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Behind the Scenes
Just some of what’s happening behind the scenes at http://www.changinglivesmalawi.com
Tag: orphans
How far should you walk for lunch?
These children are desperate for help. How can they thrive without food?
Sarah’s blog 14/6/23
How far do you think is an acceptable distance for a child to walk to get some food? How far would you let your child or grandchild walk to have a meal? What if you had absolutely nothing to feed your family?
We help to support a feeding programme that runs once a week. We wish we could afford for it to operate more often. 500 orphans and vulnerable children are fed a substantial and nutritious meal each weekend at the feeding programme. This is their biggest meal of the week. Some days these children do not eat at home and are left to fend for themselves, to forage for food or beg for scraps. All of these children are malnourished. THERE ARE NO CHARITIES FEEDING CHILDREN IN SCHOOLS IN THIS AREA OF RURAL NORTHERN MALAWI. We need your help. We cannot do this alone. It is too big a job for us to ensure that 500 children have enough food every day of the week.
Crops are being planted to supplement the feeding programme. Vegetables that the children have helped to grow are being served at the feeding programme. Fruit tree saplings have been planted for future food and for future income as the surplus fruit can be sold at market.
The sweet potato crop is doing well and will be ready in another 6 weeks. But how many sweet potatoes will a field produce? How long will this crop last divided by 500 children and young people? A few days maybe…..
We need people to partner with us. We need people to invest in the future of these very vulnerable children who don’t eat every day. To start a pig project at Bright Futures Secondary School, as part of their agricultural classes, to breed pigs to sell (and also pass on to the community) will only take £300 to set up. This will bring in money to help pay for school lunches for the students at Bright Futures Secondary School, helping them become more self-sufficient and giving the students skills for life.
They need to plant more fruit tree saplings in the orchard. Each sapling costs approximately £2.50. Banana tubers cost approximately £2 each. We could pay for these project start ups but we cannot continue paying to feed the children at the feeding programme each week AND invest in these projects….unfortunately it is either one or the other and we are not going to stop the feeding programme as it is the only one proper meal that these children receive each week. How can these vulnerable children and young people be expected to thrive on one decent meal a week? It is heart-breaking. They deserve far more and they deserve our help and support. Please help us? contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com
I have said several times that some children walk up to 20km for this one proper meal of the week at the feeding programme. I can’t comprehend what that must be like. Energy levels must be at a minimum already as the children haven’t eaten, then to have to walk up to 20km for a meal and 20km home again…they must be absolutely exhausted and any calories they have from their lunch will be used up on the long walk home. Can you help us help them please?
Levison sent me photos of 6 children who each walked approximately 18km to be fed on Sunday….so a total of 36km for their one proper meal of the week. Levison wanted me to show you these children. They, and others like them, are really struggling and we cannot expect them to thrive unless we give them a helping hand. Will you help us help them? Tasiyana, Praise, Atusaye, Kalebu, Esther and Nema all are hungry and malnourished.
All of them would benefit from having a sponsor. It costs £25 per month to sponsor a child and they will receive clothes, extra food and welfare visits. Two friends could share the cost of sponsoring a child. Or you could commit £5 or £10 per month to help support the feeding programme and help us to make it more sustainable by being able to plant more crops and fruit tree saplings. What will you do to help today? contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com
Thank you for reading and for your support, Sarah x
https://changinglivesmalawi.com/2023/06/12/the-sweet-potato-crop/ https://changinglivesmalawi.com/2023/06/11/activities-for-the-kids/
Thank you to The Souter Charitable Trust
Sarah’s blog 30/05/23
This morning, when the post came, I had a really great surprise. It was a really good boost to morale. There are so many charities, all chasing the same grant money so there are plenty of rejection emails. Charities are struggling with the cost of living crisis so any grants applications that are successful really do make a big difference.
The Souter Charitable Trust gave us a grant for the third year in a row. This time we asked for money for solar panels and also solar torches for the students. It gets dark year round at 6pm so how can a teenager study or even read a book for fun if they have no light source?
In Emma’s Rainbow Library are rented computers. There is mains electricity but it is expensive and only on for a few hours a day. Having solar power means that it will be free of charge and available during the day and in the evenings.
Thank you so much to The Souter Charitable Trust for believing in us and supporting us in the work we are doing to help the most vulnerable in rural Northern Malawi. We are delighted that you’ve trusted us again with our third grant, Sarah x
Monthly food parcels for some sponsored children
some of the sponsored children with their food parcels today
Sarah’s blog 15/5/23
I don’t think any of us realise exactly how busy Levison is each day. One of his many tasks is doing welfare checks for the sponsored children and young people. Two sponsored young people have had bereavements in their families recently. The custom is that everyone who is able goes to the funeral which takes two days. Levison showed his support for both these families by attending. Another young person needed some medical treatment. Levison spent time with them prior to this talking with them to establish that they would benefit from a trip to the health centre. He needs to visit another family tomorrow to check on another sponsored child after not finding anyone at home today when he visited.
Also one of the key members of staff had a bereavement in their family last week and Levison attended that funeral. Days of planned work can go out of the window due to someone in the village passing away and also welfare checks on the young people. Several days have been spent trying to find enough maize to purchase for the children and young people’s monthly food parcels. Food is scarce and prices are high. It is not easy when so many people are relying on you.
Here are photos of some of the sponsored children and young people who came to collect their food today. I’m hoping for more photos later this week in order to get up to date photos of all sponsored children. If you would like to sponsor a child then please do get in touch. It’s only £25 per month and you can share that cost with a friend or family. contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com Thanks for reading and supporting us, Sarah x
Agricultural Classes at Bright Futures Secondary School
Agriculture Classes at Bright Futures Secondary School
Sarah’s blog 10/05/23
Agricultural Classes are a core part of the curriculum in Malawi. The students at Bright Futures Secondary School are amongst the most vulnerable in Malawi and would not have been able to attend secondary school as this has to be paid for in Malawi. Bright Futures Secondary School is free of charge.
Today is the start of the primary school leavers. These are national exams and you cannot progress to secondary school if you have not passed these exams. But you can’t go anyway if you cannot pay – even if you have passed your primary school exams.
Because of the huge level of poverty, children and young people drop in and out of school to help their families/carers earn money for food. They earn a pittance for a full day’s work with no food or water. Laston (pictured in one of the photos) worked for a farmer looking after his cows for the equivalent of £1.50 per month. Thankfully, Laston now has a sponsor and is doing well at school. So students are probably 2 or 3 years older than expected becaus they have missed so much school. The older the student, the poorer their family. Most students in these photos are still needing a sponsor to support their education. This will help us pay the teachers salaries, provide uniform and the supplies they need for school and pay for breakfast and lunch each day. It’s £25 per month to sponsor a student. Can you help give one of these students a brighter future? Or you could split the cost with a friend and pay £12.50 p/m each. contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com
Thanks to our supporters, phase 1 of Bright Futures Secondary School was completed and opened in November 22. Students (and teachers) have been working hard and will have exams in a few weeks time. We certainly aren’t expecting all students to pass their exams. We just expect them to do their best. We will obviously be delighted for those who are able to pass exams. These young people have been so malnourished and had such difficult lives that basic survival was all they could manage. Things are improving. Now all students will have a brighter future by being in school. Even if they do not excel in exams they are more literate. They will have better numeracy skills. They will also be learning skills for life. There will be far less teenage pregnancies and child marriages due to young people being in school and being fed in school even if their families cannot afford to feed them.
Self-sufficiency is the end goal for the community we are working with. However, no children in primary schools in the far north of Malawi are being fed by big agencies. All are malnourished and all are hungry. We support a Feeding Programme that feeds 500+ orphans a substantial meal once a week. We wish we could provide more money for food but we are also investing in their education. We would love you to commit to £5 or £10 per month to support the feeding programme as food is getting more and more expensive contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com
The Agricultural students at Bright Futures Secondary School have already built a polytunnel using an old trampoline frame we sent. They have started growing vegetables. They have also planted a field of sweet potato vines to produce food to eat. Now, the teacher has set them the task of clearing an area of ground by their homes to plant some vegetables. More skills for life and, hopefully, food to share with their families. Also, if successful, they will have a huge sense of satisfaction and achievement and be more confident about their skills for a brighter future. The photos are just a few of the students. We will look forward to updates from the teacher.
If you’d like to sponsor a student, contribute to the feeding programme or donate towards phase 2 of Bright Futures Secondary School to build the next classrooms then please email contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com or donate to the school fundraiser at https://gofund.me/ece5753a . Thank you for reading and supporting, Sarah x
Agriculture Lessons at Bright Futures Secondary School Reviewing the first week of Bright Futures Secondary School
Bright Futures Secondary School – phase 2
Grateful to the student who made these short videos for us.
Sarah’s blog 27/4/23
We always knew that, if we were to help to build a school in Malawi, it would have to be done a bit at a time as, unfortunately, there is no big pot of money either here or in Malawi. But, time and again, thanks to hard work and our very generous supporters, we manage against the odds.
It is a struggle when there are hundreds of malnourished children who need feeding too, but we cannot spend all the donations on food or there would be nothing in place for their futures. Crops are planted to help provide vegetables. The fruit trees that were planted a couple of years ago are starting to produce fruit. No children are being fed in primary schools in the rural far north of Malawi. Everyone is hungry and malnourished. If you would like to support the feeding programme which feeds 500 children a substantial meal once a week then please do email contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com
We are a very small charity, run by volunteers who are passionate about helping to improve things for the most vulnerable children and young people in rural northern Malawi. As we are volunteers, we have no salaries or admin costs so 100% of all donations go to the projects we help to support.
Phase 1 of Bright Futures Secondary School opened in November 2022 and the vulnerable students have been benefitting from free uniforms, school supplies food and education. Secondary education usually has to be paid for in Malawi which means that it is usually out of reach for the young people we support.
The Form 1 and Form 2 classrooms were built, along with some staff accommodation. There were already latrines, a clean water supply, a shower block and a library that had been previously built, thanks to generous donations. Now we need to start thinking about phase 2 of Bright Futures Secondary School. The rainy season is almost over so it is the ideal time to start building in preparation for the new term in September.
Two more classrooms are needed for Forms 3 & 4. The Form 3 classroom is essential for September when everyone moves up a year and the new students start Form 1. More latrines are needed, more staff accommodation and hopefully a dormitory for these most vulnerable girls who have the furthest to walk. Will you help us please? These young people deserve our help. They deserve chances and choices. They deserve a brighter future.
Will you donate to our fundraiser? https://gofund.me/ece5753a Or could you commit to donating a monthly amount? our charity bank details are Sort Code 80-22-60 Account Number 21081462. Or you can email contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com .
Can you do a sponsored event for us? Will you host an event for your friends in aid of our charity? Could you invite us to speak at your club or church? Anyone who donates £500 or over can have their name, company name or the name of a loved one painted over a classroom door. Or how would you like to have a whole building named after your family or business? Or something painted on the roof of one of the buildings? As a team, we can do this together. Do you have a jar or coins that you’ve never got round to counting? We’d love to have them….every little helps.
I’m delighted to have another short video to share with you, made by the student who has been using his skills to help us. We’d be grateful if you were to share this with your friends and contacts on social media. I look forward to hearing from anyone with any ideas of how to raise some funds for phase 2. Thanks for your continued support, Sarah x
First Day of Bright Futures Secondary School 07/11/22
Agriculture Lessons at Bright Futures Secondary School
School Lunches at Bright Futures Secondary School
Clean Water to Drink
Something we take for granted – this is the joy that having clean water can bring http://www.changinglivesmalawi.com
Sarah’s blog 26/04/23
These two photos show the importance of clean water. The first photo was taken at the weekend. The second photo was taken on the day the tap was first connected to the clean water supply at The Foundation. The nursery children in that photo were the first ones to drink from it – actually the little girl, Josephine, was first.
So it’s the same tap with photos taken a few years apart but they are almost identical. A group of young children who are able to turn on a tap and delight when fresh, clean water flows out. (I altered both photos to black and white as it is easier to see the water droplets.)
These children attend Chambo Primary School where there is no water. We want to be able to replicate these scenes at Chambo Primary School. Clean drinking water should be available to all children. Thanks to a grant we have received from The Kitchen Table Charities Trust, soon there will be a tap just like this outside Chambo Primary School. We know that something we take for granted will bring those children great joy. We look forward to sharing those joyful photos with you.
WILL YOU HELP US? We are still hoping for more support with feeding these vulnerable children. If you can spare £5 per month towards our Feeding Programme you can either text FEEDING to 70480 or contact me for bank details to commit to a monthly amount. contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com . Thank you for helping us continue to help these malnourished children, Sarah x
Great News for Chambo Primary School
We are delighted to have received a grant.
Sarah’s blog 22/4/23
Yesterday was a day for good news. To be honest, I haven’t stopped smiling every time I think about this.
Yesterday our small team of volunteers finished the challenge to travel the same number of kilometres as the boxes we send to Malawi on a container ship. If you’d like to donate to help us build phase 2 of Bright Futures Secondary School then the link is here https://gofund.me/ece5753a and here is the link to yesterday’s story From here to Malawi – The challenge is complete! – Changing Lives Malawi we would be so grateful for any donations.
As part of trying to raise funds for our charity, I am regularly applying for grants. I’m not just thinking about The Foundation but about the whole community so when I saw a grant that the criteria was for a primary school, I thought of Chambo. However, lots of other charities are applying for the same grants so it isn’t often that good news comes back from an application. Thankfully this time the answer was ‘YES’.
Chambo Primary School, which is nearest to The Foundation we help to support, has only one classroom with desks and chairs. The children sit on the floor in the other classrooms. There are not many resources. We have already provided 17 boxes of books to help the students become more confident readers.
Lots of these children are orphans and make up the 500 children and young people we help to feed every weekend. This is the only substantial meal many of them get each week as no big charities are feeding children in primary schools in this area. At Chambo Primary School there is no water supply. There are no toilets.
We have secured a grant of £6,000 from The Kitchen Table Charities Trust, a small charity set up by John Humphries, to help the students at Chambo Primary School. This grant will provide them with a clean water supply and also two more classrooms will have desks and stools. We are so delighted as having clean water to drink will help their concentration and they will also be able to wash their hands. Thank you so much to The Kitchen Table Charities Trust for enabling us to help the hundreds of vulnerable children at Chambo Primary School.
I will keep everyone updated as this project progresses and there will be lots of photos coming regularly from Malawi. The headteacher, staff and students at the school haven’t even been told about this yet….Levison is looking forward to sharing this wonderful news on Monday morning.
So thank you again to The Kitchen Table Charities Trust for trusting us and helping make a difference to very vulnerable children in rural northern Malawi. There is still much to be done but, bit by bit, we are Changing Lives Malawi. Thanks for reading and supporting, Sarah x
Appeal for help to feed 500 vulnerable, malnourished children
We need your help. We need 100 people to commit £5 per month to provide more food for the 500 malnourished children we help to support.
Sarah’s blog 12/4/23
I’m very grateful to have had the help of a student to make a short video about the Feeding Programme. As prices have risen, and maize has become more scarce due to the rainy season and supplies being rerouted to the cyclone victims in the south of Malawi, we are appealing for help.
As a small charity, run by a group of volunteers, passionate about making a difference, every penny you donate goes to the projects we support. So if you want to help the 500 vulnerable, malnourished children and young people who attend the Feeding Programme each weekend, you can be sure that all your money will go towards feeding them.
Most of these 500 children and young people are orphans. All are malnourished. None are being fed in primary schools. All don’t eat at home every day. Some walk up to 20km to attend the weekly Feeding Programme. Can you help us to provide more food please? Can you help us to run the Feeding Programme two or three times a week instead of just once?
We need 100 people to donate £1 per week (£5 per month) or £10 per month to make this happen. Can you spare the price of a meal deal, a takeaway coffee or a bottle of wine? These children and young people are never going to reach their potential without our help. Please will you help us help them? Or could you donate £100 to sponsor a Feeding Programme day? We can give a shout out to your business if you could help us with this. Please help?
contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com to send me a message or you can text FEEDING to donate £5 or an amount of your choice. Or you can commit a monthly amount to our charity bank account. Sort code 80-22-60, Account Number 21605268.
Enjoy watching the video and I look forward to hearing from you if you would like to help some of the most vulnerable young people in rural Northern Malawi. Thanks, Sarah x
Easter Study School, School Lunches & hungry students
Sarah’s blog 05/4/23
Today Levison has sent photos of students at Bright Futures Secondary School and p8 at Chambo Primary School enjoying (if that’s the right word) their extra lessons and revision ahead of their exams in May. Even if they aren’t enjoying the additional classes, they are very thankful for the opportunity of having these extra lessons.
What all the students are delighted about is that they are having a substantial, nutritious, cooked school lunch every day. Students at Bright Futures Secondary School receive this every day, however this is a novelty for the students who are in p8 at Chambo Primary. There are over 60 of them so that is a lot of extra mouths to feed but how could we organise a study school and not provide food? How would they be able to study properly? Most of these students won’t find any food when they go home, or if they do, it will only be a very small amount.
So out with these Easter holidays, students at Chambo Primary School only receive one substantial meal at a weekend via The Feeding Programme. It’s not enough but there are 500 children to feed each weekend. We cannot do more alone. However, if we all commit to a small amount each month, then these vulnerable students will start to thrive. Their grades should go up as they are able to concentrate better. We wouldn’t expect our children to concentrate properly without breakfast, lunch and dinner. Yet these young people are expected to pass exams with just one proper meal each week. Children who are sponsored do receive some extra food at home each month, but it isn’t enough for the whole month.
What can you do to help? Can you commit to a few £££ each month? Our bank account is at Bank of Scotland, account name is Changing Lives Malawi, account number 21605268, sort code 80-22-60. Or can you make a one off donation? or alternatively you could text FEEDING to 70480 to donate £5 or an amount of your choice. Lets build a team around these vulnerable young people and give them the chance of a better and brighter future. Let’s give them the chances and choices they deserve contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com Thanks for reading and supporting, Sarah x
Sweet Potatoes, Maize & Beans – Changing Lives Malawi
Sunday lunch – Changing Lives Malawi
Easter Holiday Exam Preparation – Changing Lives Malawi
Easter Holiday Exam Preparation
Sarah’s blog 28/3/23
There has been so much going on behind the scenes here. I have been busy applying for grants and working out costings with Levison so I am sorry it has been a while since my last post.
We have some really exciting news that will be of benefit to the students at Bright Futures Secondary School and the p8 students at Chambo Primary too.
First of all we are delighted that four teachers at Chambo Primary School have agreed to work for part of the Easter holidays to give extra tuition to the 66 students in p8 to help them prepare for their end of term exams. This will give them a better chance of passing their national primary school leavers exams. All of these students are welcome to sign up for this study school. We are paying the primary school teachers and will provide lunch each day for students and teachers.
None of the students at Chambo Primary receive food at school. Most are malnourished and lots attend the weekly Feeding Programme where they receive their one substantial and nutritious meal of the week. During the Easter holidays they will receive a cooked lunch each day to help them concentrate.
The teachers at Bright Futures Secondary School have volunteered to work for part of their Easter holidays and will be paid extra for this. We are grateful for all the teachers giving of their time so that these vulnerable students have some extra lessons, especially the S2 students who have national exams in May.
The format for the two week Easter break will be four full days lessons each week; three hours in the morning, a break for lunch and three hours lessons in the afternoon. On Good Friday and Easter Monday there will be a couple of hours of organised team sports to ensure that the students get a break from their studies and have some competitive fun and physical exercise with their friends.
ALL STUDENTS WILL BE RECEIVING ONE SUBSTANTIAL, NUTRITIOUS COOKED MEAL EACH DAY WHICH IS MORE THAN THEY WOULD BE HAVING AT HOME IF THERE WAS NO STUDY SCHOOL. This is where we need some extra help from our kind and generous supporters. Will you help us feed these young people during their Easter break?
We need approximately £300 extra to buy additional maize and beans to feed these teenagers each day. Unfortunately, it is the rainy season and maize prices are high. Maize is also getting more difficult to find as a lot has been sent south to help feed the victims of Cyclone Freddy, which is making prices higher still. Levison said that today, lots of roads are flooded due to heavy rain which will also make it difficult to source maize. However, Levison always finds a way to ensure the young people are fed and is phoning round to try and source maize and reserve it.
So will you help us feed the young people in p8 at Chambo Primary School as well as the students at Bright Futures Secondary school whilst they work hard and study for their exams? contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com or text FEEDING to 70480. Even if you can spare £5 or £10 it will be greatly appreciated. Thank you for reading and for your continued support, Sarah x
Sunday lunch
Sarah’s blog 20/03/23
What does Sunday lunch mean to you? I guess it means something different to each of us. It might be that some people are working on a Sunday so it’s just a quick sandwich. Or that your kids are involved in sport so it’s something quick to eat when you can. Are you able to sleep late and have a lazy brunch on Sundays? Or do all the family come and eat together round the table and have a roast dinner?
Whatever the traditional Sunday is at your house, I doubt you look forward to the food you will eat as much as these children do. These children are mostly orphans, living with extended family, or vulnerable children from very poor families. None of these children have a proper meals every day at home. No big charities are feeding children in primary schools in this area. This is the most substantial and nutritious meal these children will get each week.
I cannot imagine only eating once a day. I cannot imagine eating less than this meal for six days of the week. I cannot imagine going to bed so hungry that I couldn’t sleep. I cannot imagine not being able to feed my children. I cannot imagine having to walk a long distance in order to have a meal.
Some of these children have walked up to 20km for this food. And then they walk up to 20km home. We can only afford to run The Feeding Programme once a week. These children need and deserve more. The end goal for this community is self-sufficiency but, until that can happen, we need to feed these children. Up to 500 children of all ages come to receive food each week. Yesterday there were 412 came to be fed. The youngest are always fed first. How can they manage until next weekend’s Feeding Programme? Maize prices have risen and things are even harder than they were.
Can you help us please? We are asking 100 people to commit to £1 per week to help us ensure The Feeding Programme can continue and we can provide for everyone who needs food. contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com Will you spare £1 per week to help us continue feeding these malnourished children? please do help us to continue helping these vulnerable children. Thanks for reading, Sarah x
