Jona's Success!

This week in the office we had an unexpected visitor. A sponsored student, Jona, had completed his tertiary education with good grades and had come to show his appreciation to Joshua for the years of help they had given him.

This is hugely exciting news to receive and a massive achievement for Jona. In Malawi, education is like gold dust with only 18% of the population reaching even secondary school, let alone tertiary. After writing a written exam and having an interview, Jona was accepted into the Combino Technical College to study in the Electrical and Installation Department. Within this he studied subjects such as Principles, Science, Technical Drawing, Technology and Calculations, as well as English Communications and Entrepreneurship. Alongside this, they are expected to complete three months in an industry placement. In his workshop practice he was awarded an A+ and is described as a "trustworthy, responsible, and reliable person" by his principle. Reading these reports, we were glowing with pride.

Joshua had been sponsoring Jona since secondary school, through which he gained his Malawi School Certificate of Education, all the way through to his college education.  It was his dream to become an electrical engineer throughout his education. He not only enjoyed it but has gained many skills meaning that he can stand on his own two feet and now sees a bright future for himself.

This is a huge achievement for Jona and brings so much joy to his life and to our office. In his own words, "I would like to thank the whole Joshua organisation for working hand in hand with me to reach this stage. I promise that I will make good use of this chance". We wish him all the luck in the world.

24th Oct - Early Walk

Before eating breakfast the team undertook a 5am trek to the lone tree visible at the peak of the mountain to catch a view of the sunrise. Not only did we time this perfectly, arriving minutes before the sun rose over the mountains we also managed to explore another Joshua feeding centre situated in thicker more lush vegetation. Despite our collective exhaustion following days of hard work, this not only energised us, but also set the tone for the entire day.

In comparison to other days the work load was less rigorous as the two manual jobs (brick laying and landscaping) wound to a close, as both progressed towards their completion.

With our work completed (foundation slab poured and 1000's of bricks moved and laid) on the teachers house we now pass on the baton to the local builders to complete the skilled elements of the build.

After 20 tonnes of earth moved by pure will power and strength the landscaping was completed ensuring guaranteeing the future of Masika junior primary school.

Within all of this work, many members of the team still managed to enjoy themselves playing with the local children. In particular Fay who spent an afternoon climbing classroom rules and Charlie who enjoyed an evening of collecting tennis balls from the river following a rowdy game of baseball.
As the team finishes its last day of work and looked towards our final day in Manyenje the feeling is overwhelming of gratitude for the villagers consummate kindness and willingness to join us, whether it be in work or play.

Blog entry by Mr. Dan wamphagu Rojas

'wamphagu' - strong man

23rd Oct - Muli Bwanje!

After a restless night featuring Alex Rae's snoring and a rooster we all awoke for another day of project work in Manyenje. We split into three groups, one going to Marys Meals the second going to continue the teachers house and the third in the dust bowl.

At the teachers house the main task was brick laying, with the outside walls growing with increasing speed. The most progress however was made by the landscaping team. The main terrace was completed and the lower terrace was levelled out.

The Marys Meals team enjoyed the time spent with the local children and have made strong bonds with the kids.

Away from our main projects Rob and co. completed the improvements to the tippy taps and some of the landscaping team helped plant up a new tree nursery with the local children. They seeded 153 blue gum trees.

Blog entry by Jack

All Three LP Groups in Action

The day started at various times today, 6.30am for most, 5.30am for cooks and 4.45am for anyone awoken by Faye.

The day quickly gathered momentum; group 3 working in the feeding centre, group 2 landscaping and group 1 on the building site. Being in group 3 I can honestly say I've never met a more likeable group of kids in my life (despite the great escape attempt I halted as I prised a dangling child off the wall).

The experience for group 2 was very different in that their day was spent sweating in a dust bowl, as they shovelled and transported soil behind the new primary school to create terraces. 

Similar was the experience for group 1 as they also spent the entire day in the sun, laying bricks on the new foundations of the teachers house.

In the evening we celebrated Malawian Jo's birthday with balloons and banoffee pie!

Blog entry by Rob

Jump to it!

Today we split into 3 groups. Group 1 worked in Mary's Meals feeding centre and Groups 2 and 3 helped with the building of the teachers house. The Group that worked in the feeding centre found it extremely enjoyable and are very grateful they were given the opportunity to experience such a new but incredibly important part of the community.

The other two groups began the first of the strenuous building  jobs. This involved mixing cement and laying the slab to create the foundation of the teachers house.

Later in the day the Inspector for public works visited the site to check it was up to strict malawian Government standards. The groups work passed with flying colours and received the official stamp of approval!

We taught the children 'jump on it' and it has since become the village dance in my opinion.

Blog entry by Alice

Manyenje here we come!

Currently out in Malawi are a group of volunteers from Leighton Park School. Below is their second blog about their experience so far, enjoy!

 
Today we travelled to the village Manyanje with the young children chasing after the mini-bus as it pulled into the village. This was just the start of probably the best welcome any of us have ever had. 

As soon as we arrived we set up our mosquito nets and went out to play with the children as soon as we could. We blew bubbles for them and played with balloons and the ukulele - the excitement on their faces and their eagerness to gather round you to join in was a really special experience.

Later in the afternoon we had the welcoming ceremony which all the village attended, where we exchanged speeches and watched a traditional Malawian dance. After this was probably the best part of the day when we played football and netball with loads of people from the village and taught the younger children 'swing low' with Adrian. 

The welcome and playing time with the children has summed up why Malawi is the heart of Africa and is something none of us will ever forget. I think it has also made us feel extremely grateful to be here.

Group diary entry by Milli

Find out more about volunteering with Joshua.

Urgent appeal from Sylvia - Help get Mac back on track

Mac joined Joshua at a time when our vehicles were little more useful than wheelbarrows.

Over the years she has suffered at the hands of Malawi’s “interesting” roads, not to mention encounters with minibuses, pot holes, ditches, flower beds and roundabouts.

However the marriage of Mac to John the driver has enabled Joshua to sustain its operations over the past few years. John has taken Mac by the hand and has given her a new revived and fresh outlook towards the challenges of working for Joshua.

But Mac is not as vibrant as her earlier days and requires a weekly oil top-up. Although there is no harm in giving Mac a weekly gin and tonic in the line of a top-up, a good engine overhaul would indeed be a very welcome Christmas gift.

Having Mac healthy is so important to our work because Mac:

• Deliver’s Likuni Phala to Joshua’s 10 Community Based Childcare Centres which serve over 2,500 meals a week to the poorest infants.
• Takes volunteer health workers out into rural communities to run weekly Health Clinics for under-fives at our Community Based Childcare Centres.
• Gets essential supplies to schools, including uniforms, books, stationery and much more.

Can we revive Mac?  Can we restore her glory?

Yes. Let us respect and restore all that is worthwhile and let us continue to make ends meet along the way. Splashing out on short term quick fix solutions may suffice – but for the long term, an old dog for the long road philosophy may have a lot more substantial long-term benefit for Joshua and the community as a whole. Come what may, tidzakhoza (we will survive).

What are our options?

1. Give Mac an engine overhaul with locally available non-genuine spare parts: £2,000
2. Give Mac an engine overhaul with Toyota spares (locally sourced): £5,000
3. An additional paint job will cost about £2,000
4. Buy a new second hand car to support Mac: £7,500

We want to raise £7,000 to help get Mac back on track
Please help us do this by supporting this urgent appeal with a donation today.

Thank you.