The days are long and action packed. Today was a Malindza community day. We spent the morning at the Preschool where
we passed out Superhero capes after explaining what exactly a Superhero was. They were excited to learn that when wearing
the capes, you have special powers and all stood in line while Ty and Bob
helped them “fly”. We played every game
under the sun and the children taught us Swazi dance moves (mainly just kicking
your leg as high as it will go!). We
were thrilled to see the brand new borehole in action (the drill had to go 150
feet deep to find water!) and we were delighted to see our awesome teachers and
students once again.
After the school day, we delivered 11 emergency meal
packages to families including rice, beans, peanuts, peanut butter, cooking
oil, chicken soup stock, candles, matches, green bar soap, canned fish and
canned baked beans. When we went to the
“dancing gogo’s” house, she lived up to her nickname! After we gave her the solar lighting package
we’d promised (Thanks Cindy Kaser!), she danced even more! The solar lighting package consists of 3 LED
lights, a car battery and a solar panel the size of a sheet of paper. When fully charged, the lights will shine
brightly for 40 hours before needing recharged – long enough to allow the
children to study, play, and eat. We
love raising funds to enable the purchase of these packages for the children!
At the next homestead (they never know we’re coming), we
were surprised to see her! She had
divided up her food package and was sharing it with the grandfather at the next
homestead! When Carole asked me today
how long the food lasted that we delivered – I tried to explain to her that
hypothetically it will last 3 months until we return to Swaziland but likely it
will last less due to exactly this reason.
When our orphaned families, who already have so little, get anything at
all – they share with neighbors, community children, and family. We
arrived at the final house and the granny doubled over when she saw us. Bob thought maybe she was having a heart
attack and we all started to worry, but soon she used a shirt sleeve to wipe
her eyes and she started yelling “tears of joy – tears of joy!!”
We spent the last remaining hours of the day scrambling
around running errands: a cellphone for Pilo (for emergencies), a mattress for
our new high school boy who is sleeping on the floor, blankets for Pilo and
Mazwi’s new bed, medicine for the Sunday Mobile Clinic, bleach to sanitize the
hotel soaps (Thanks Beish for collecting them and Ty for cleaning them!),
dishes for eLangeni Primary School and food for our Preschool. Exhausting but oh so fun…
If you’d like to help, you can buy a Superhero Cape (made to
order), make a donation online: www.ifightpoverty.org/donate.html
or mail a check made out to GHFP to 2436 N Alabama Street, Indianapolis IN
46205. None of this is possible without
you.
Find us on facebook (Annie Elble Todt and/or Give Hope Fight
Poverty) and on Instagram (Give Hope, Fight Poverty)
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