EPIC Bush Telegraph

 A combination of the acronym of our slogan "Empowering People In Community" and the common term for how news travels in Africa - bush telegraph - being by word of mouth.
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Zam OrphansMarch 2012 #5
Kakulu Health Center
New maternity ward and cookhouse constructed at Kakulu Rural Health Centre

 

Gordon May 2011 

 

Hello everyone

 

My apologies for the lack of updates in the past year. Some of you will have been keeping up to date through the SPF Facebook Pages, the blog on our new web site and some personal email updates.

 

I moved to Zambia full time in January 2011 and the year was very busy. We had four teams from Canada and several individuals - 49 people in total - visiting and working on our Zambia Isaiah Project doing community development. Our major achievements during the year were :

 

- Completion of a maternity ward at the health center (see photo above)

- Starting the construction of a new classroom block at a community school (completion April 2012)

- Repairing four well pumps so that people could have clean water again

- Introducing the conservation farming method to the community to improve crop yields and food security

- Implementing income generating activities amongst several community groups, mostly women

- Many meaningful relationships build between the visitors and people in the community

 

I am looking forward to sharing details of some of these projects in the coming weeks.

 

Being here full time has made a huge difference to the effectiveness of all our programs as it has meant better management of projects and more consistency. I am also able to react faster to new opportunities that arise and integrate them into our work.

 

As always - thank you so much for your support of SPF and the work that we do. Every dollar makes a difference and every prayer or good wish encourages me to keep on going.

 

Sincerely, Gordon

 
 

High School Sponsorship

 

There is no high school in the rural community where we are doing our work so any students who pass Grade 9 at the local school - Sungula - are forced to leave the community to attend high school (Grade 10 to 12) in a nearby town. In addition to the actual schools fees they also have to find money for board and lodging. The combined cost of this is way beyond the means of the average family in our community. Boys are mostly given priority for high school if a family can afford it so many girls never get the opportunity. One of our earliest visions was to find sponsorship to send girls to high school knowing that if a woman has education it will have a big impact on her and her potential family later in life. We have chosen a well-respected boarding school in a rural area to send our girls as everything is taken care of and they are able to really focus on their studies.

 

High School Girls 

In early January we returned three girls to high school (the school calendar in Zambia goes from January to December) - l-r Eglah and Elizabeth (Gr 11) and Majory (Gr 12).

 

We were fortunate to have three new sponsors this year willing to commit to donating for the three years of high school so the process of selection began in late January; the Zambian system is such that the Grade 9 exam results which qualify students to go to high school are always late and are only released towards the end of January. Sadly this year's results from Sungula School were quite dismal - 53 students wrote the exams, only 20 passed and of those only 3 were girls; of the 3 girls only one qualified for boarding school. So our choice was limited and we decided that we would have to select two deserving boys this year as there were several with high marks but no financial means to get to school.

 

2012 Grade 10 Students 

 

In the photo can be seen Anna, Pearson, Silvester and Joshua (Pastor Justin's son) together with their tin trunks and other goods ready to load up for the trip. They were overwhelmed with excitement - and appreciation - for this incredible opportunity.

 

Every year there will be students who need assistance so we are seeking many more sponsors. We need $ 1,000.00 per year to send one child to high school. This covers :

  • tuition fees and field trips
  • boarding fees : food and accommodation
  • uniforms and school supplies
  • transport to and from school for three terms
  • pocket money for personal supplies

Sponsors get regular update letters and copies of their sponsor student's school reports.

Photo Albums 

 

Here are a selection of 2011 photo albums on Facebook highlighting the projects, the teams and their activities

 

Ichikuku Team (May)


Shumba Team (June)

Ubuntu Team (July)

 

Health Center Construction

CH Donation Button Donations
 
 


Donations can be made on-line using Visa/Mastercard and debit card (RBC, TD, BMO and Scotia.)  Click the logo here to be taken to the Canada Helps web site to complete your transaction. Your tax receipt will be issued by Canada Helps on our behalf.

Cheques can be mailed directly to our address - Box 3099, Spruce Grove, AB T7X 3A4 
 
We appreciate your contributions to the work we do.
Quick Fact

In 2011 we set up a GEMS Club (Girls Everywhere Meeting their Saviour)  in our community, joining over 75 others throughout Zambia.

Our thanks to the Kool family from Canada for inspiring us to do that and for support from the GEMS clubs of Northern Alberta.

Kakulu GEMS Photos
 
Contact Information
Milt Marchiel
Chairman of the Board of Directors 
1-780-289-1803
 
SPF is a Registered Canadian Charity 814885547 RR 0001
 
 
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