John and Christine arrived back in Tanzania at the end of November and it was heart warming to see old friends and colleagues again. Our house has been a busy place. We have received many visitors and have been making preparations for a pretty demanding work plan. Ester and Kabula were in a relaxed frame of mind when they called by, after their end of term exams. At this time of year, with Christmas in sight, the lot of students worldwide is a happy one. The girls chatted happily with one of our new Mwanza friend, Susana Carpenter. Susana works in the Shaloom Project, teaching the nursery class. She is a Maryknoll lay missionary from San Francisco.
26.11.16 Coffee Morning At Stowmarket Salvation Army Corp raises £355
25 November 2016 Crown and Anchor Quiz Night
The Crown and Anchor was the venue for another of Busega Scotland’s quiz nights on Friday 25 November 2016 raising £83 for our charity.
Around 20 customers were entertained by wide ranging questions from quiz master Mike McClafferty.
The winning team, “ The Visitors” comprised of two theatre producers, who were visiting Findhorn from Glasgow and Ireland, and managed very well with questions on general knowledge and Africa.
They returned an impressive score getting 36 out of the 48 questions right.
Mike was out again on 26th November,
raising another £56 for Busega Scotland by having a “Hairy Bottle draw at the Station Hotel, Burghead. Thanks to Mike for all his efforts.
raising another £56 for Busega Scotland by having a “Hairy Bottle draw at the Station Hotel, Burghead. Thanks to Mike for all his efforts.4.11.16 Mayega Shopping and Fuel
All the children at Mayega village and the Children’s Centre have very short hair for going to school.
This month new hair clippers were needed to keep the orphanage children neat and tidy. Rev Deuli purchased the clippers in the city of Mwanza and delivered them to Mayega. Goods are available in Lamadi, the local town but prices there are very high. Matron cuts the girls hair and Patron does the same job for the boys. Buying hair clippers is much more economical than getting everyone to the hairdresser shop.
Prices are rising all over Tanzania. Fish form a big part of the Mayega children’s diet and despite being beside the lake prices have doubled.
Firewood for cooking has also doubled in price in the last few months. At the centre bottled gas is also used but it cannot be bought locally and transport costs are high. Other local options include charcoal or kerosene. As the cooking facilities need improving , staff will be trying to find the best solution moving forward. This may mean purchasing some sort of stove that would be more efficient than an open fire. It would also make life easier for Victoria, the Mayega cook.
21.10.16 Walking and Water
The fantastically successful ‘Walk Moray for Busega’ has seen some of its proceeds spent on an Imperial Berkey water filter.
The Berkey will purify untreated water from lakes and where the local water supply may be compromised. The filtration elements have a very fine matrix creating millions of micro-fine pores. The pores are so small that pathogens are not able to pass through and other contaminants are adsorbed. Berkey filters are used worldwide in emergencies and natural disasters.This is perfect for the Mayega Children’s Centre, where water is currently carried from Lake Victoria. Boiling can kill bacteria etc. but the lake suffers from pollution, due to the large population living on its shores.
The Imperial Berkey can produce over 40 litres of clean water per hour and the filters should last over 10 years. It is a long held ambition of Busega Scotland to have safe drinking water at Mayega and now we will get on with bringing the water in pipes and not in buckets!
Thanks to Busega Scotland walkers and supporters for making life safer at the Children’s Centre.
20.10.16 Elgin Rotarians meet Mayega
John and Christine accepted a lunch invitation from the Elgin Rotary Club and delivered a presentation on the work of Busega Scotland. The mission of Rotary International is to provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through its fellowship of business, professional, and community leaders.
The talk concentrated on the Mayega Children’s Centre and the need for a piped water supply. The Rotary Club of Elgin has been involved with many projects in Nepal, where there is poor provision of sanitation and water and has changed the lives of local communities in some of the most remote areas of this country.
Busega Scotland is hopeful that Elgin Rotary will partner with us in the provision of piped water at Mayega.The talk was well received and we await with interest the outcome of the Club’s deliberations.
Many thanks to Elgin Rotary for their interest in Busega Scotland. The photograph shows President-elect for 2017, Andy Jamieson, with Christine and John.
19.10.16 Moray Office ‘supplies’ Mayega
The developing partnership between the Aberlour Trust Project, Alba Place and Busega Scotland, has led to a very generous donation from an Elgin company, Moray Office Supplies.When Frances Nicol, from Alba, asked if there was anything her team could donate to Mayega Children’s Centre, Christine Carney suggested coloured ink pads. The pads would be used with rubber stamps already received from Lhanbryde Primary School, to help the Mayega children with learning English and for creative activities.
After a few moments reflection, Frances wondered if Moray Office Supplies would like to help and sure enough twenty pads, in various colours, have been donated. The photo shows Christine accepting the gift from Cassie Russell, with Frances also in the picture.
How good it is when people and organisations work together – many thanks to Moray Office Supplies and to all concerned.
17.10.16 Education , education , education !
Over the next couple of months Busega Scotland will implement plans to improve the attainment of children at the Mayega Children’s Centre. Our Project Leader in Tanzania, Rev Gadlord Deuli, has been to Mayega to speak to the staff and we are pleased to say that the ideas were well received.
In November, Christine and John will host a seminar at the Centre when plans will be finalised. These will include contributions from local partners in Moray; Lhanbryde Primary School, MJD Systems (computer specialists) and trustee Jenny Wallen, who is an educationalist.
We are also delighted to welcome to our team Sebahene Amon, an experienced Tanzanian school teacher, who is at present completing a Master of Education degree in Mwanza. Seba has volunteered to work with us at Mayega and will take part in the education seminar. Jenny and Seba are working hard on joint initiatives, that draw on their wealth of educational experience.
We are entering exciting times for education in Mayega. These will be fully reported in future articles, as the plans are implemented.
12.10.16 Lhanbryde Women’s Institute
Lhanbryde Women’s Institute
John and Christine were invited to talk about the work of Busega Scotland at the Lhanbryde Women’s Institute. The national Women’s Institute was created by Scottish women in 1917. It is designed to bring women together, with a vision to educate, to share, to campaign, to learn, to socialise, to build a community and of course, to have fun. They also share the secrets of the perfect scone!
With mention of fun and a scone John and Christine were right in there. The ladies enjoyed the talk and asked some insightful questions. Christine then had the diplomatically sensitive task of judging a baking competition for Halloween biscuits. All were equally perfect, just like a WI scone!
We must also thank the Lhanbryde ladies for contributing £68 to Busega Scotland funds. It really was a very good evening.
10.10.16 St James’ Women’s Guild
We didn’t disappoint!
John and Christine were invited to address St. James’ Women’s Guild at Lossiemouth. We received a very warm welcome and were formally introduced as speakers on our visit to Tasmania! Despite our offer to leave, the ladies insisted that we stay and talk about our favourite subject.
After the talk, some interesting questions and kind words, we met Katherine Milne whose travel and volunteering experience was amazing. Katherine spoke about her times in Rwanda, Bolivia, the Philippines, Nicaragua and Malawi. Many thanks to the Guild, who will make a collection for Busega Scotland throughout their current session.The front of St James’s has a superb view across the Lossiemouth East Beach and the outer Moray Firth.
