel.  He was exhausted last night.  The first trip was to go to the bank and get some bolts.  He had just returned from that trip when a messenger arrived from the clinic.  He reported that a woman had just given birth to twins and they were three months premature.  They wanted to get them to the hospital in Murewa as quickly as possible.  So off Ralph rushed in a cloud of dust.  It was nearly 6:00 in the evening before he returned.  The one infant died, probably in route.  He said he drove as fast as he dared on the rough roads.  The other is in intensive care.  Ralph had to bring the grandmother back home with the deceased infant.  That was very hard for him.  So much of the world lives so far away from modern medical facilities.  We have just learned that the Parirenyatwa Hospital in Harare has NO bedding.  We are told the hospital is spotless but that patients have only a mattress to lie on.  This is a large Government Hospital.

While Ralph spent much of the day on the road, I met with several groups of people.  One group was eight women that want to start a knitting co-op to make sweaters for the school uniforms.  They plan to sell them to the schools that the sewing women are selling uniforms to.  They want a knitting machine.  I gave them a list of things to get prices on and then we will sit down and figure the feasibility of going ahead.  Is anyone interested in sponsoring such an endeavor?  A good used knitting machine will cost about $300 to $400 USD.   My biggest concern is where to house such a co-op.  There is no space here at school.  In fact the sewing women need to move out of the classroom they have been in.  The building is falling down.  If we have enough money we may consider building a two-room building to house the S.E.W. group and also the knitting co-op if it seems wise to proceed with that group.

February 14

Since there is no propane available, we have no lights this year.  As a result, Ralph and I often go to bed very early.  Recently we have been extremely tired and bed sounded inviting.  So I take advantage of first light to get things done that normally I would do in the evening.

This morning it began raining before daylight.  At times it has rained very hard.  Water is standing everywhere.  However, we are dry and comfortable in our little house.  Very different from our first years here when we had buckets and pans sitting all over the classroom to catch the rain leaking through the roof.

The local people welcome the rains.  It means they may have food this year.  We pray that the rains that began late will continue so that the crops will have time to mature.  While much of Zimbabwe is suffering drought, this small area surrounding the school for about five kilometers seems to be an oasis.  Most of the crops look to be in good shape.  Even the cattle look better than any other place we have seen.  People have been bringing Ralph and I more food from their gardens than we can ever eat.  While everyone is very thin, most have brightness about their eyes.  The teachers tell us that this was not so at the end of last year until the center began feeding nutrition drink to all children.

We inquired from Mr. Bondeponde why there were no mangoes on the trees here at school.  He explained that at the end of last year the children were so hungry that they were picking the green mangoes.  If they could find salt, they would sprinkle the mangoes and eat them.

Yesterday, the Orphan Care Givers from each village came in the afternoon and began to unpack some of the boxes of adult clothing.  Others worked in the storeroom unpacking and shelving children’s clothing and blankets.  The women were only able to unpack about 1/3 of the adult clothing boxes.  Hopefully the rest can be unpacked on Saturday. 

Today, those who are most needy, determined by the Headman of the village, will come and select two items of clothing each plus a sweater or jacket.  One village will come this morning and a different one this afternoon. This will continue on Saturday, Monday, Tuesday and even Wednesday until all villages have been served.  Adult clothing that remains will be taken to neighboring schools where it will be distributed in the same way.

Each village waits in the shade until all members of the village have been served.  Then they expect that we appear so that they can say thank you.  We have tried to explain that we had little to do with the clothing they are receiving.  Most of it was packed during the time we were here in Zimbabwe.  Many people donated so that they could benefit.  Hundreds helped collect sort and box the clothing.

During the clothing distribution, a man was brought to me whose lower lip is raw.  He wanted medicine to fix it.  The only advice I could give was for him to see a Dr.  I have no idea what it is and besides I had nothing to give him.  I suspect it could be skin cancer.  The sad thing about this man is that he was wearing a long heavy nylon quilted coat on a 90+ degree day.  No trousers showed below the coat.  I suspect the coat is all he had to cover himself.  I felt bad that there was nothing I could do for him medically.  He was given clothing.  See picture in picture section.

Blankets will be distributed to Child-headed households when the weather begins to cool.  If there are sufficient blankets after that, other needy families will receive blankets.

Last Wednesday, blue jeans were distributed to all registered orphans.  It finally became necessary to bring all of them inside the gate and lock the gate.  They then exited out the other gate that the cooks were guarding.  This was done because some of the children were trying to come in and get a second allotment.  This was discovered because they were checked off the list as they received jeans.

Along with all of the commotion of distributing jeans to hundreds of children, representatives of two different schools arrived to confer with Ralph and to give him quotes for work to be done at their schools.  Three student nurses from Parirenyatwa Hospital in Harare also arrived.  They had been sent to view our set up and learn all that they could.  Apparently it is viewed as an excellent example of a Feeding Program.  While I was talking with them in the feeding center, a very little girl about 6 years old came and gave me a hug around the legs and said thank you for the jean dress she had just been given.  A little boy came and shook my hand and told me thank you.  And you wonder why we keep doing this!  There were others that thanked us also.

You have never seen such excitement. I tried to catch it on film but it is impossible.  The atmosphere was fairly electric.  Children were comparing what they received. The children were putting on their new clothes and carrying their school uniform home.  Some of the Secondary girls refused the denim skirts and dresses, they wanted jeans and they took jeans.  Many paraded past our house on their way home so that we would be sure to see them.  Seeing all of this makes all the work on our end at home worthwhile.  Thanks to Tom for coordinating all the weeks of packing. Thanks to all of those who donated many hours to the packing.  We are blessed by your support.

February 16, 2003

Ralph and I are in Harare at our favorite B&B for some much needed rest.  We are both exhausted from the clothing unpacking and distribution.  I have spent a lot of time in the storeroom unpacking, sorting and shelving children’s clothes.  It is a slow process.  It was decided today that distribution to the villages will be completed and then what remains will be loaded into the truck and taken to neighboring schools.  After that, the rest of the children’s clothing, which is not yet unpacked, will be unpacked in the dining room and we will bring in Orphans first and find clothes for them.  After that teachers will bring other needy children in for two outfits each.  Then we will ask villagers to come back with infants and we will give them clothing.  We may be facing clothing distribution for the next two weeks.  I am glad we were here to help in organizing the distribution so that it was done in a more orderly manner than before.  People, this time, actually got what they picked out and fit them.  This was not the case in the past.  However, I think sending two containers that have so much clothing is putting a burden on these people.  At the moment it is impossible to feed the children in the dining room and it has been like this since the day the containers were unloaded.  Fortunately, we have not been faced with rain at lunchtime and so the children have been eating outside.

Excitement reigned yesterday as the Orphan Care Givers prepared to distribute clothing to the villages scheduled to come on this day.  The women were going through and straightening the piles of clothing.  Two of the women found $11 US dollars in the pockets of a pair of shorts.  They did quite a dance.  Ralph offered to exchange it at the going rate and they split it.  Such joy you have never seen!

In Christ Service,

Ralph and Roberta

Top

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