Five volunteers traveled to the Shalom Orphanage Center in Karatu, Tanzania July 7-17 to assist in building a much-needed veranda roof. Bake sales, bar nights, letters, emails and phone calls for support were issued to friends and family in the hopes of raising $5,000.00 to complete this project. Much to our joy, we raised nearly $7,000.00 through the generosity of donors, and in just 10 days, the roof was completely transformed!
Elizabeth Kallop, who was part of the Kilimanjaro Cancer Climb in 2008 helped manage the project with the help of our Tanzanian Partner and friend, Yusuph. A fantastic group of volunteers, Al, Sandy and Heather Braun and Julia Stachowski, from the Rochester area, joined in the effort, assisting with the building, administering dental check-ups (Sandy is a dentist) and spending precious time with the children. While at Shalom, the official count of children went up to 53, after the arrival of a 2-day old baby girl on July 12.
Because we raised more than our target amount, we were able to help Shalom's 53 children in more ways than just building a roof. For example, the veranda's floor and steps were re-cemented and received a new coat of paint, along with the roof. Likewise, we purchased wire protectors for the lights on the perimeter of Shalom as well as those found in the play areas, as there was a big danger of a soccer ball smashing the florescent lights and dispersing their poisonous powder at the children's feet. Additionally, after Yusuph and Elizabeth spoke with Mama Warra, Shalom's Mama, we realized food was the biggest need for as one can imagine, feeding 53 children 3 meals a day is no simple task. This was further exacerbated by the fact that the wet season was particularly dry this year causing a severe lack of crops. On the team's last day in Karatu, Yusuph, Elizabeth and a Shalom staff member ventured to the markets to not only purchase a two-month supply of food, but to pay off Shalom's debt that had been accumulating since earlier this year. Shoes, socks, some school uniforms, and basic necessities such as salt, sugar, laundry detergent, and soap were also purchased at the markets. Clearly, the trip was nothing short of a fantastic success!
If you would like to know more about each day's activities and watch the roof's progress appear before you, please visit Elizabeth's blog: www.adventuresofadelicateflower.wordpress.com. Elizabeth will be returning to Shalom on September 21 to work for three months so we anticipate more successful projects for the children. Please stay tuned!
If you would like to receive periodic updates on Shalom’s progress over the next few months as Elizabeth spends time there, please email Elizabeth with “Update me with progress” in the subject line. Similarly, if you would like to be registered on our donor list and contacted quarterly for contributions, please email Elizabeth with “Add me to Shalom’s donor list” in the subject line. e.kallop@gmail.com
On behalf of the entire orphanage staff and the fifty-three children who call Shalom home, Asante sana.