grannies and orphans

this is one of the projects that i am helping to oversee. it was started to support grannies who were left to care for grandchildren after their children died, mostly because of AIDS. Rainbow has sought to care for orphans while keeping them in families and connected to the community. they have also done this through the private school they started as a preschool about ten years ago. the school now has over 450 students from preschool to grade 8. about 150 of those students are sponsored by people in the UK or US, because school costs money for everyone here. not all of our sponsored children are orphaned, some of them are in other needy situations and wouldn’t be able to attend school without support. the sponsorship program is another area that i am getting involved with. three years ago, Christine Crowther, who was the wife of the director of the organization, passed away after a long battle with breast cancer. she was a huge part of the work here and after she was gone, many of the projects that she began and took charge of were neglected. there was just no one to pick them up and run with them. these are the things that i am finding myself getting involved with; the things that were in her heart to do, including the project for orphans in Muzoka.

this brings me back to the grannies, which was one of Christine’s projects. there is a Zambian woman who has kept it going, but it has needed someone who can assess situations, problem-solve, and determine what needs Rainbow can meet. i have been out twice now with Martha. i drive some rough and tough vehicle (this was yesterday's) through these compounds, which are where we find the most needy people in this area. they are on the outskirts of the city and the conditions are heartbreaking. we deliver large amounts of food once a month to about 10 families. yesterday we just went to visit three of them so that i can start getting to know them and their situations.

this is Zenia. (sorry, i couldn't ask her to move into the sun, so you may not be able to see her face.) she doesn’t know how old she is. her three daughters have all died and she has one young grandchild who had to be sent to live with friends in Lusaka, because she couldn’t care for him. she walks on her knees to get around her place, which is a room the size of one of the closets in my house in the US. the government took possession of the building after her last daughter died and it is rented out apart for this one little room that they let her stay in. she sits on this step all day. we took her some charcoal today, which is the only way they can cook their food. i have to trust God for wisdom in these situations and pray that God provides a way. we are looking into the Maramba Old People’s Home. (yes it really is called that. they call people old and fat here and it’s ok. : ) there are some things that i know from past experience here and from spending time with Christine. the first time i came in 2001, the condition of this place was inhumane and Christine took it on herself to change it. the team i was with was the first group to go in there and paint buildings.
now the conditions are decent and Rainbow gives them a donation of food once a month. they are going to help us with social services to see if we can get Zenia placed there. pray that this door opens so that she has some kind of quality of life for whatever time she has left.
one of the ladies we visited insisted that i sit down and pound maize. either she feels strongly about introducing me to Zambian tradition or she just wanted someone else to do the job. we had a good laugh.