New members of the Tanzanear Exec Committee

We're doing more and more in Tanzania, and the work is growing! So we're delighted to have some new Exec Committee members. After saying a sad goodbye to a few people in 2010 (Maggie retired after many years' excellent work, and Sharon and Fred left to prepare for having twins, after doing a huge amount to move the charity onto the next stage) we really needed some more hands.

Alison Bissett - see previous entry about the lockers - has kindly agreed to be our liaison person in Dar-es-Salaam itself. It makes a huge difference to have someone on the ground, and she's already being a huge help.

Susan Pym went to Tanzania last year as part of the St Colomba's work party, which renovated the girls' dormitory and made it a lovely place to stay. She fell in love with the school, even with having to clean loos, and we are looking forward to using her non-housework talents!

The finished work

Susan and her husband Hugh, in the dormitory that they helped to renovate.

I can put up a picture of the loo-cleaning if I get any special requests for this....

We also have two new "Appointed Members", who will represent Mary Hare School. More on this in the next article.

Thanks very much to our new Committee members for all that they've already done, and will do.

Latest volunteers - Izzie and Lucy

Izzie and Lucy (not Lucy Carter, Lucy Rew!) are on their gap years after finishing their A-levels at James Allen's Girls' School. They've just arrived in Dar and as well as coping with the intense heat and a few other ways in which things are different to London, they are going to help Mr Shibanda with audiology record-keeping, organise after-school fun and games for the boarders, and help with writing and counting in the very youngest classes.

It will be a learning process for all of us - we'll put up more updates about Lucy and Izzie's progress, and use their feedback to improve future volunteer experiences. In the meantime, we hope they bring a lot to the school and also that they make it to the beach occasionally...

A promise from us

OK, so this is me, Lucy, promising to be better about updating this website. Email us at tanzanear@gmail.com if you think we don't do it enough from now on!

Next things to come up should be the Christmas newsletter, news about our extremely exciting sponsorship scheme, articles on a stream of lovely volunteers going out in 2011, and a fundraising jazz evening in Washington DC on February 4th, organised by Tori Ongodia (who used to live in Dar and can't forget the school or Umivita).

To make amends for lack of updates over the Autumn, here's a gorgeous picture of little Neema, who is not deaf, but is the little daughter of one of our best ayahs, who very sadly died last year. Neema is being brought up in the school now, as her father can't look after her, and is totally adorable.

Bug children get hearing aids

November 18th and 19th 2010 were momentous days for Buguruni School for the Deaf. An international charity, the Starkey Foundation, provided hearing aids for all pupils and many other local children. The effect was stunning; many children could hear and speak (and shout!) instantly. Most of the adults spent a large proportion of the day blinking back tears.

We are very grateful to the Starkey Foundation and all the other donors: particularly Rotary Dar es Salaam, Pepsi, and Azam, who made this possible. Our lovely volunteer Michelle Hawkins, a marketing expert, wrote the article below. It was published in the December issue of the Dar Guide, which is given out in all the posh shops in Dar es Salaam.

Maintaining this gift is another project entirely. We are hugely lucky to have dedicated audiologists in the school, under the leadership of Mr Shibanda, and the support and guidance from Mary Hare School here in England. We feel very positive that together, Buguruni and Mary Hare can create an environment in which hearing is built into teaching, and the aids are properly cared for.

The article in Dar Guide

Lovely Michelle

Boarding pupils get lockers to keep their possessions safe

The Buguruni school term starts again on January 10^th, and the boarders will get a special treat when they reach the dormitories, after what is often a long, dusty journey. The local Caledonian Society raised a huge amount of money in 2010 to buy lockers for all boarding children. The Society was especially keen that their donation be used in a “pupil-focused” way, and so lots of work was done to help the children articulate what they wanted. It turned out that the boarders really felt the absence of somewhere to keep their things safe. It's hard enough to be a long way from home at a young age, so making dormitories a nicer place, where the boarders could make their own personal spaces, seemed a great suggestion.

It was hard work for CalSoc and our local liaison person, the indefatigable Alison Sweeney-Bissett, to do the bargaining and arrange delivery. But the lockers turned up last week and we know the boarders will be over the moon about it.

Lockers being delivered

Winifrida and a brand-new locker

Alison Sweeney-Bissett (actually working very hard on something else here). We don't have photos of Kate Methley, Deborah Crowe or Paul Soppitt from the Caledonian Society, but if we did, they would look GREAT.

New school wall at Buguruni School for the Deaf

Some really exciting things have happened recently. One of the best is that the school now has a new wall. This was an extremely kind donation from a large local business. Before this, the wall was very broken-down, with big gaps. This meant that the school was not as safe as it should be. But it is now a beautiful, high wall and the local business also gave a new gate. As an extra bonus, they knocked down the old headmaster's house, which was a derelict eyesore. This has given the school an extra space, with lovely shade from a huge mango tree.

Another local company did the construction work and did a great job - we say a big thank you to Mbesso, and their supervisor, Arnold. They were especially kind, and did some free plastering and painting at the end.

The finished wall and new gate.

Halfway there...

Early stages

Mbesso cracking on - working very hard in boiling heat

Before it started. We didn't actually make the children do the work.

Autumn / winter update from Buguruni School for the Deaf

Mama Matilda (on the left in this photo, with the marvellously energetic Mr Madai, Chair of TSD, on the right) sent us this update to cover recent months at Buguruni School for the Deaf. As you can see, things are really moving.

We are excitedly awaiting the Standard 7 exam results, hoping that they are as good as last year's.

October report:

The first of October Tanzania Society for the deaf sat for the Board meeting. During the meeting we had a new member who joined the Board that was Mr.Bill Bali. We belive he is going to steer the Board ides and plans to reach the required goals. The meeting was good members discussed about new changes at the shool.To get a new Headteacher was a pleasure to the Board and the pupils.Also we discussed about ways to make TSD self sustainable.

The school had chance to meet Neville and his wife.Mrs Alison. We met these new friends through the influence of Judith and Nigel. They agreed to finish the school wall which was unfinished and sometimes pupils could go out without permission. To day we happy to tell our friends Tanzanear that the wall is finished now they are now in the last touches.

The same month Lucy Carter the Chairperson of Tanzanear arrived and she had a lot of ides to share with us. The most important was to come and prepare the two days Starkey Foundation .

hearing Aid Fittings. We again thank Judith who made alot of plans and agreements to make Starkey Foundation U.S.A agree to come and fit 250 Buguruni deaf pupils and 350 other deaf pupils around Dar es salaam.This was really a big job and tiresome one. We thank them in person as well as Tanzanear as a strong NGO

November:

In November everybody at the school was very busy.Judith Roberts joined us to prepare the Starkey Days, !8th and 19th November were very busy days at the school. 600 deaf pupils got hearing Aids. The pupils from that day were exposed to the hearing World. Some of them could pronounce words which had meaning. What a mirracle! We sincerely thank Starkey Fondation USA , Judith and Lucy in person and Tanzanear who made all these happen.

We thank Rotary Club Dar es salaam who gave money to prepare the two days Starkey .The money enabled 1200 people to get food and water. To prepare the gounds with beautiful tents, chairs and other things which were required that day. The left money has made ten speech mirrors, two Audiology shelves, a big Curboard to keep Ear Mould materials and other Audiolocal things.Also they have bought containers to keep individual hearing aids.

We thank Pepsi Company they gave 1200 bottles of sotf drinks.

We thank Azam who gave juice to the pupils free.

The two day will always be remembered by the deaf pupils in Dar es salaam.

Please receive

this report. Matilda