Hello friends and family- Katie here! This morning, our group had to say goodbye to all of our friends that we made in Mufindi.
Before arriving at Igoda Childrens Village (Orphanage+), our group talked about the “single story”. The idea of a “single story” is that it is the stereotypical view or idea of something. So, our single story for an orphanage was that it would be a sad place, filled with children who were in desperate need of love and attention. Boy, were we wrong. The minute that we arrived in Mufindi, we were greeted by happy, smiling children who could not wait to show us their home. We also got to meet Jenny and Geoff, who are nothing short of AMAZING. For years, they have worked tirelessly to create a sustainable community by improving education, taking in nearly 100 vulnerable children, preparing these children for a future life in the village, and constantly supporting new projects such as a community garden and a basket weaving group. Another focus of Jenny and Geoff’s is prevention and treatment of AIDS in the community. Already, a Care & Treatment Center has been built, and serves over 2,000 HIV-positive patients a month. Jenny and Geoff are currently working on building an entire hospital facility in town so that patients no longer have to travel hours and hours to see a doctor.
Over the week, our group got to experience what life is like in the community. Each day was completely different from the last, and activities included painting murals in the childrens’ houses, taking care of the babies in the orphanage, working in the preschool classes, carrying firewood from the forest, and farming in the garden. We each got to try out our teaching skills for a day when we traveled to Igoda Primary School and taught alongside the best teacher in all of Tanzania- Yusto! We also traveled to nearby towns and villages to visit sick and elderly families and hear their stories. It was an emotional week, but it gave us all so much hope and inspiration. It opened our eyes to how different people’s lives are here. I think I speak for the group when I say that we left feeling much more grateful for everything that we used to take for granted at home, such as running water and heat.
This week, we all met SUCH amazing people, and made memories that we will never forget. We are all so thankful to Jenny and Geoff for letting us stay with them this week, and we are also thankful to all the amazing children that we got to work with- they truly changed our lives. When we left, we reminded them that “It’s not goodbye- it’s baadaye!”