Tiago, Elder and Sister Petersen, Senda

We just got word that Madelena's school project is closed!!!

Let us share a true miracle.  We presented the success of the project to Madelena’s District Director, Tiago.  As we told him of Madelena’s change of attitude, and her willingness to take responsibility of future work on the school, Tiago told us that he recognized our work as the right way to do it.  That is getting the community involved and supporting the school.  He then told us he has a partnership with another NGO that is fixing up latrines.  This NGO complained to him that they have to go back often and fix and repair vandalism.  He said the problem is because there is no communication between the school and the community.  There was no “buy in” to the project.  They did not value what they had received. Then he said to us, “If every NGO would work the way you do, we would make great progress.”  He could see that just giving things away was harming his country and he admitted it.  Then he said ,”I want my entire district to use these principles.  We are going to have a meeting where Madelena will share her success and explain how she did it and we will have all the school directors in the district reach out to their communities to get the support needed to take care of their schools.” He also said that he recognized some schools that simply are waiting for the hand out to come.  He knows this is not right.  He has invited us to be a part of this training where we can share the welfare principles.  All of this he said without our coaching.  All we did was share Madelena success and he took off with this great information he knew. He introduced us to his area supervisors. (about 15) He also said to his area supervisors that they were to get an accounting from each school of the condition of the school and what items they had. The area supervisors were to get a report from each of them.  An accounting would be made of them on a regular basis. (All with very little coaching from us if any.)  He told us that he felt from the very first time we met that when we shared the welfare principles with him that we were people he knew would make a difference.  We felt the spirit all thru the meeting as we talked.  We are sure this was because true principles were being discussed and recognized and the spirit  bore witness.

What a miracle.

When we first met Madelena and her staff, we found a school that, in our opinion, was blessed with many things, more than most that we had seen.  We felt there was little that we could offer them being so well endowed all ready.

However, as we were given the tour, we could see many places we could help but were surprised at the things they did ask us to help with.  We have found it is so very important to only give things they ask for. 

These two pictures show a flooring problem that they never asked for.  Painting of the walls was 

never asked for.

Latrine refurbish was never asked for.  There were many things we saw on the first tour that we could see that could be offered but they were not asked for.

The things they asked for were more desks, electrical, a mobile library, and teacher instruction on special needs kids and a printer for their computer.

No latrine work.  No ceiling work. No floor repair!  Well OK then!  We will work with what they put on their list as their highest priority.

We chose to supply the electrical supplies to refurbish their electrical and 100 of the 270 desks needed.  Their part was to supply the labor to put in the electrical needs and secure the school to keep vandalism and theft down.  They said they would close the back gate and hire a guard to help secure the school and find someone who could put the electrical in. 

In the beginning as we were developing the project, we were thinking of how we could teach Welfare Principles. What we found in the beginning was a resistance to the idea that the community could be asked for support.  After Elder Petersen taught the principles of community service and saving for the future by using the example of a bucket with holes and that it is hard to get water to the house when your bucket has holes in it.  Elder Petersen said, “Your school bucket has holes in it.  If you will fill those holes or get a new bucket, you will be able to get what you need.” Madelena was willing to go to the community and at least ask.  When she said this, we felt the spirit enter the room.  This was a huge step in the right direction.  Next time we came, she was beaming with the success she had had with the community participation.  This idea of the resource she had in the parents of her children grew with each meeting we had.  We could feel the light of Christ enter our meetings more and more as her wall of doubt dropped more and more.

After they had supplied a guard, we started the process of ordering the electrical supplies.  Madelena was still working on the closing of the gate and getting someone that could put in the electrical.  When she had a person willing to put in the electrical, we brought the electrical supplies to her and put them in a secure place until the labor could be performed.  We promised we would have the 100 desks to her as soon as the electrical was in place.

  

This is the gate they are still working to close.  Here is the vendor that supplied the electrical materials we put in our truck and took to the school to store.

Picture of the materials being stored in their office for protection is the one with the secretary sitting.  The next picture shows Madelena so proud of the electrical box in the office so they can eliminate vandalism of electrical parts that are used in the classrooms.  The next picture is a fluorescent bulb put in above the office.  The next picture is a socket without a light bulb, to be screwed in at night when they have something at night going on or for security reasons.  They don’t want the students to break it while they are playing during the day.  Good maintenance plan eh!

The huge 18 wheeler truck could not get down those narrow paths to get to the school.  Baharan, the desk vendor, knew just what to do.  Why were we worryin?.  They unloaded the 18 wheeler right there on the road and left these two gentlemen to guard those 100 desks.  Then with the smaller truck, they shuttled these desks into the school.  They knew all along.  We learned to just let them figure it out.  They can do it!  Let them!

Kids were so excited to help move the desks it was hard to count them.  The teacher’s desks had chairs.  Here is a picture of Madelena and Bishop Tualufo, the bishop over this area, sitting next to Elder Petersen.  It was a glorious day.

I believe the highlights of this project have not been in the happiness of the children (although that is so rewarding).  It is in the opening of Madelena’s mind to the possibility that her community could support her and their children in a Government School, even though they already pay taxes for education.  She continues to grow in her knowledge of the resource she has in her community.