I’ve been amazed by how many wonderful, generous people support us to help the vulnerable children in rural northern Malawi.
We are facilitating Jack Mphande, Malawi Rugby Development officer to return to the rural north to work with teachers and children in primary schools as well as spending time with the children we help to support. Jack will be visiting for two weeks. His first visit was the first time rugby had been introduced and played in the north. Everyone loved it. They are looking forward to the end of September when he will visit again for two weeks.
Here, we have had people helping to provide kit, boots, balls and driving to pick donations up, box them up and drive them to Dundee to The Bananabox Trust to await the next container.
Some of the rugby clubs we have had support from include; Strathendrick Rugby Club (our local club who also raised money through a bake sale), Annan Rugby Club, Grangemouth Rugby Club, Hillfoots Rugby Club, Stirling County Rugby Club, Blaydon Rugby Club (Newcastle), Glasgow Warriors and Merchiston Castle School, Edinburgh. We are very grateful for all the donations we have received and these will be able to be shared with different school teams in Malawi.
This week we also had a huge donation from the Scottish Rugby Union; 200 tops/jerseys/jackets + socks and shorts! Plus some new Scotland jerseys to auction. Many thanks to Scott at SRU for your help. Also to Michael and Gordon and everyone else who has helped to collect and donate kit. Bruce at Merchiston Castle School (and Happiness is Egg Shaped) has also been a huge help in sharing posts as well as donating kit, balls and boots.
What we also need is for people to share posts to raise awareness. We’d love rugby clubs to be able to raise £50-£100 each to pay for the cost of sending kit to Malawi and cover the cost of the two week rugby event in September. We will need to feed all the children who are taking part in the rugby training & tournament as no big charities are feeding children in schools that far north.
Can you ask 50 people at your club for £1 each? Could you have a bake sale for us? Or have a carwash or a sponsored event? If lots of clubs can help us a little bit then teamwork will make it happen. Please mail me for more info or to offer your financial support. contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com Thanks for reading & supporting, Sarah x
All the rugby donations at Bananabox Trust, Dundee waiting for the next containerBrilliant! Thanks to the Scottish Rugby Unionsome great kit donationsJack Mphande, Rugby Development Officer A great donation of rugby balls from Merchiston Castle School, Edinburgh Kit donated by Merchiston Castle School, Edinburghthe bake sale at training one Sunday morning at Strathendrick RFC
We are grateful to receive more sports kit to send to Malawi for teams that do not have matching kit.
Sarah’s blog 31/3/23
We have been very fortunate to have had several individuals and organisations donating sports kit and equipment to us for use by the vulnerable young people we support in rural northern Malawi.
Strathendrick Rugby Club and Merchiston Castle School have very kindly donated kit, boots and rugby balls and there will be some other donations coming soon from other supporters.
Via Julian Chenery from ‘Wear a Sports Shirt Day’ there has been hockey kit from Bromley & Beckenham Hockey Club, and numerous football kits as well as Christmas Jumpers and Christmas hats. Julian spends nearly every weekend collecting preloved kits from clubs to pass on to a variety of charities. Sports kits then are able to be reused by teams who wouldn’t otherwise have been able to afford to buy matching kit.
Julian messaged me the other day to say that he has sent football kits kindly donated by Swale Ladies Football Club and Borden Village Football Club which made it in time to be loaded onto the Bananabox Trust container which is now on its way to Malawi. We will, of course, show photos when those arrive.
Julian also met with Mark Meekings who runs ‘Kitz4Kidz’ who have donated kit they have collected for use in Malawi. Thanks to Julian and Mark and to those who donated kit – photos to follow when the kit arrives in Malawi. Thanks also to the volunteers at Bananabox Trust for their hard work ensuring everything is recorded and packed safely into the containers.
During the two week Easter holidays, we are facilitating the running of an Easter Study School for the 66 p8 students at Chambo Primary School and the students at Bright Futures Secondary School. Lessons will run Monday – Thursday during the first week and Tuesday – Friday the second week. On Good Friday and Easter Monday, the young people will be playing organised team sports.
For 10 days during the holidays all these students will receive a substantial, nutritious cooked lunch. This will probably be their only proper meal of the day. This meal might be the only food that they eat that day. We would be very grateful for help towards providing this food. You can email me at contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com for bank details or you can text FEEDING to 70480. Every £5 or £10 donated will make a huge difference to these vulnerable students and help them concentrate whilst they study. Thank you, Sarah x
Thank you to Swale Ladies and Borden Village football clubs who have donated their kit through Julian at ‘Wear a Sports Shirt Day’
Julian from Wear a Sports Shirt Day (left) with Mark from Kitz4KidzStudents at Bright Futures Secondary School with rugby kit donated by Merchiston Castle School, EdinburghKit from Bromley & Beckenham Hockey Club kindly donated via Wear A Sports Shirt DayFakenham Town FC kit kindly donated via Wear a Sports Shirt DayCan you please help us feed vulnerable students during the Easter holidays?
Levison was able to visit Kalanga primary school today with clothes and books
Sarah’s blog 07/03/23
Chambo Primary School is the one nearest to The Foundation and the majority of the younger children who are supported by The Foundation go to school there.
Kalanga Primary School is a bit further away but some children who go there also come to The Foundation. Levison had arranged with the headteacher to visit today with clothes for the children who are all very vulnerable. There were enough clothes to ensure everyone received something.
These uniforms were very kindly donated by a parent whose children went to Sinclair House School, Fulham. This school unfortunately closed during the pandemic. However, we are so grateful that these beautiful clothes have been able to be used by children in need and who will make good use of them.
There were so many boxes of uniforms donated that some have already been given out to children who attend Chambo Primary and also some of the students at Bright Futures Secondary School. The children from yesterday’s blog were given new clothes from this school too.
Levison also took four boxes of books for Kalanga Primary School as part of our School Literacy Project to help the children have access to more books and become more confident readers. The teachers were extremely grateful for all these donations and the children were delighted to have new clothes. Hope you enjoy looking at all the photos, Sarah x
As you may know, The Mother and Baby Project was started with a view to giving staff at the health centre additional opportunities to interact with new mums and their babies.
We send lovely donations of baby clothes, knitted hats, knitted cardigans and knitted blankets to Malawi which Levison then takes to the maternity ward at the nearby health centre. When a baby is born there, the staff can give out some of the donated baby clothes. If the mum and baby return for a visit a few weeks later for another visit to collect something else for the baby, it gives another chance for the staff at the health centre to interact with each new mum and her baby. This is an opportunity that they wouldn’t previously have had and will hopefully be of benefit to both mothers and their babies.
I’m really looking forward to being able to see more photos from the health centre when these donations arrive. These photos of lovely baby clothes and knitting are donations from the congregation at Torrance Parish Church – so thank you to all involved. There were also four big boxes of baby clothes arrived at my house yesterday courtesy of one of our sponsors. We are grateful for all these lovely things and for the time and love that has gone into the knitting.
Many thanks again to all who support our projects, Sarah x
We couldn’t help the hundreds of orphans and other vulnerable children we support without the help of our wonderful supporters. We always say it’s about teamwork and we each have our own skills and ways that we can make a difference. That might be volunteering your time, your talents, sponsoring a child or making a one off or regular monitory donation. We need each and every one of you. The children need you. They now have hope and a brighter future because of you. Thank you.
We have been overwhelmed with the support we have received when fundraising to build phase 1 of Bright Futures Secondary School. We said that if anyone donated £500 or over towards the building of the school, they could name a classroom if they wanted to. The two classrooms have been named; Form 1 is named after a girl called Shona and Form 2 is named after Professor Derek Knottenbelt. Thank you very much for your support and help with enabling phase 1 of Bright Futures Secondary School to be built so quickly.
We currently have a new latrine block that needs sponsoring….would you like your company advertised on the wall? And the staff house needs to be named after someone or a business… as the house is split in two, there are two opportunities to have your name painted on one of the walls. If you would like to donate £500 or more, we would be very grateful, and you can let us know what name you would like to be displayed on your behalf. contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com
The fundraiser for phase 2 of Bright Futures Secondary School is open and we would welcome any donations https://gofund.me/44a92444
Thank you for reading and for all your support. It really is a team effort, and we couldn’t help so many vulnerable children without you. As there are no admin costs or salaries in our charity, 100% of what you give goes to the projects we support. Therefore, despite always being on a shoestring, we make the most of what money we have. That’s why your support is vital and very much appreciated. Thanks, Sarah x
Every day is a day to celebrate children but today is International Children’s Day. Today I am thinking about the hundreds of wonderful, resilient children we help to support in rural northern Malawi. Despite the fact that they have all experienced grief, trauma, malnutrition, poverty and hardship, they get on with things and make the best of life. Many have missed out on a proper childhood as they have had to work long hours, missing school, for a pittance to try to help feed themselves and their family.
We are helping to change their lives. We need your help. We are a team, each with our own part to play. These vulnerable children need a team around them to help nurture them and help them thrive. They are fed once a week at The Feeding programme. We would love to do this more often if we had more funds. If you would like to support the feeding programme for 500+ children by donating a monthly amount, then please email me contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com
The Child Sponsorship Project matches the most vulnerable children with sponsors. The children receive clothes, a blanket, a monthly food parcel, welfare checks, and secondary education. If you are able to sponsor a child, then please do get in touch. It is only £25 p/m to sponsor a child and it might be the most important thing you ever do for these very vulnerable children. You can sponsor as an individual, a family, a business or share the cost with a friend. Please do let me know if you could help give a child a brighter future. contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com Here are some of the young people who have just started at Bright Futures Secondary School and who need your help. Please will you sponsor me? – Changing Lives Malawi
We are also looking for people who can commit £5 or £10 per month (or an amount of your choice) to help support hot, nutritious school lunches for the teenagers at the new school. Is this something you can do? contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com
Bright Futures Secondary School – phase 1 has been completed and welcomed new students two weeks ago. We are continuing to fundraise for desks, more textbooks, and towards building classrooms 3 & 4. If anyone is able to donate £500 or over, they can have one of the classrooms named after them (or the name of a business etc). The school fundraiser is here https://gofund.me/44a92444
The School Literacy Project is ensuring that children have access to books on a daily basis. We are sending boxes of books to primary schools in rural Northern Malawi. How can children learn to read if they don’t have books to practice with?
Sports – Children and young people are playing football, netball and rugby. They can forget about their problems whilst playing with their friends. They are learning new skills and becoming more confident. Team sports are good for physical and mental health.
There are so many other ways that the lives of the hundreds of vulnerable children that we help to support are changing for the better. We want them to have choices and opportunities. We want them to be the best that they can be. We want them to have brighter futures. We want them to learn to be self-sufficient. They also want these shared goals. Please do read through the different pages on our website and my blog pages for all the things that the children are doing and getting involved with.
Sinclair House School Fulham
At the start of the year, I was offered school uniform from a preparatory in London. Sadly, the school was closing due to covid and lockdown, so there was lots of uniform that needed a new home. We were very thankful to be offered this for the very vulnerable children we support in rural northern Malawi, and we were grateful too for the donation made towards covering the cost of sending the boxes on the container.
As this was a school for younger children the uniform is obviously in smaller sizes. However, because of malnutrition and poverty, the 500 plus children that are supported through various projects, are a bit smaller than the age sizes stated on the clothes. So here are some of the first boxes of uniform from Sinclair House School that were given to children this morning. There will be more given out during the week, and some will also be given to children at a nearby primary school. As you will see, some of the teenage students at Bright Futures Secondary School were able to fit into the largest size of the sportswear and they were delighted to receive these. The girls were pleased with their trousers too… culturally girls and women only wear dresses and skirts, but teenage girls are beginning to ask to wear trousers.
I hope you enjoy the photos. One young person that I will show you photos of to show just how much having a sponsor can change a life is Laston. He lives with his grandmother. He missed so much school as he was helping a farmer with his cows and being paid approximately £1.50 per month. He was depressed and hungry and only had the clothes he was wearing. His life has changed thanks to his sponsor. Please, on International Children’s Day, consider helping to change the life of another vulnerable child who is waiting. Thank you for reading and for everyone who supports our work, Sarah x
l-r Maria, Margaret, Laston and Brian are delighted with their new clothes they received today In the picture on the left, Laston only has the clothes he was wearing. His shoes have holes at the front as they are too small for him. He missed lots of school to work for a farmer, helping with his cows, for £1.50 per month. Thankfully, we were able to match him with a sponsor and he is doing well at school.Some of the students at the new school – Bright Futures Secondary SchoolMargaret is delighted with her new clothesMaria loves her new clothes and is enjoying wearing trousers!Some of the students at Bright Futures Secondary SchoolThank you for their new uniformStudents looking very smart in their new uniformMaria is looking very smartBrian looking smart in his new uniformThank you for the donations Sinclair House SchoolMargaret in her classroomMariaNew cardigans for these younger girlsLots of happy children with their new clothesThank you for the new smart uniformlooking very smart in their blazers!Very smart in new shirts and navy shortsThank you for my new blazer!
Last year we had a very generous donation of preloved bibles from St Michael’s Parish Church, Slateford Road, Edinburgh. The congregation kindly also donated some clothes and lots of other useful items.
The bibles and other donations recently arrived on the container. Many of the bibles have been kept for the young people supported by The Foundation to help with their studies. One box was sent to a different organisation. Whilst we are not in a position to support other organisations financially, occasionally we are able to pass on donations.
Last November, I was honoured to be invited to an afternoon tea with The First Lady of Malawi at the City Chambers in Edinburgh. I was invited by Joyce Juma-Phiri who is CEO of Fair Trade Scotland and also Head of The Associations of Malawians in Scotland. It was a lovely afternoon, and I met some wonderful people. One lady, a Malawian living in Scotland, is Gertrude Kadzuwa who runs this organisation for widows in Mzuzu. As well as bibles, we put lots of bars of soap in the box. The widows have had a meeting today and Gertrude sent me this photo and a great video. I hope you enjoy the video. Thank you again to the congregation of St Michael’s Parish Church for your donations, Sarah x
These lovely blue t-shirts were sent by Julian of whose small charity is called ‘Wear a Sports Shirt Day’. Julian collects sports clothes and other clothes like school uniforms every weekend to send on to people who will make good use of them. He’s previously sent boxes of gifts to The Foundation including football strips and boots, tracksuits, hockey equipment and Christmas jumpers and hats. We are very grateful to him for all he does and to the people who donate to him.
I’m going to be doing a few posts over the weekend as there is so much going on at The Foundation! It’s exciting to see the school building progressing and the children will be adding some more kilometres to our total virtual fundraising journey over the weekend. The link to the fundraiser is https://gofund.me/44a92444
Julian thank you again and thank you to all our supporters. We couldn’t do what we do without your help. Thanks for reading and supporting. Sarah x
l-r: Chance Kaonga, Laston Nyondo, Loveness Siyame, Austed Silungwe, Tryness Sichamba, William Nyirenda, Weston Nyondo, Bonface Nyondo, Maria Chizumira, Peter Kaonga and Obrain Nyondo are all delighted with their new t-shirts.
Last week, Stuart had been to Merchiston Castle School in Edinburgh to collect donations of rugby balls and kit from Annan Rugby Club which Bruce Aitchison had collected for us. Bruce is House Master for Rogerson House at Merchiston Castle School and also founder of the social media site all about rugby
Bruce and some of his rugby friends have been very supportive of our charity and how we are trying to support some of the most vulnerable children in rural northern Malawi. So Stuart visited the school again yesterday and met up with Bruce to collect the balls and kit from Merchiston Castle School.
Rugby has only very recently been introduced to the Chitipa District in the far north of Malawi when Jack Mphande, Malawi International Rugby Player and Rugby Development Officer, ran two rugby coaching camps. He is going to visit again to start coaching in schools in that area. Jack was very impressed with how the young people he was working with picked up the sport so quickly and his enthusiasm for the game was picked up by the children. The rugby donations we have been given are going to make a big difference to these young people. They will also know that people they have never met care about them.
All of these children are either orphans or living in dire poverty. All are very vulnerable. Until quite recently they had no hope. For them to have a visit from a top coach like Jack Mphande was so special for them. Someone important visiting them, working with them, teaching new skills, spending time with them, chatting with them, encouraging them and calling them by name. That experience is priceless. These children are more confident and their self-esteem has improved and they enjoy playing team sports with their friends whilst they forget about the problems and difficulties in their lives. An holistic approach is being taken, it’s so much more than just feeding hungry, malnourished children.
Children also benefit from being matched with a sponsor to help provide more food, a blanket, clothes, welfare checks and pay for secondary education. If you would like to sponsor a vulnerable child it’s only £25 per month and you can sponsor as an individual or share the cost with a friend or family. A business or club could sponsor a child too. Ninety of the most vulnerable children have been matched with sponsors but there are many more waiting for a helping hand. Can you sponsor a child today? Or donate to one of the projects? contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com .
Thank you so much to Bruce and all at Rogerson House, Merchiston Castle School for your generosity. Here are some photos and videos of some of the children you will be supporting. These were taken on their first day so they did brilliantly! If you want to keep up to date with our latest news you can follow us on facebook. https://www.facebook.com/changinglivesmalawi/ We are also on twitter and instagram and you can sign up to follow my blogs so you don’t miss anything! Thanks so much again, Sarah x
A few months ago, the young people in Northern Malawi had never heard of rugby let alone played it. A charity and friend of ours, Community Sports Leaders Africa arranged for Jack Mphande, Malawian International Rugby Coach, to travel north to introduce rubgy in the Chitipa District.
Jack spent a few days with sports leaders teaching them about touch rugby. Levison picked Jack up and took him to The Foundation where Jack spent a couple of days with some of the young people. Jack introduced them to touch rugby, teaching some coaching skills and playing a few games. The time Jack spent at The Foundation, including food for all the children involved, was paid for by generous donations from three of our supporters. Again we thank them for facilitating this.
I don’t think we can comprehend what a visit like Jack’s has meant to the orphans and other vulnerable children. And also to Levison and his team. The hundreds of children supported by The Foundation had no hope. They had no help. Malnourished, and in rags, and having experienced the trauma of family members dying, life was unbearable.
Fast forward a few short years and they have new clothes, are being supported through various projects including The Feeding Programme. They are being nurtured. They know The Foundation is their safe place; a time to be with friends, a time to learn and a time to relax and forget about their troubles. For an important person like Jack Mphande, a Malawian rugby coach, to visit them was amazing. For him to take an interest in them. For him to learn their names. For him to spend time with them. For him to teach them new skills. For him to laugh with them and praise them. For the orphans and other vulnerable children that must mean so much. Self-confidence and self-esteem are growing all the time.
These children now have hope of a better future. They know that people care about them. They know they are important. There is still so much to do but so much has been accomplished already. I keep saying that we cannot do this alone, it’s always about teamwork. So to everyone who has already helped us and supported us to help the vulnerable children – thank you. If you are reading this and think you’d like to get involved, you will be very welcome contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com
Strathendrick RFC, our local club, have already made some donations of kit and rugby balls which came in very handy for Jack’s visit. Now we have generous donations from Merchiston Castle School in Edinburgh and Annan Rugby to collect from Edinburgh soon. We are so grateful to the network of people who have enabled these donations. They will make such a difference to ensuring that rugby in the Chitipa District of Malawi, in the far north, continues to grow and thrive. Many, many thanks to you all. These donations will be packed up to go on the next container which takes about three months to arrive. There will be photos of the donations once they arrive but, in the meantime, here are just a few of the photos and videos from the first Rugby Camp for you to enjoy.
If you’d like to get in touch to donate money to our school fundraiser, or to support the feeding programme, or sponsor a child or anything else then please contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com Thanks for reading, Sarah x
Annan Rugby Coach & Captains with Bruce Aitchison (Happiness is Egg Shaped)Rugby donations from Annan RugbyRugby Donations from Merchiston Castle School
We are always very grateful for the kind and generous people who support us. Whether it’s donating pencils, or shoes, driving boxes to Dundee, sharing posts, helping with fundraisers or sponsoring children….we thank you as we couldn’t help the hundreds of vulnerable children in Northern Malawi without you.
I want to thank four lots of people today who have helped us recently;
Aquamarine.media in Devon have been helping us with our website and using their expertise to help us reach more people. We are very grateful for their input. Thank you Alona and Geoff.
Strathendrick FC 2003/2 sections had been running in Balfron for 12 years. Now that the players have all left school and are no longer playing, the leftover funds have been shared with some local charities and UNICEF. We were delighted to be one of these charities and the money donated will help us a great deal. Thank you very much.
Another Strathendrick but this time Strathendrick RFC have supported us again with more rugby kit to send to the children who have just started playing. This time they have donated a big bag of rugby balls, a box of cones and some water bottles. Once again, your support is very much appreciated. Thank you.
Dumbarton FC Walking Football Club have donated a big bag of training kit and waterproofs which will be very valuable to the children in Malawi. Thank you so much for donating this. It’s very kind of you.
There are so many volunteers behind the scenes that help us and other charities who are supporting people in Malawi. The charity that I’d like to thank in this post is The Bananabox Trust in Dundee and all the people who volunteer their time and energy. Thank you.
It all starts with a donation. Then another and another. It might be a pair of shoes, some clothes or stationery or some books. The donations are packed into boxes and labelled and put on our inventory. When there is a car load, one of our volunteers drives the boxes to Dundee to the Bananabox Trust warehouse. There their volunteers process and label the boxes and all the other donations that people send. There are dentist chairs from the charity Smileawi, hospital equipment, knitting for babies, sports equipment, tables and chairs, and walking sticks to name just a few things!
Most of our boxes have a truck printed on the side…so you’ll be able to see them in the photos. Once the warehouse is almost full, and everyone has paid their £15 per box to cover the cost of the container, The Bananabox Trust organises a container and then volunteers pack all the boxes and other donations onto the container. It’s a very skilled job fitting everything in correctly!
A container was packed at the weekend and has left Dundee today for the docks at Grangemouth. From there it is going to Antwerp. From there it continues it’s long journey to Mozambique and up through Malawi. Once it has cleared customs, it is released to travel to Ekwendeni near Mzuzu. This journey should take about 3 months.
People who are expecting donations all travel to The Mission Hospital at Ekwendeni to collect their boxes and parcels. It’s approximately a 5 hour trip for Levison to collect the boxes from Ekwendeni, but this has been made easier now he has a truck rather than having to hire a truck and driver. There are always a good team of people helping to unload the container and distribute the boxes. Then it’s a 5 hour trip back north to the Foundation.
There is great excitement from the children when they see the boxes coming but it’s quite a challenge to organise and unpack them so it’s done a few at a time. We try to organise things as much as possible here to group them together in age groups for example but sometimes things will be across different boxes depending when they’ve been donated.
I hope you enjoy the photos and learning a bit more about the journey of a box from here to Malawi. Thanks to all who help and make this possible. It costs £15 to transport one box on the container so if you’d like to sponsor a box then please get in touch contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com thanks for reading, Sarah x
