I’ve chosen education again for December 5th as it is a core project and something we all feel very strongly about. Thanks to grants and donations from our supporters, Bright Futures Secondary School was opened in November 22.
Currently, there are three classes S1, S2 and S3. In September 2024 there will also be an S4 class. When there are four classes there will need to be several more teachers employed at the school. Therefore, next year’s running costs will be significantly more than this year’s.
One way that the school is planning to be more self-sufficient and have some income to be able to buy their own exercise books, science equipment and money towards trips etc is to set up a Pig Project. Agricultural classes are part of the core curriculum and particularly S2 have a topic on keeping pigs. Future piglets can be sold; the income will be for the school and the students will have practical experience which will be invaluable in the future. Quality education will be the key to a better and brighter future for these students with choices and chances. If you would like to buy a piglet as a Christmas gift for the person who has everything it only costs £45. https://gofund.me/d3cf8c3acontact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com Thank you for your support, Sarah x
A while ago, Lochlie Construction generously donated money for an incubator to be bought.
Electricity has been so sporadic that it meant the incubator wasn’t able to be kept at the proper temperature so eggs didn’t hatch.
The incubator was linked up to the solar power kit that we sent on the last container and we thought that there would soon be lots of chicks hatching. Nothing is ever straightforward though. A few batches of fertilized eggs were bought but Levison ended up asking for a refund as none of these hatched.
So last month a few eggs were gathered each day until 103 had been placed in the incubator. Thankfully, 68 of those have hatched. They need to be kept warm until they have grown a bit bigger and, hopefully, they will all survive.
This is such amazing news and far bigger than just 68 chicks successfully hatching. Here are some of the reasons we are all so excited about this good news story;
more eggs can be hatched each month in the incubator
some of the chicks can be sold as a regular income for the Foundation
some chicks will be kept to increase the amount of ‘chooks’ in the Foundation flock.
The Foundation flock will, when big enough, be able to provide eggs for sale bringing in extra income. Eggs and (occasionally) chicken will be able to supplement The Feeding Programme.
Hopefully, there will be employment opportunities created once the number of chooks increases.
There is a possibility that vulnerable families could be given a couple of chooks, meaning they would have their own eggs helping them to feed their families.
So this is just the start and we need to keep our fingers crossed that these chicks survive and the next batch are successfully hatched in the incubator too. This is one of the ways that The Foundation will start to become self-sufficient. They are proud and clever people. They don’t want handouts. They just need helping hands just now as things are so difficult and malnutrition is rife. Let’s hope this is the start of a brighter future.
This chicken project is going to take a long time before it starts making a difference. The feeding programme is providing 500+ hungry orphans with a substantial meal once a week. Some children are walking from up to 20km away. No one is feeding children in schools in this area. We need your help to help us continue the feeding programme as prices continue to rise. Can you commit to £5 or £10 per month please? Our bank details are Bank of Scotland, Changing Lives Malawi, A/C 21081462, S/C 80-22-60 and use the reference ‘feeding’ please. Your help WILL make a difference to hungry, malnourished children. Thank you for your continued support, Sarah x
Food is scarce and more expensive. The maize crop hasn’t done well because at the Foundation they couldn’t afford to buy fertilizer. The Foundation is feeding 500+ vulnerable children once a week but obviously this isn’t enough. All are hungry. All are malnourished. No big charities are feeding children in primary schools in the far north of Malawi.
A donation bought sweet potato vines which students at Bright Futures Secondary School helped to plant at the start of April. Levison has sent me photos today and the crop is looking very healthy. The sweet potatoes will be ready at the end of July and will be used to feed the children. The fact that there are so many hungry children, even if this is a great harvest, it won’t last long.
We must find more people who are willing to make a monthly donation to support the feeding programme so that these vulnerable children can keep being fed. Ideally, we would like to feed them more often and we would also like to supply every family with sweet potato vines and other vegetables so that they can grow their own crops. Please email me if you would like to make a regular donation to the feeding programme or if you would like to contribute to buying sweet potato vines that can be shared with vulnerable families to help them become more self sufficient. contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com
Sweet potato vines need deep ridgesThe crop is looking healthyHopefully there will be a good harvest of sweet potatoes by the end of JulySome of the students at Bright Futures Secondary School planting the sweet potato vines in April.
Sustainability and self-sufficiency for the community we are working with in rural Northern Malawi is always the end goal. So much is being achieved but there is still so much more to do.
Because no children are being fed in primary schools in that area, all children are malnourished. All children are hungry. No children and young people whom we help to support have enough to eat. We MUST ensure they get food NOW to help them begin to thrive whilst also ensuring that there is food for the future.
This is why we are asking for more people to join our feeding team. By committing to just £5 per month, you will help us feed 500 malnourished children and young people more than just once a week. They deserve our help. They deserve food. They deserve to thrive. They need us. Please will you help us help them? contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com Our bank details are: Bank of Scotland, Changing Lives Malawi, Sort Code 80-22-60, Account Number 21605268. By donating £5 per month you WILL make a difference. You WILL help a child thrive. Please put ‘feeding’ as the reference.
It is a juggling act because we cannot spend all of the donations we receive on feeding the 500 orphans and other vulnerable children and young people. That just isn’t sustainable and there will be nothing to help the community be self-sufficient in the future. So whilst we are investing in this vulnerable community’s future, we need more help from our supporters to be able to provide enough food for the children now.
A couple of years ago, over 100 fruit tree saplings were bought and planted at The Foundation. The orchard was named after my lovely mother-in-law who had recently passed away. We made a personal donation towards buying some fruit tree saplings and lots more were bought by other people through an appeal. Unfortunately, the weather and also termites have killed some of the saplings. However, the majority are thriving and I was delighted with these photos that Levison sent me yesterday.
Amazingly the guava saplings are producing fruit now, even though the plants are still quite small. The orange and lemon saplings are doing well but have no fruit yet. Some more saplings are going to be planted soon. We would also love people to help pay for more saplings contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com Our bank details are: Bank of Scotland, Changing Lives Malawi, Sort Code 80-22-60, Account Number 21605268. £5 will buy two fruit tree saplings. Please put ‘saplings’ as the reference.
The hope is that this project will be sustainable for people and planet. Planting more trees is obviously vital for the planet and climate change. It will also help prevent against soil erosion in the heavy rains. Levison will send photos of the children eating the guavas when they are ready to be harvested in about a month’s time. In future years, especially if you help us plant more trees, there will be fruit for the children to eat and there will be extra fruit that will be able to be sold which will bring in an income for The Foundation. It’s really exciting to see the trees bearing fruit….may this be the first of many harvests supporting the 500 malnourished children.
I’ve put the links to previous posts about the fruit tree saplings and the orchard. I know Levison would like to also grow bananas in addition to the fruit trees in Isa’s Orchard. Who is driving you bananas that you would like to name a banana plantation after? Enjoy the photos of the first guava fruits and thank you for your support, Sarah x
The first guava fruits are beginning to growThe oranges and lemons are also growing wellSome young people planting and watering the saplings a couple of years agoThe fruit tree saplings when they were planted in Isa’s Orchard
