School Supplies

This past week I had the opportunity to accompany the MCC school supplies delivery trips in Lusaka. The goods we were delivering aren't quite the same as the bags that everyone fills in Canada - we purchased the supplies locally this time to maximize the amount that we could provide.

Four schools were part of this trip - the two that I teach at and two others. It was really neat to see the wide range of community schools that exist. The first school we visited was housed in a church. This is not abnormal for schools here, however, this particular church only was about 1/3 roofed. All the grades were in one room sitting on benches facing a small blackboard fragment propped up on a chair. I can only imagine what happens when it rains. As we drove up kids on the road were yelling "abuku, abuku" (I presume a translation is unnecessary on that one - it means book). Clearly, the purpose of our visit was well known.

The second school was a much different story. Over time they had built up several classrooms and a small library. They have also just started taking in a few orphans in a small dormitory facility and have a dream of building a new chapel and classroom space. They are supported by a local church and, presumably, some international donors. Every morning they run a feeding program for their students and we saw the big vats in which they cook the mush.

On this trip we just delivered the supplies to the schools. It is up to them to figure out how to best distribute them. I will get to take part in the distribution at Chimwemwe next week and hopefully at Aisha as well.