BUILDING THE FUTURES OF 100 ZIMBABWEAN GIRLS

Greetings from Zimbabwe, where winter has ended and the heat has begun. We are hoping the experts’ predictions of severe drought will not come to pass. Last year’s drought left millions of people without sufficient food. Staple food shortages and price hikes are now the norm.

 Generally, our updates to you are about programs and challenges, and we thought that this month we should show you what those programs actually mean in the lives of the young people of Zimkids. The clearest way to paint you that picture is with the story of a single young person whose life has been dramatically changed.

 Sithabisiwe joined Zimkids in 2008 at the age of 15. She was preternaturally mature even back then, probably because her father had died five years earlier and her mother struggled. When she died in 2010, Sithabisiwe took on the responsibility of running what Zimbabweans call a “child-headed” household, raising her two brothers, then 11 and 9 years old.

 She grew into a fiercely devoted and responsible parent figure. When her youngest brother was slapped so hard by a teacher that he lost hearing in that ear, she bucked local custom of never questioning those in authority and took on the headmistress of his school about the teacher’s violation of the law and injury to her brother.

  Sithabisiwe was one of our first trainees, part of the five member team that built the Zimkids complex.  So she can dig a foundation and trenches, mix cement, lay brick and block, plaster walls, install solar frameworks, and paint. She laid the brick for your sinuous walkways and welded/designed and installed security doors and railings. When we began building our sewing center, she took on the responsibility for training the younger ZimGirls in construction. And somehow, she also managed to learn to use a computer so that she can prepare monthly reports on her work and to learn to sew.

  But neither sewing nor manual labor is where Sithabisiwe’s heart is. She always dreamed to studying hard and becoming SOMEBODY to set a good example for her brothers. First, she took a course and received a certificate in first aid. Then, she expressed interest in a counseling course. Arranging that wasn’t easy since the course required that students be over the age of 25 and have passed at least five subjects in their high school national Ordinary level examinations. Sithabisiwe was just 18 and did not have five passes. But she so impressed the organizers of the counseling program that they allowed her to “give it a try,” clearly expecting that she would fail. A year later, she received her diploma in counseling, the youngest graduate of the program.  For the past two years, she has worked with troubled children and met with their caregivers to help them cope with their difficulties.

  But that wasn’t enough for Sithabisiwe. She attended yet another course and just received her certificate in Early Childhood Education. She joining Samantha as our second licensed pre-school teacher.

 Sithabisiwe’s name means, “We have been made happy,” and it could not be more apt. She’s clear, confident and loyal, a perfect rule model for younger girls. Even as we train young people in the hope that they’ll move to jobs in the community, we dread the day Sithabisiwe ever departs since she is the mother figure in our Zimkids family. 

Other news: Tinashe Basa, our director is now in the USA meeting with schools, civic groups and churches in our annual fundraising and outreach to American school children. See video link below.

     We are sad to inform you that Pritchard died on September 10 after a lifelong illness at age 15. He knew brief periods of happiness with us at Zimkids. We are making sure his younger brother, Praymore is well taken care of.

Links:

• For the latest news
• Zimkids meet American kids in their school