News! and letters to come
Someone at church this morning asked me what's new in Tungamalenga, and I proceeded to bend her ear for about ten minutes with a long list of updates that have come via various sources in recent weeks. Here's a few highlights.
Microfinance co-op leaders from Tungamalenga attended a training session in Iringa this week. Iringa Hope (the diocese wide umbrella organization) and Tumaini University's Microfinance Institute staff hosted the sessions for 75 leaders, addressing issues of governance, organization, record keeping, assessing loan applications, and more. Three members of the Tungamalenga SACCOs (Savings and Credit Co Operative) attended. From the photo I saw, it looks like Nicholas Mvena, Absalum Kilipamwambu, and perhaps Lukimbililo Mkuye. More information here: http://iringahope2013.blogspot.com/2013/03/the-saccos-training-session-concludes.html.
Iringa Hope members from Minnesota Tom and Sandy Hendrickson have been in Iringa for the past couple months, visiting almost a village a day. Reports of their time in Tungamalenga are here: http://iringahope2013.blogspot.com/2013/02/if-this-is-wednesday-we-must-be-in.html. The link includes a report of the meeting with microfinance co-op leaders and some stories and photos of families who have benefited from the loan program, increasing their income and ability to provide education for their families.
Over the course of about five years, the Tungamalenga SACCOs has grown its initial 5 million TSh assets (a gift from Shepherd of the Valley) to over 20 million, with a repayment rate that is nearly 100%. Iringa Hope has described it as one of the "model" microfinance programs in the diocese.
Mollie and Lyn MacLean brought back a big pile of letters and photos of our scholarship students. We also received the 2013 list of scholarship students from Pastor Naftal last week. That list still goes to the diocese for final approval. We plan to distribute the letters from students to their sponsors the weekend of April 6/7 in the narthex.
In recent weeks, we've also followed some sobering news about student test scores on the Tanzanian national exams. The bad news is that the national failure rate for form four students taking the national exam was 60%. Ouch. The good news is that most of the students we sponsor attend either Idodi Secondary School, Image Secondary School, and Bomalan'gombe Secondary School, each of which did far better than the national average, with scores that were in the top 10 percentile nation wide.
What's behind the failure rate? Most Tanzanian secondary schools have very little in the way of resources like textbooks, technology, or science equipment. Even schools that have resources may not have staff who are trained to teach math and sciences at the upper levels. We have also been told that in recent years the national test has changed -- it used to be that students could take a "theoretical" science test, memorizing the answers to standard questions but not having to demonstrate actual laboratory procedures and experiments. When the tests became "practical" examinations several years ago, the failure rate rose, especially for students attending schools where they had never had the opportunity to perform for themselves these practical lab experiments.
What are Shepherd of the Valley and Tungamalenga doing to address the gap between "theoretical" and "practical" knowledge for our students? We collected funds this year which will be used for target projects -- in addition to continuing our commitment to providing scholarships for individual students. Projects may include purchasing textbooks, or lab equipment. Another great opportunity that is in the planning stages is to provide funds for teacher training in science. There is a new Education Group working in the Saint Paul Area Synod, which is connecting to an organization called Mwangaza, which has decades of experience supporting education in Tanzania. Mwangaza provides professional development seminars for teachers -- and the SPAS Education group is looking at either sending diocese teachers to Arusha for one of the existing seminars, or bringing Mwangaza staff to Iringa to provide a seminar for more diocese teachers. Shepherd of the Valley will support this effort with some funding.
Our 2013 guests are processing passport applications. Rev. John Mhekwa sends me updates at least once a week as he, Mfaume Kisakanike and Rev. Paulo Masinga go through the process of preparing for travel. Rev. Paulo had to start from the very basics of obtaining a birth certificate. The three have all received letters of invitation from both Shepherd of the Valley and Saint Paul Area Synod Bishop Peter Rogness. Rev. Mhekwa and Rev. Masinga had to present letters from Bishop Owedenburg Mdegella of the Iringa Diocese, and Mfaume needed a letter from his employer, all letters of "release" indicating that their jobs would be waiting for them when they returned to Tanzania after their visit to the US, and that the employers released them temporarily from their duties for this visit. The relatively simple passport application involved at least two trips to Iringa for Mfaume (five hours away in Mbeya) and Paulo (three hours away in Tungamalenga). We are grateful for their patience and perseverence through this process. The applications and documents have now been sent to Dar, and we hope they will be processed in a timely fashion, so that visa applications may begin.
The rains this season are good! It looks like there will be a good crop this growing season, and that is such a blessing. It sometimes seems as though Tungamalenga experiences drought perhaps two years out of three. Rainfall is very localized in this region -- some years Kisilwa and Mahuninga, two villages uphill, may be doing just fine while a few kilometers downhill, Makambalala and Namelok are very dry, and a few kilometers away Idodi has experienced flooding that washed house away. It's just that variable. But Pastor Naftal reports that this year, thank God, things seem to be doing well.
Thanks to confirmation students who assembled over 500 hospice kits - and thanks to all who donated items included in the kits. These hospice kits are given to people with HIV/AIDS and typically include comfort care items -- toothpaste, toothbrush, soap, bandaids, rubber gloves, washcloth, towel and other items. Most of the kits will be sent to Tanzania through Global Health Ministries but our 2013 Tanzania travelers will carry a couple suitcases full of kits directly to Tungamalenga Dispensary next summer. Thanks to all who contributed and assembled these gifts!
Prayer requests --
Yohanna, an evangelist at Mahove congregation, needs surgery for abdominal pain that has plagued him for three years. Please pray for healing and for surgical skill.
Alice Kahwage, who visited us in 2008 and teaches at Tungamalenga primary school, was diagnosed with high blood pressure and peptic ulcers. Please pray for healing.
Makifu Chapel is under construction, and when finished will be the center of a new congregation. Please pray for the diligent construction workers, for safety on the construction site, and for a smooth transition as Tungamalenga Parish becomes two independent parishes -- Tungamalenga Parish and Makifu Parish. Shepherd of the Valley will remain partnered with both congregations. Thanks be to God for the growth that will enable this very large parish to become two parishes where the Gospel is preached and lived.
Microfinance co-op leaders from Tungamalenga attended a training session in Iringa this week. Iringa Hope (the diocese wide umbrella organization) and Tumaini University's Microfinance Institute staff hosted the sessions for 75 leaders, addressing issues of governance, organization, record keeping, assessing loan applications, and more. Three members of the Tungamalenga SACCOs (Savings and Credit Co Operative) attended. From the photo I saw, it looks like Nicholas Mvena, Absalum Kilipamwambu, and perhaps Lukimbililo Mkuye. More information here: http://iringahope2013.blogspot.com/2013/03/the-saccos-training-session-concludes.html.
Iringa Hope members from Minnesota Tom and Sandy Hendrickson have been in Iringa for the past couple months, visiting almost a village a day. Reports of their time in Tungamalenga are here: http://iringahope2013.blogspot.com/2013/02/if-this-is-wednesday-we-must-be-in.html. The link includes a report of the meeting with microfinance co-op leaders and some stories and photos of families who have benefited from the loan program, increasing their income and ability to provide education for their families.
Over the course of about five years, the Tungamalenga SACCOs has grown its initial 5 million TSh assets (a gift from Shepherd of the Valley) to over 20 million, with a repayment rate that is nearly 100%. Iringa Hope has described it as one of the "model" microfinance programs in the diocese.
Mollie and Lyn MacLean brought back a big pile of letters and photos of our scholarship students. We also received the 2013 list of scholarship students from Pastor Naftal last week. That list still goes to the diocese for final approval. We plan to distribute the letters from students to their sponsors the weekend of April 6/7 in the narthex.
In recent weeks, we've also followed some sobering news about student test scores on the Tanzanian national exams. The bad news is that the national failure rate for form four students taking the national exam was 60%. Ouch. The good news is that most of the students we sponsor attend either Idodi Secondary School, Image Secondary School, and Bomalan'gombe Secondary School, each of which did far better than the national average, with scores that were in the top 10 percentile nation wide.
What's behind the failure rate? Most Tanzanian secondary schools have very little in the way of resources like textbooks, technology, or science equipment. Even schools that have resources may not have staff who are trained to teach math and sciences at the upper levels. We have also been told that in recent years the national test has changed -- it used to be that students could take a "theoretical" science test, memorizing the answers to standard questions but not having to demonstrate actual laboratory procedures and experiments. When the tests became "practical" examinations several years ago, the failure rate rose, especially for students attending schools where they had never had the opportunity to perform for themselves these practical lab experiments.
What are Shepherd of the Valley and Tungamalenga doing to address the gap between "theoretical" and "practical" knowledge for our students? We collected funds this year which will be used for target projects -- in addition to continuing our commitment to providing scholarships for individual students. Projects may include purchasing textbooks, or lab equipment. Another great opportunity that is in the planning stages is to provide funds for teacher training in science. There is a new Education Group working in the Saint Paul Area Synod, which is connecting to an organization called Mwangaza, which has decades of experience supporting education in Tanzania. Mwangaza provides professional development seminars for teachers -- and the SPAS Education group is looking at either sending diocese teachers to Arusha for one of the existing seminars, or bringing Mwangaza staff to Iringa to provide a seminar for more diocese teachers. Shepherd of the Valley will support this effort with some funding.
Our 2013 guests are processing passport applications. Rev. John Mhekwa sends me updates at least once a week as he, Mfaume Kisakanike and Rev. Paulo Masinga go through the process of preparing for travel. Rev. Paulo had to start from the very basics of obtaining a birth certificate. The three have all received letters of invitation from both Shepherd of the Valley and Saint Paul Area Synod Bishop Peter Rogness. Rev. Mhekwa and Rev. Masinga had to present letters from Bishop Owedenburg Mdegella of the Iringa Diocese, and Mfaume needed a letter from his employer, all letters of "release" indicating that their jobs would be waiting for them when they returned to Tanzania after their visit to the US, and that the employers released them temporarily from their duties for this visit. The relatively simple passport application involved at least two trips to Iringa for Mfaume (five hours away in Mbeya) and Paulo (three hours away in Tungamalenga). We are grateful for their patience and perseverence through this process. The applications and documents have now been sent to Dar, and we hope they will be processed in a timely fashion, so that visa applications may begin.
The rains this season are good! It looks like there will be a good crop this growing season, and that is such a blessing. It sometimes seems as though Tungamalenga experiences drought perhaps two years out of three. Rainfall is very localized in this region -- some years Kisilwa and Mahuninga, two villages uphill, may be doing just fine while a few kilometers downhill, Makambalala and Namelok are very dry, and a few kilometers away Idodi has experienced flooding that washed house away. It's just that variable. But Pastor Naftal reports that this year, thank God, things seem to be doing well.
Thanks to confirmation students who assembled over 500 hospice kits - and thanks to all who donated items included in the kits. These hospice kits are given to people with HIV/AIDS and typically include comfort care items -- toothpaste, toothbrush, soap, bandaids, rubber gloves, washcloth, towel and other items. Most of the kits will be sent to Tanzania through Global Health Ministries but our 2013 Tanzania travelers will carry a couple suitcases full of kits directly to Tungamalenga Dispensary next summer. Thanks to all who contributed and assembled these gifts!
Prayer requests --
Yohanna, an evangelist at Mahove congregation, needs surgery for abdominal pain that has plagued him for three years. Please pray for healing and for surgical skill.
Alice Kahwage, who visited us in 2008 and teaches at Tungamalenga primary school, was diagnosed with high blood pressure and peptic ulcers. Please pray for healing.
Makifu Chapel is under construction, and when finished will be the center of a new congregation. Please pray for the diligent construction workers, for safety on the construction site, and for a smooth transition as Tungamalenga Parish becomes two independent parishes -- Tungamalenga Parish and Makifu Parish. Shepherd of the Valley will remain partnered with both congregations. Thanks be to God for the growth that will enable this very large parish to become two parishes where the Gospel is preached and lived.
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