June Greetings from Namibia!
For all of you in the northern hemisphere, I wish you a very happy summer! We are in the middle of winter and the temperatures have been exceedingly cold. Brrrrrrr! I am not so fond of cold weather, and have become quite spoiled by the warmth and sunshine all day, every day!
Please allow me to give you a six month update! First of all, 2007 brought us some OUTSTANDING international volunteers! Jim “Scooter” McKenney returned for three months (and you MUST read his blog to see what REALLY goes on here! It is: jmcken82.blogspot.com) and his Aunt Gert came for a month as well! Erica Frerking came from my home town in Ossining, New York, and we had Anna, Sarah and Katharina from Germany. All of them were wonderfully helpful at the center with the kids and INVALUABLE in assisting me with hand made games and toys for workshops and presentations.
During February I was kept quite busy as my mother, father, niece, sister, auntie and two family friends all came to visit! They enjoyed their travels in Cape Town, Victoria Falls and Sossusvlei. I took two days off from the center and we all enjoyed a trip out to the coastal town of Swakopmund. The weather was gorgeous and my sister, Suzie, my niece Emi and I spent 1.5 hours driving through the enormous sand dunes on quad bikes! It was so much fun and we couldn’t stop grinning the entire time! It was like being on a non-stop roller coaster ride, with scenery to die for!
When we returned to Windhoek they all spent the majority of their time at the center, reading to the children, singing and playing games. My Aunt Pat, my Dad and my niece, Emi, are all avid tennis players and not only did they haul over 50 racquets and 200 tennis balls, but they took the children down to the tennis courts to give lessons! The kids just LOVE to play tennis, it is their only chance to play ANY racquet sport and they jump all over the courts as the tennis balls go sailing over the fence! Then, as quickly as they hit the ball over, they climb over the fence to retrieve it! We could see great improvement in the kids from one day to the next, and it was a pity that the program ended with their departure. I try to take the kids down to the courts whenever I can, but more often than not I must stay at the center to oversee the program and make sure that everything runs smoothly. Let me know if you are interested in teaching tennis or if you know anyone who is! We have about 100 VERY eager and energetic athletes ready to take to the courts!
In March I was visited by two friends from California, Andrea Davis and Christine Nash. Both arrived with suitcases filled with loot for the kids, and spent every free moment at the center. Andrea, the “book lady”, organized the entire library! I wish ALL the volunteers could just STAY! They all had a great impact on the children, who did not stop asking me, “when will she come back?”
Other great news is that I have co-authored a book! It is called, “It Costs Almost Nothing” and it is filled with educational games and art projects all made from garbage and recycled materials. My friend Marie did all the art projects, and I did the games. Let me say that I invented some of the games, copied others and did the writing, but ALL the volunteers contributed to making them! Katharina is an outstanding artist, and she did GORGEOUS artwork for MANY of the games! I have posted some photos of some of the games on this blog so that you can get a sneak preview of the book! We are not planning to sell it, but to give it away free of charge to volunteers who are working with orphans and other vulnerable children. I am also thinking of doing a “book tour”…going all over the country teaching adults how to make and play the games, then leaving them with a copy of the book. We can’t afford to print it in color, but Brian (Marie’s husband) has done a great job with black and white photos. My sister Suzie is doing all the illustrations, so I know the book will be useful AND attractive! Be sure to let me know if you want a copy! We are hoping it will be ready for launching in July or August!
Okay, enough about me and all the volunteers! Let me tell you about the KIDS! They continue to be the joy of my life! Every day they give me something to laugh about, they take on more responsibility and they make me so proud of them! Right now MacCrenny and Eddelsine take turns running the computer room. I just give them the keys, and they do all the sign-ups and choose the programs. They also borrow my watch and have the kids coming and going in 30 minute intervals. They have been doing this since Scooter’s departure and I have yet to receive a single complaint! I wish I could put them in charge of the entire center!
On Saturdays the soccer program is as strong as ever! We have about 600 kids playing: 48 teams, 24 games (8 games on 3 fields) from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm. We even get the grass field one weekend every other month, which is a HUGE event! After playing for two years on the gravel, broken glass and thorns, it is sheer delight for the kids to run barefoot through the grass and slide and roll without being covered with cuts and scrapes! Nobody even cares whether they win or lose, they all just LOVE being out there! I wish I could get it every weekend, but they simply won’t give it to me more than once in a blue moon! Every child is in a jersey donated from friends in the USA and Canada, and the kids who play for six months are then awarded with shorts, then three months later socks, and if they play for one year, they get soccer boots. Thanks to all of you who collected soccer gear and hauled it over here! The kids love it and play with great pride when they are in uniforms!
But by far, the most popular events of all are the monthly “POOL DAYS”! There is an olympic sized, municipal swimming pool within walking distance of the center, and I have been granted free entry for all children and adult supervisors. It is so funny, I ride my bicycle to the center at 10:00 am, and from three blocks away the kids see me coming and begin to squeal with glee, chant my name and run alongside my bicycle. They line up and I give them a ticket (a page from last year’s daily snoopy calendar) and they run to the pool. At the pool entrance we review the rules and behavioral norms, then they go in and spend the entire day jumping in and out of the water, playing games and basking in the sunshine. Pick-n-Pay, our local supermarket, has donated THOUSANDS of dollars of bread and a variety of baked goods not only for our pool days, but twice a week for the soup kitchen at the center. Sometimes they give us as much as 15 enormous hefty bags full of day old bread and rolls, and bags of doughnuts, cakes and pies. Since I don’t have a car, my friend Lyn picks it up and delivers it to the center. If she can’t, she gets one of her friends to do it. It has been a blessing, especially those times when the soup kitchen is closed.
My dear friend Jill Mullen came for a visit in April, and I don’t think we stopped talking for one solid week! It was WONDERFUL! I also had the pleasure of spending time with fellow Rotarian Helen Paul and her husband Gene, as they came from New Jersey, also hauling boxes of stuff for the children. I am blessed to have so much love and support, for I have been surviving as a volunteer solely based on your donations! I thank you personally, and on behalf of all the children, I extend our prayers and best wishes for good health and happiness for you, your families and friends!
In May we welcomed two different delegations from Canada: The first from Brock University in Toronto, and the second from Whistler in BC. The Brock group had 20 students and 6 “grown ups” (professors and parents). They built playgrounds and painted gorgeous murals for three kindergartens in Katutura, and they EACH brought an extra suitcase PACKED with educational materials, games, soccer uniforms, soccer balls and EVERYTHING you could imagine! Children’s clothing and shoes, medical supplies, soap and shampoo, puzzles, lego, toothbrushes…..you name it, they brought it in ABUNDANCE! We had a “sorting party” in my home and packed boxes of goodies for 20 needy kindergartens. Then, on their second to last day, we went all over Katutura delivering the “loot” to various kindergartens. The women were all so happy to receive the donations and thanked us endlessly. The kids welcomed us with songs and dances. It was a beautiful way to end a fabulous three week stay. On the day that they left, a group of 8 women and 2 men arrived from Whistler, BC. They picked up where the Brock group left off, painting murals all along the outer wall of Oponganda Center for Mentally and Physically Disabled Children. Upon completing that, they “adopted” a kindergarten in the heart of the single quarters, a broken down neighborhood known for its bars and prostitution. They painted it inside and out, put a fence around it so the children can play in safety, and then built a playground, too! Both groups SHOCKED me with the amount of work they got done in such a small amount of time! The group from Whistler then went up to Tsumeb for a week, where they helped another organization with their income generating projects. I am still on cloud nine, as are the kindergarten teachers and all the kids who now have beautiful murals to look at and learn from, and playgrounds to enjoy for years to come!
Last week I got a phone call from a young woman who wants to start her own kindergarten. Her name is Bosha, and she has been assisting her auntie for five years and believes she has all the training she needs. She told me she wants to name the school, “MARYBETH’S KINDERGARTEN”. I told her I was honored, and agreed to help her purchase chairs and tables, a chalk board and a plastic tarp for the floor. She has saved her money and built a small, one room shack out of corrugated tin and wooden poles. As a surprise gift to her, seven friends and I went out there on a Sunday afternoon and painted the place, inside and out! We put the alphabet and numbers on the inside and murals on the outside. She was thrilled, and we all had so much fun!
I am happy to report that there will be three volunteers in my home for the next three months, Barbara and Marlen from Germany, and Timna from Canada. This will enable me to take the children down to tennis and soccer every afternoon, as those three can easily manage the center and take care of any problems that arise! You see, I prayed for volunteers and God answered my call!
Thank you for all the games you have sent. Thank you for all the children’s books. Thank you for the soccer uniforms, soccer balls and equipment. Thank you for your letters of encouragement and support. Thank you for coming to visit, to volunteer with the children and for hauling over suitcases full of donations. Thank you for your generous financial contributions, and for your love and prayers. Thank you for making it possible for me to spend every day with these beautiful Namibian children. Come and see for yourself, they are clever, delightful, fun, and truly God’s promise to us for a brighter future!
I will TRY to update this blog more than twice a year, but if I don’t and you want to know what is going on, send me an email!!
My address is: marybeth_gallagher@yahoo.com
And if you are REALLY curious as to what is going on, COME ON OVER!! We welcome you with open arms and open hearts!!
With love, prayers and best wishes from Namibia,
Xoxoxoxoxoxoxox
MaryBeth :)
I have Bell's Palsy and enjoy your blog very much. First time I've commented, but have been reading here and there.
Great blog. I enjoy reading it every chance I get and value your opinions!
Posted by: Disabled Chat | Thursday, July 24, 2008 at 01:00 PM
dumb bitch
Posted by: j killa | Wednesday, December 17, 2008 at 04:18 PM
Mary Beth
Much thanks for what you do and for your wonderful witness at Leaders School. People are still talking about the smiling children.
I enjoy your blog very much.
God Bless
John DeJulio
Posted by: John DeJulio | Sunday, January 18, 2009 at 10:29 AM