Congratulations to Fumbani for having the winning essay in March!
Sarah’s blog 19/4/24
After a bit of a delay due to exams then school holidays (with the holiday study school), the winner of March’s essay competition for S3 at Bright Futures Secondary School has been announced. Fumbani Sichamba received his prize money this week – well done Fumbani!!
Now that S3 have been writing essays for the past few months and becoming more confident in their abilities, we are going to introduce these essay writing competitions for S1 and S2. Having a prize to work for each month will motivate students and writing essays will give them more practice at expressing their thoughts on paper.
We hope that you enjoy reading the students’ essays as much as week do. Thank you for helping us support these vulnerable students, Sarah x
Thank you to The Clive Richards Foundation for the grant for this teachers accommodation block. We are delighted with the results.
Sarah’s blog 13/4/24
We were so grateful to receive a grant for £11,000 from The Clive Richards Foundation to build a staff accommodation block, staff latrines, boys latrines and girls latrines. We were just waiting for the signwriter to come so that the accommodation block was totally finished to show the photos. Four male teachers are living in this accommodation. The four self-contained apartments all have their own bedroom and sitting room.
It certainly hasn’t been straightforward as currency has been devalued, prices of goods keep rising and the rainy season started before the project had been completed. But despite the issues, they’ve worked hard and succeeded and now the teachers are pleased to have these lovely new rooms.
As the area is very rural and the community is living in extreme poverty, there is no suitable accommodation in the surrounding area that teachers could rent. The Clive Richards Foundation recognised that we needed quality accommodation to attract quality teachers for Bright Futures Secondary School.
Enjoy the photos and I have attached the links to previous blogs at the start of this accommodation project. To The Clive Richards Foundation for taking a chance on us and trusting us with a grant – THANK YOU. It makes a big difference when people understand our vision and come onboard with us to help us achieve for the young people we are supporting. We are so grateful for the help we receive from individuals and organisations. Many thanks again, Sarah x
Thank you so much to everyone who has bought our fundraising cards. Oakwood Garden Centre have sold 94 packs! Amazing thank you!
Sarah’s blog 11/4/24
I thought I would do a little update on my mum’s beautiful cards that are copies from her original paintings. My mum, Christine Cresswell, who is one of our trustees, only took up painting a few years ago. She has real talent and found it helped her to paint during lockdown. Mum has given her time and talents to our charity and sells her paintings with all proceeds going to the projects we support in Malawi. She had the cards printed, so all proceeds from those goes to the charity too.
Thanks to everyone who has bought cards and thank you to members of Strathblane Kirk and Strathblane Guild for their support. Also thank you to Torrance Parish Church for having the cards in their foyer for sale, we really appreciate your help.
I also want to thank Oakwood Garden Centre, Killearn. They very kindly agreed to stock our fundraising cards and have sold 94 packs of cards which is amazing. Many thanks to Oakwood Garden Centre and all the customers who have supported our charity by buying cards.
Below is a small selection of paintings and cards. I will do a separate post about mum’s paintings soon. The packs of cards are in 8 of same type that are blank inside for your own message, priced at £5 per pack they make a great gift or are handy to have at home. Thanks again and thanks mum, Sarah x
Just a quick blog tonight as I have been busy doing a grant application. Our four firewalkers were absolutely fabulous and great sports. We are so grateful that they all stepped up to the challenge and stepped out of their comfort zone to raise much needed funds.
They’ve done brilliantly – thanks to everyone who has donated so far. However, if you’ve not donated yet, please could you? We would love both teams to get to £1,000 and they aren’t far off!
You can access photos, videos and links to their fundraisers by clicking on their stories.
Thanks again to Allander Rotary for organising this event and supporting our charity and to Milngavie Guides for hosting the event. Of course the biggest thank you goes to Joanne, Alison, Alistair and David for walking over hot coals for charity. Thanks, Sarah x
Some photos and videos from Easter Study School at Chambo Primary and Bright Futures Secondary School…everyone is taking advantage of this great opportunity.
Sarah’s blog 09/04/24
Today I have some photos and videos from the Easter Study School. The ones from Bright Futures Secondary School were taken by one of the teachers yesterday. Levison visited Chambo Primary this morning and sent the photos and videos from there.
We are grateful to everyone who is supporting these very vulnerable young people to have these extra eight days of study and a proper cooked lunch each day. Teachers have given up their holiday time, cooks have prepared and cooked lunch each day and other volunteers on campus ensuring that things run smoothly for the young people. The lunches are important as it’s probably the only proper meal each of these young people will get each day. How can we expect them to walk a long distance and concentrate all day if they haven’t eaten properly?
In Malawi, national exams are taken at the end of primary school (p8). If you don’t pass then you don’t go to secondary school. Also you don’t go to secondary school if you cannot afford to pay. So for most of these students at Chambo Primary, even if they do pass, unless we have managed to match them with a sponsor to help support their education at Bright Futures Secondary School, their education is still finished at the end of primary school. We need more sponsors please and it’s only £25 p/m…that’s less than £1 per day. contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com
National exams are also at the end of S2 and the end of S4. There aren’t any S4 students at Bright Futures Secondary School until September, so this study school is for the S2 and S3 students. BFSS is only half full currently. There is capacity for more vulnerable students, but we need your help and financial support for their education. It might be one of the most important things you do for one of these young people.
Students at Bright Futures Secondary School were asked ‘What is good about school being open during the holidays?’
Bethsheba said ‘It helps us to cover the load that haven’t been covered during second term so that we stay focused to the curriculum of Malawi Government’ (for info – may students have missed classes due to heavy rains preventing them cross the swollen rivers). She also said ‘It helps us that we are not supposed to be playing at home so that we maintain the striving of excellence.’
Lawrence stated ‘It helps us to have more knowledge about school and it helps us to avoid bad behaviour that might happen when you don’t go to school. It helps us to have access to have lunchtime food, since we are coming from far distance with emptied belly. So during the holiday we continue to have access to food which improve our health so that we stay focused on our studies without thinking about hunger.’
Mathias added ‘It helps students to maintain a good position such as a student may proceed in working hard whether during holidays or school days. It helps students to have full information about the subject which haven’t covered in the past term.’
Mphatso said ‘It helps to have more experience on how can we handle subjects during holidays hence improve experience of subject. It helps us always to think about our career journey through our studies during holidays or school days and it helps students to spend more time in reading and concentrate on school activities hence improvement in academically.’
Agness commented ‘ It helps us to continue with our studies regardless of it being holiday time. It lets us improve our knowledge. It also stops students joining in bad behaviour during holidays. Being at school gives students to have ample time to do revision work for the past term and looking for areas of improvement.’
One of the teachers, Mr Byfore Kalambo, at BFSS said ‘It’s most important to provide studies to our students because it helps us to cover all the topics from the previous term. It also helps us as the teacher to be well prepared and focused about the coming term because we are more aware about students weakness during the previous term and finding ways of improvements. It provides us more time to do revision work with students so that when the school is open we stay focused on the scheme of work (lesson plans) prepared while we are maintaining the whole curriculum. We also have the chance to be more flexible and relaxed with classes so students find it easier to ask questions freely during holiday time hence good interaction between us teachers and students.’
I hope these photos and videos help to give you an insight into the schools and the vulnerable young people we are supporting. Supporting these students to succeed is always about teamwork. Will you be part of our team? Thanks, Sarah x
I’ve thought a lot about writing this and whether I should or not. Writing blogs has taken me out of my comfort zone as I always want the focus to be on what is happening in Malawi or fundraising here, not about me. However, here are a few thoughts I’d like to share with you.
As a charity, Changing Lives Malawi is growing well and, thanks to our supporters, is continuing to make a big difference to hundreds of the most vulnerable children in rural northern Malawi. A few things do need to change in order for us to continue to grow;
I need some more help as my caring responsibilities have grown over the last few months and I must continue to prioritise my family.
As we grow, there is more to do. I have several large grant applications to do over the next few weeks and these will take time.
We need to continue fundraising and this doesn’t all have to involve me. What I would find really helpful is if supporters could do some little (or bigger) fundraising for Changing Lives Malawi within their own communities. This shares some of the hard work but also lets a new group of people know about our charity. Hopefully, as 100% of donations go towards the projects we support, they will be happy to support us too. You could have a table top sale, a bake stall, an afternoon tea or a car wash…or could you do a sponsored event like the Kiltwalk or a half marathon?
Share our posts please. Or write a post of your own about our charity. Again, a new group of people will see this post and that you have given us your seal of approval!
Invite me to speak at your club, church, event. I love doing this and one of my favourite things is talking about the projects that we support in Malawi. After that, hopefully, that will have made a new connection and that community can become a supporter of Changing Lives Malawi.
Feeding hundreds of hungry children continues to be a big concern as there are no big charities feeding them in schools in the far north of Malawi. Most are malnourished. All are hungry. If you could spare £5 per month to support the feeding programme then that would make a big difference. 100 people committing £5 per month would be £500 extra to spend on feeding children and putting into place sustainable projects that will help people be self-sufficient eg planting an orchard of fruit tree saplings at each primary school in the local area.
Young people’s education is also a priority. Bright Futures Secondary School is only half full currently. We need to match more vulnerable young people with sponsors so that they can go to secondary school. Education is their way out of extreme poverty. It’s only £25 per month to sponsor a young person. They receive school uniform, stationery, a nutritious cooked school lunch (their only proper meal of the day) each day and, of course, free education.
I remain 100% committed to Changing Lives Malawi – it is what I am supposed to be doing and I love it. I love being a small part of a big team. Every one of us has different skills and talents and we all can make a difference. Changing Lives Malawi is nearly 5 years old and I am so thankful of all the support we continue to receive.
Thank you for reading today’s blog and for understanding and supporting our small charity which is making a big difference. Sarah x contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com
The first day of Easter Study School – some of the students are enjoying a break to have their lunch and chat with their friends.
Sarah’s blog 02/04/24
Schools in Malawi have two weeks of Easter holidays like they do here in Scotland. However, as some of the teachers at Bright Futures Secondary School were staying on campus rather than travelling home for the holidays, they were happy to run a holiday study school for four days this week and four days next week.
We enabled this to happen last year too and it was a great success and we provided a cooked lunch for the students and teachers from p8 at Chambo primary too. Primary 8 students have national exams to take on leaving primary school. If they don’t pass then they don’t get chance to go to secondary school. Even if they do pass, unless they have a sponsor to pay for their secondary education then they still don’t get to have a secondary education. Sponsoring a young person only costs £25 per month and they get a cooked lunch each day at school, uniform and the stationery they need. If you could make a difference to a young person and become a sponsor then please email contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com
S2 students also have national exams and this study school will really help them. S3 students asked if they could take part too. So a full timetable has been worked out to accommodate S2 and S3 students to ensure they make best use of time and teachers available. We are really grateful to the teachers for their enthusiasm and hard work and dedication to the young people.
There are no big charities feeding children in primary schools in the far north. Most are malnourished and all are hungry. Most don’t get a proper meal each day. So we are ensuring all the Chambo p8 students (approx 70 of them) and the Bright Futures Secondary School students all get a cooked school lunch each lunchtime during these two weeks. All students and BFSS get a cooked school lunch every day. How can we expect young people to study when they are hungry, tired and unable to concentrate?
So, as you can see from these photos, some of the students were happily chatting with their friends at lunchtime and enjoying their lunch. It’s small things like this that make a big difference to them. Whilst BFSS students all have the exercise books and stationery they need, the last time we gave the students at Chambo Primary exercise books and pencils was in January….they need more otherwise they are just listening to their teachers and not able to write anything down.
Can you help us provide lunch, exercise books and pencils for 70 students in p8 at Chambo Primary please? contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com Thanks for reading and supporting us to support the students, Sarah x
Have a look at these great photos and videos of two teachers at Balfron High School who completed a firewalk to raise much needed funds.
Sarah’s blog 28/3/24
Our four firewalkers were fantastic! Thank you so much if you have already donated…if you haven’t please can you fire in a few £££ as it all makes a big difference and will show how much we value our four amazing volunteers who really challenged themselves.
I shared Joanne and Alison’s firewalk photos and videos earlier in the week. Their fundraising link is https://gofund.me/c127c5e9 They are raising funds for textbooks and a staffroom at Bright Futures Secondary School in Malawi.
The teachers wanted to share their photos and videos with students at Balfron High School before putting them on social media. That happened yesterday and they made approximately £130 in donations yesterday lunchtime. Thanks to everyone who gave some money to watch the videos at school! Their fundraising link is https://gofund.me/9430b2af . The teachers are donating half of their funds to Changing Lives Malawi and half is going to next year’s volunteering school trip to Zanzibar. So here are some photos and videos of Alistair Blair & David Braid from Sunday’s firewalk.
Thank you again to Allander Rotary for organising the firewalk and to Milngavie Guides for hosting the event. It was a brilliant evening. To see Joanne and Alison’s photos and videos again here is their link Joanne & Alison’s Fantastic Firewalk
Thank you everyone and please do put a few £££ in the pot if you haven’t already done so, Sarah x
A great photo of David Braid (left) and Alistair Blair, teachers at Balfron High, big smiles after their firewalk challenge
We are grateful to everyone who has supported us to provide clean drinking water, water for washing hands and showering and latrines for hundreds of children.
Sarah’s blog 22/3/24
On World Water Day we just want to thank all of our supporters who have helped bring water to all the vulnerable children and young people we help to support.
We still have lots to do but, thanks to our supporters and grants we have received, children at Bright Futures Nursery, Chambo Primary School, Bright Futures Secondary School and of course the 500 children who come for a meal at the feeding programme each week, all have clean drinking water.
We would like to thank again The Kitchen Table Charities Trust for their funding to enable us to facilitate using the clean water supply at Chambo Health Centre to lay pipes and provide taps for drinking clean water at Chambo Primary School. By letting us ‘think outside the box’ we made best use of their grant. Thank you to those people who have done sponsored events to raise funds and to others who have made personal donations or shared our posts. You have all made a difference.
As well as clean water to drink, it’s also important that there is clean water & soap for washing hands, proper latrines and there is the shower block where all the young people and staff are able to wash. Thank you all for making this possible, Sarah x
It’s getting very exciting now! Only two days to go until our four fearless firewalkers get to do their fundraising firewalk on Sunday evening.
If anyone wanted to attend in person, it’s at 7pm at the Guide Hall in Milngavie on Sunday Evening. But don’t worry if you can’t…there will be photos and videos that we will share!
T-shirts with the Changing Lives Malawi logo have arrived and we are looking forward to Sunday evening. Thanks to Allander Rotary Club for organising this event and being so supportive of our charity.
My sister, Joanne Byrne (Killearn Driving School) , and her friend, Alison Rennie, are fundraising for Bright Futures Secondary School to have a staffroom and new textbooks. Their fundraising link is https://gofund.me/c127c5e9
Mr Blair and Mr Braid, teachers from Balfron High School, are giving half of their money to Changing Lives Malawi towards the staffroom and new textbooks, and half of their money raised is going towards next year’s school trip to Zanzibar where 20 students will be doing voluntary work within local communities. To donate to them it’s https://gofund.me/9430b2af
Thank you to everyone who has donated so far….we really appreciate all the help we receive whilst we try to support vulnerable children and young people to be the best they can be and have opportunities they wouldn’t usually have had. Thank you, Sarah x
Each sponsored child/young person has their own page on our website. Sponsors can visit that page to see photos and information on the young person they sponsor. We need more sponsors for the next intake of S1 students to Bright Futures Secondary School. contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com
Sarah’s blog 15/3/24
We are so grateful for the monthly contribution that all our sponsors make for the most vulnerable children and young people they help to support.
We are trying to ensure that all sponsored children and young people are more visible. Last year was such a successful but extremely busy year with so much building work going on in Malawi that we didn’t get as many photos as we would have liked. However, we are rectifying that now. Each sponsored young person has their own page on our website. There will be a new photo/information posted at least every three months but, hopefully, more regularly than that on their pages. Sponsors will be able to visit their young person’s page for the most up to date photos/information and it is also a good way to look back at previous photos to see the positive difference your sponsorship is making.
Sponsorship for the young people who are at Bright Futures Secondary School gives them free secondary school education. Without sponsorship, their education would stop after primary school as, in Malawi, secondary education has to be paid for. As well as free education, the students receive a cooked school lunch each day. For most, this is their only proper meal of the day. They also have school uniform, stationery and other school supplies all for free.
For those children and young people not at secondary school, they receive a monthly food parcel that supplements the food already coming into their home. They also receive clothes, shoes, soap etc when available. All children and young people receive regular welfare checks.
There are students in their last year at Chambo Primary School who won’t be able to progress to secondary education without your help and support. Bright Futures Secondary School is only half full currently, however we need more sponsors to be able to help the next S1 intake into Bright Futures Secondary School. Will you help a vulnerable young person please? It’s only £25 per month and you can split that cost with a friend. Please help us to ensure the places in Bright Futures Secondary School are filled so that the most vulnerable students know that they have chances and choices that they wouldn’t previously have had. With your help we can ensure young people have a brighter future for themselves and their families. contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com
There are a few young people who aren’t in these photos but we hope to have photos of them over the next few days. Thank you everyone who supports these young people. It’s always teamwork and we are grateful that you are part of our team. Sarah x
Please could you help us this month? If you’d like to, you could get in touch to say which essay you like best this month. We will decide the winner on Monday 18th March so please do get in touch before then with your favourite and why you like it. contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com or you can contact us via social media.
As you can read from the students’ essays, there have been challenges this term. One of the challenges being the rainy season and rivers being too big and fast to cross so students cannot come to school if it isn’t safe to cross the rivers. Hopefully, we will be able to build bridges to make it safe for all children, young people and adults in the community. Another challenge remains the distance that some of the young people have to walk to school. They are tired and have hardly any time to study.
One thing that has also been an upheaval for the students is that three of their teachers left. The government created many new teaching jobs and three of our teachers were successful in getting new positions. We wish them well and thank them for their hard work.
Thankfully, there were many applicants for the advertisements that Levison placed and three new teachers have started and are settling in nicely. It sounds, from the students’ essays that they are happy with their new teachers and are enjoying their learning experience at Bright Futures Secondary School.
We are hoping that the new teachers will take on responsibility for essay competitions with the other year groups at Bright Futures Secondary School so we hear and see more from the S1 and S2 students. Enjoy reading the essays and let us know which is your favourite. Thanks, Sarah x
