One of the best ways to change vulnerable children's lives is to support the local grassroots organizations serving children and families in need. Through our blog, "Ubuntu", we hope to bring you rich insight into what makes these communities and groups so resilient, effective, and remarkable by bringing you a diversity of voices and perspectives--especially those from the countries in Sub-Saharan Africa in which we work.
"Ubuntu" is an ethical concept of African origin that emphasizes community, sharing, and generosity, and is organized around the central belief that we're all connected to each other by our common humanity. We hope that our blog serves to connect our various communities even more, by providing glimpses into the lives of the children, families, and communities in Africa facing extraordinary challenges with extraordinary solidarity and courage.
We want to hear from you! Please use the comment function here or write to us at communications@firelightfoundation.org. Tell us what you're interested in hearing more about. We want to make our blog useful to those looking for new and better ways to support communities changing children's lives.
A grassroots group in Zimbabwe, Shingirirai Trust, is teaching paper-making as a source of revenue and creativity in their community.
This slideshow shows the first class, a small group who will then become the trainers for others in their community. Classes are on the way for young people, a group of teachers, and volunteers from within the organization.
The class instructors are thinking outside the box from the start, encouraging participants to create entirely new designs. Shingirirai Trust chose a grassroots technique that limits the size of the paper, but makes the entire process, even the drying process, possible from back yards so they are not dependant on a source of electricity.
Shingirirai Trust is a Firelight grantee partner in Harare, Zimbabwe. They work in the informal settlements of Mabvuku, Tafara, and Caledonia, where they offer an educational environment for children at six Early Learning Centers. Their program encompasses physical, social, cognitive, health, emotional, and moral development of the child. They are constantly adapting and improving their curriculum, seeking that, “apart from education it encourages inner strength for life.”
The 2008 water shortages and cholera outbreaks in Zimbabwe created a dangerous situation affecting 100,000 people leading to 4,000 deaths. It was hard for parents and caregivers to get adequate food for children, as many people were near starvation. Chiedza Community Based Orphan Welfare Organization (Chiedza) say that in 2008, you could really see the HIV pandemic taking its toll, as people could not rely on a steady supply of medication or adequate food.
Firelight funds Chiedza’s chicken income-generating activities in four villages. Their profits are used to support the education, health, and nutrition needs of vulnerable children. Due to water shortages, communities had difficulty keeping the chickens alive. They transported water from the river and the hospital, but it was not easy to find enough.
When the situation improved, Chiedza had emerged more assertive and strategic. They realize they are not out of the woods yet as water shortages are still possible, but they have now set up a system of community contributions to ensure they have food stocks for six months. Each household supplies ten kilograms of maize after the harvest, churches contribute, and women work together to till special plots of land whose harvest is designated for orphaned children. Chiedza notices that children’s health is improving, “life has been restored to most of our villages.”
That’s Reformed Open Community Schools (ROCS) tagline and they know what they’re talking about. They’ve made education a reality for over 15,000 vulnerable children in rural and urban areas of Zambia.
We had the great opportunity to talk with Sonnile Phiri, ROCS Community Development Coordinator when she visited Santa Cruz late last year. She was in town to talk with several people about ROCS including the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, the Opportunity Collaboration UnConference and all of us at Firelight Foundation. It’s [...]
This Monday, January 16th, the U.S. will pause and remember the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. He would have been 82 this year and I wish we could hear what he would have to say now.
There are many things Dr. King did well, but the one I associate with him most was his encouragement to see ourselves in others–to instead of fighting, to see that we are bound together. That’s not to deny our differences, which King didn’t deny. [...]
About this photo: Dila Perera, Firelight Program Officer, took this photograph while visiting Rwandan grantee partner Let the Little Children Come to Me (LLCCM) late last year. Every Saturday, LLCCM brings children and youth together who are either orphaned or in the process of being adopted to give them the chance to run and play, and to truly be children. This Bible was sitting on a table in their small meeting hall, an unknown [...]
In 2010, President Obama lifted the restriction on people living with HIV from entering the United States. Making it possible for the International AIDS Conference to be held here for the first time in 20 years.
The conference theme is Turning the Tide Together and more than 20,000 delegates from nearly 200 countries are expected to attend. As you can imagine, it’s an important time to focus in on the good news, address the bad news and meet face to face [...]
We are just inches into this new calendar year and I am happy to report that it has been busy at the office lately. We receive many of our contributions in the last few weeks of the year and I want to take a moment to say thank you for the outpouring of support throughout 2011!
Every dollar to Firelight is further leveraged by the tireless efforts of our grantees, their staff, and the thousands of volunteers they work with to [...]
I have a confession to make. I don’t much like New Years Eve, at least the way I grew up celebrating it.
In part, this is because I’m a morning person, not a night owl. I’m writing this blog at 5:30 in the morning, with a steaming mug of hot coffee, and I’m alert and focused. It would be a different story at 11:30 at night.
Here in the US, New Years Eve has always seemed a bit like an endurance test [...]
Meet Firelight Grantee Partner, the Mara Widows Development Group in Tanzania, a grassroots group making a big difference for children.
In 2002, four women in Tanzania came together to help widows affected by HIV to take care of their families. Calling themselves the Mara Widows Development Group, they quickly assessed the greatest needs in their community. When they saw the great poverty and stigma street children, orphans and vulnerable children and families faced, they decided to expand their programs to also [...]
A grassroots group in Zimbabwe, Shingirirai Trust, is teaching paper-making as a source of revenue and creativity in their community.
