VOH Bwiza (Burundi) Update: Lead Team Retreat
They say if you fail to plan, you plan to fail. At VOH Bwiza, we value planning and training. This past week we held our annual Lead Team retreat at Bwiza Center. The main goal of our three-day meetings was to plan for the next three years. It is encouraging when we meet as leaders and reflect on how far we have come and the children we have helped. During the retreat, we reviewed our strengths as well as the various challenges we face. Taking time to reflect as we plan allows us to make wise decisions. Both the Bwiza and Maramvya teams were involved, so we had a complete picture of what is happening at both VOH Burundi locations.
VOH Chongwe, Kitwe, and Luongo (Zambia) Update: Distributing Boxes of Love!
This week at our Chongwe, Kitwe, and Luongo locations, we distributed Boxes of Love! It is always a joyous and exciting time each year when the donated boxes arrive in Zambia. For most of the children, their Box of Love is the only gift they receive in a year. Classes are currently closed due to the third wave of COVID-19, so our staff worked tirelessly to ensure all safety protocols were followed and enforced, and the students were more than happy to cooperate. The children were so excited when they came to collect their boxes. The timing couldn’t have been better; what a fantastic day it was to see smiles on all of their faces!
We want to say a huge thank you to CLA Church in Langley, BC, for organizing the boxes and container and to every church and individual who took part in making this joyous time possible!
VOH Malawi Update: New Office Space!
At VOH Malawi, we are excited that our new office space is taking shape! For the past two years, we’ve been ever since we were blessed with a second piece of land in the community of Kauma. Having the administration office at a different location has not been easy, but we are so thankful that our new admin building is almost complete! Recently the Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi (ESCOM) asked if they could put up two electricity poles on our property to supply electricity to new areas in the community. We were happy to cooperate because it will help the community and make it easy to add electricity to our VOH Center!
VOH Maramvya (Burundi) Update: Extra Lessons
Schools in Burundi are currently on break and will resume in September to start a new school year. Here at VOH Maramvya, we took this opportunity to offer extra lessons for students struggling in class. We started this program after this past school year. Many children want additional help, so we are happy to provide extra lessons to prepare them for the next grade. The extra classes will run for only one of the two months the students have off because we know it’s important they also get a break. We are proud of our students for wanting to do well in school, even if it means doing extra work during school break. We are also grateful for the teacher who is volunteering her time to run these lessons.
VOH Mongu (Zambia) Update: Supporting our Teens
Every week at VOH Mongu, Musiyalike, one of our staff members, meets with our teenage girls. During their weekly meetings, Musiyalike and the girls discuss various topics relevant to girls in their teens. It’s an excellent opportunity to share openly, ask questions, and grow together. At this week’s gathering, they watched an educational video, and a great discussion followed. The girls always have a lot of fun together, which has become a highlight of their week! They can’t stop talking about how great it is to meet together, and all of the staff notice they are becoming more confident as individuals. We’re so happy for the privilege of investing in this generation of future leaders!
VOH Zimbabwe Update: Learning from Home
In Zimbabwe, with schools being closed for an extended time due to the pandemic, we are very thankful the children living in our children’s homes can continue their education thanks to online learning and a generous donation of laptops. Their house mother helps them with their online lessons, ensuring their understanding their homework and submitting it on time. When this mode of learning started, it was very new and hard to get the children to grasp, but they have grown to love it and are doing very well! We believe when schools reopen, our children will still perform well in their government exams, despite not being able to attend school in person.