School Uniforms!
Our students are so excited to be getting school uniforms!! We have not done this as of yet because so many of our families can not afford them and we do not want to set up a culture of 'haves and have nots.' However, school uniforms are valued in this culture. They give the student and family a sense of belonging and community. Both students and their families want them very badly! So, we have had some samples made. We will be purchasing for all sponsored children whose sponsors contribute regularly. We still have many children who need monthly sponsorship. If you can spare $25 per month to help pay a child's school fees please, please sign up to do so!! If you would like to help buy a uniform for a non-sponsored child, it only costs $10. Please help by going to the Donate button. Just write in the message line the purpose of your donation. For example, "Monthly child sponsorship," or "Purchase a uniform." Thank you for your help!
THANK YOU Geeks Without Frontiers and Blackberry/RIM!!!
Mike Potter from Geeks Without Frontiers
This is the latest post on the Geeks Without Frontiers Facebook page:
"Great Thanksgiving Gift Just Arrived for Geeks Without Frontiers!!
Blackberry/Rim has just donated playbook tablets for a small community school in Zambia for an amazing educational pilot program for young local school kids."
What an amazing donation! We are so very grateful to Geeks Without Frontiers and Blackberry/RIM!! We will pick the Playbook Tablets up in California when we arrive home for the holidays and deliver them to the school in January. This wonderful learning tool will revolutionize the way our students learn and the way instruction is delivered.
Thank you Geeks without Frontiers and Blackberry/RIM.
"Great Thanksgiving Gift Just Arrived for Geeks Without Frontiers!!
Blackberry/Rim has just donated playbook tablets for a small community school in Zambia for an amazing educational pilot program for young local school kids."
What an amazing donation! We are so very grateful to Geeks Without Frontiers and Blackberry/RIM!! We will pick the Playbook Tablets up in California when we arrive home for the holidays and deliver them to the school in January. This wonderful learning tool will revolutionize the way our students learn and the way instruction is delivered.
Thank you Geeks without Frontiers and Blackberry/RIM.
Shopping in Soweto
Once a month we go to a local market where you buy in bulk. I guess you could call it a Costco, of sorts. We get there by 6:00am because if we don’t it gets very very crowded. This month we bought more than usual because we were buying food for the school as well as for some of our sponsored children. My friend and teaching partner at the American School of Lusaka, came along! She was so sweet! We decided to by a bunch of rubber sandals for our students ( about 100 pair) and Susan said she wanted to buy them! We very much appreciate her kindness!
The First Day with the Blackberry Tablets
We introduced the new Blackberry Playbooks to our oldest students today. What a wonderful time they had! They played games, learned grammar and reading apps, began to learn how to play chess and sudoku and had fun taking pictures and videos of each other. This type of learning tool is so intuitive, they picked it up right away! We are looking forward to teaching the rest of the classes how to use them, and incorporating 'Playbook Class' into their daily routine!! How exciting!! Thank you once again, Blackberry/RIM and Geeks Without Frontiers!!
Thank you so much to one of my Grade 4 parents at the American International School, Gusaf Engstrand, for setting this up! And a huge thank you to Sigtuna Sport Uteliv, in Sweden and everyone who is participating! Our students are going to be so excited to have soccer shoes. Currently, most of them play in bare feet!
The advertisement, VERY loosely translated says something like this,
"The campaign for football boots up to size 38 through the 30th of April! Donate your old pair and receive 15% off of a new pair. This is for a school in Lusaka, Zambia whose children have little access to education and a poor quality of life. It is run by two teachers from the American School in Lusaka, Zambia."
The advertisement, VERY loosely translated says something like this,
"The campaign for football boots up to size 38 through the 30th of April! Donate your old pair and receive 15% off of a new pair. This is for a school in Lusaka, Zambia whose children have little access to education and a poor quality of life. It is run by two teachers from the American School in Lusaka, Zambia."
Update on Natasha and FamilyWhen we returned from the United States, we found that Natasha and her children had moved from the Bauleni Compound. Our director, Mary, said that she saw Natasha on the news, asking for help. Mary found out, that since the news report, Natasha has been given a new place to live and her rent has been paid for a year. Unfortunately, it is not in the Bauleni Compound, so the kids are no longer at Appleseed. We are very happy that Natasha has a better place to live, we hope that the children are in school and wish them all the best.
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Natasha Fikoloma and Family
We received a call from the Bauleni Police, they wanted to know if we could help a family in need. The children are always begging in the streets, because the family has nothing. We met them yesterday. The young mother, Natasha is kind and well-spoken. It is hard to witness the dire situation that she is in. We brought her some food and soap. We hope to find sponsors to help this beautiful family.
Natasha is a single mother. She has 5 children of her own and she has taken in her twin sister’s 3 children. Her sister died recently. She said that the children lived a good life in South Africa, until their father died about a year ago in an accident. The mother, Natasha's sister, died three months ago. The doctors told the family she died of a broken heart. When Natasha was pregnant with her youngest child, who is now 3 months old, her husband left her and the kids to "take another wife.” Natasha says that their only means of survival is “through begging and well-wishers.” She generally has her 10 year-old son beg in the streets to support the family.
We received a call from the Bauleni Police, they wanted to know if we could help a family in need. The children are always begging in the streets, because the family has nothing. We met them yesterday. The young mother, Natasha is kind and well-spoken. It is hard to witness the dire situation that she is in. We brought her some food and soap. We hope to find sponsors to help this beautiful family.
Natasha is a single mother. She has 5 children of her own and she has taken in her twin sister’s 3 children. Her sister died recently. She said that the children lived a good life in South Africa, until their father died about a year ago in an accident. The mother, Natasha's sister, died three months ago. The doctors told the family she died of a broken heart. When Natasha was pregnant with her youngest child, who is now 3 months old, her husband left her and the kids to "take another wife.” Natasha says that their only means of survival is “through begging and well-wishers.” She generally has her 10 year-old son beg in the streets to support the family.
Kindness Abounds!
The coolest thing happened today. We were in the checkout line at the clothes store with a group of five newly sponsored orphans and a young Zambian woman next to me asked if we ran an orphanage. I said, "No, we run a school and these are orphans who attend our school." She reached into her wallet and pulled out K100,000 (about $20) and gave it to me. A complete stranger! The spontaneous kindness of so many people has truly been one of the most encouraging and magical things that has happened since opening the school. We took her picture and asked if we could post it on our website. Thank you to Mimi and all of you for your spontaneous kindness and love.
While waiting for Vice President Scott to arrive the kids had a chance to play together. The best part about watching this was that it was difficult to tell who were the American International school students and who were the RHO Appleseed students from the compound. There were also students from a local private school. They were in their uniforms. But all of these children played and got along fabulously!
Appleseed Kids Get to Visit With Vice President Guy Scott!
Our 5th graders were invited to the American School to hear Guy Scott speak. He is a friend of one of the 5th grade teachers at AISL and he agreed to come speak to her students as a part of their government unit. Mr. Scott wanted some local children there as well. So, Appleseed students and another local school were invited! He is a very kind man. It was a thrill for us all! Thank you Mr. Vice President!!
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Thank you Emma and Angela!
So many exciting things have been happening at school lately! The most exciting for all of the students, teachers and Ken and I is that Emma and Angela have been here volunteering for the past month! They are two incredible girls from UC Davis, a university in our home town in California. They have put in so much time and hard work. They are kind and loving and the students have grown so close to them. Angela leaves in 1 week and Emma, the following week. They have been an invaluable asset to RHO Appleseed School. It will be very hard to say goodbye....
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New Friends!
The 2012-2013 group of Second graders from the American International School of Lusaka visited RHO Appleseed! It was fun day of reading and singing songs. They have invited RHO 1st graders to AISL for their assembly! We can't wait to see them again!
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Before heading back to California, Emma Shandy presented Richard's picture to the RHO Appleseed students. This was a very special day for us. Richard was a good friend of Emma's and it meant so much to tell the students about him. They now know and understand the significance of the RHO in their school name.
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Missing video from the fundraising presentationMary answers some fundamental questions.
The RHO Appleseed Dessert and Wine Fundraiser has, to date, raised over $4,600Our first fundraising event went very well. A huge thank you to International House for the use of the beautiful facility and for co-sponsoring the event. Also, thanks to Jim Sloate at Wesley Ashley Wines for donating the wine. It was well attended and people seemed to enjoy the wonderful desserts and delicious wines.
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Geoffrey from a very popular Zambian singing group The Zambian Vocal Collection come to Appleseed to teach our students. The RHO Appleseed Children's Choir and The Zambian Vocal Collection will perform at an upcoming fundraiser this December!
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Thank You Altrusa!These books were donated by Altrusa and Bookman, from San Diego, California!
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RHO Appleseed School June 25, 2012
We at RHO Appleseed thank the wonderful Dreher-Wignaraja family and the community of Metuchen, and we gratefully and humbly accept this donation in Memory of Bob Moten.
Please click here or above to read the wonderful letter presented to RHO Appleseed School and to view pictures of this very special visit.
The Dreher-Wignaraja Family came to Zambia for a number of reasons, not the least of which was to present an incredible donation of books, school supplies and money on behalf of themselves and a number of other caring people from New Jersey, New York and Ohio. But their desire to honor Bob Moten, crossing guard at Campbell Elementary School in Metuchen, New Jersey, by making this donation in his memory is an especially noteworthy gesture.
Please click here or above to read the wonderful letter presented to RHO Appleseed School and to view pictures of this very special visit.
The Dreher-Wignaraja Family came to Zambia for a number of reasons, not the least of which was to present an incredible donation of books, school supplies and money on behalf of themselves and a number of other caring people from New Jersey, New York and Ohio. But their desire to honor Bob Moten, crossing guard at Campbell Elementary School in Metuchen, New Jersey, by making this donation in his memory is an especially noteworthy gesture.
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Thank you Julio Cerqueira and Group Five Zambia!Julio is a parent of one of my wonderful Grade 4 students at American International School. His company is Group Five Zambia. They are a local construction company and have generously offered to help with construction that we may need. The first order of business was to get the chalk boards and white boards off of the ground and mounted on the walls. The inside of the school is looking great! They hung the boards and put boarders around them. As an added surprise they even built a bridge to get over the big ditch in front of the school. Previously we had a very narrow wooden plank that we would all walk over to get to school. We love our new walkway!! We can not thank Julio and Group Five enough!
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Thank You
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The Zambian Vocal Collection Visits RHO Appleseed!
This amazing vocal group visited the school to teach the children some songs and perform for them. The members of this all men's group have beautiful voices! Our students were active and enthralled during the workshop. The Zambian Vocal Collection travels the world bringing their music to others. Currently part of the group is touring in Finland, those who stayed home for this tour were kind enough to share their music with us. They have also agreed to come to the school weekly starting in August to create an RHO Appleseed Choir. This is a wonderful opportunity for our students! We will be seeking a donor to sponsor this fabulous project!
New Book Shelves for a Library!
Now that we have shelves we will dedicate the front room in the school to a library and game room. We are very excited to finally have nice book shelves for each classroom and two large ones for the library! Pictures will be posted soon!
Singing with Geoffrey!This is Geoffrey from the Zambian Vocal Collection. They are a group of all male vocalists who are well known around Zambia and other parts of the world. Some of the group is in Finland on tour right now. Geoffrey and his group will begin teaching music to the RHO Appleseed students in August. We are currently seeking funding for this program. Geoffrey loves singing with the students and was kind enough to visit the school on Thursday.
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Thank You AISL Grade 2!The second graders at American International School of Lusaka, where we hold our full time jobs, are incredible! They had a bake sale to raise money for UNICEF's School-in-a-Box program and UNICEF donated a box to RHO Appleseed School! The AISL kids brought books and read to the Appleseed students. Another great day for our students thanks to the kindness of others!
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AISL 5th Graders Visit Mary's House and RHO Appleseed School!
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AISL 5th Graders teach the RHO Students about Animal Rights.
Many RHO Appleseed kids, and many Zambians in general, are afraid of dogs. This was a wonderful experience for our Appleseed students!
Art With Andre!
Our new friend Andre has begun teaching art lessons at Appleseed. He will be there on Thursdays to bring exciting new lessons! They started with still life pencil drawings. Thank you Andre!
Project Knapsack Comes to RHO Appleseed
AISL 4th graders participated in Project Knapsack's Pen Pal project last year, as 3rd graders. They wrote letters throughout the year to students in the U.S. The culminating activity was to receive the Knapsacks and donate them to a needy school. Appleseed students are so happy to be the lucky recipients!
The American School Global Issues students brought handmade games to RHO Appleseed School. Many thanks to the "Collect and Create" group of students. Another great day at Appleseed!
TOYS! TOYS! TOYS!Thanks to one of my grade 4 students at AISL the little kids of
Appleseed finally have some toys!! It is so fun to watch them playing with toys! Something they have never had the opportunity to do! |
RecessWe hope to have playground equipment soon and we will have a few soccer balls next week, but for now the children have fun playing with each other at recess.
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Adult SchoolAdults have begun asking if they can learn too! There are 5 to 10 adults who come each evening for classes. They are eager learners and are so appreciative for the opportunity.
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Buying in bulk at Soweto MarketBecause we constantly seem to run out of food, we decided to try purchasing for the month. The best place, the locals say, is Soweto Market. It was in a place that we never could have found on our own! We had to rent boots because we were going to be sloshing through ankle deep mud. It was quite an experience! We did find it to be less expensive though. If the food lasts the month, we figure we will be spending about $400. per month for food. Whew... I hope we can keep up!
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Nourishment First, Then LearningThe biggest expense is food, but we know that successful learning cannot happen if the children are starving. We are so happy that they can count on having a meal each day at school.
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AISL Global Issues Group Visits RHO AppleseedFor the 2nd visit to Appleseed School the American International High School students played games, taught English and recorders! What a great day for all!
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It's a Merry Christmas at Appleseed School!
School across Zambia is out for a month. Our students took their exams, received their report cards and then had reason to celebrate. We had our 1st annual Christmas Party on Friday, December 16th. The children sang Jingle Bells (that was the easiest Christmas song to teach them.) Then they decorated their paper Christmas Stocking. I had to explain what the stocking was all about as they have never had one before. The teachers then collected the stockings and filled them with treats! We ate our Christmas cookies, listened to a story and passed out the filled stockings. This little stocking is the only gift that most of them will receive. Their smiles said it all!!
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RHO Appleseed School Performs for Holiday Hoopla Talent Show!!
Our students will have the opportunity to be seen all the way across the world in Esparto, California! This video will be shown as part of that community's Holiday Hoopla Talent Show. Appleseed students are so excited about the idea of being seen singing and dancing all the way in America! The Esparto community will show off it's talent and our video on Friday, December 9th at the Esparto High School Theater. If you have not made your plans for this Friday, take a drive to the beautiful Capay Valley. There are a lot of talented people there. This is the community that I worked in and became a part of over the last 14 years. Organizers of the event are hoping to donate some of the proceeds to our school. A piece of my heart will always remain with the students and families of Esparto.
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School Supplies from a Special Family!
Amber Clark and her parents, Don and Julie are currently touring Africa. Amber is a very special young lady who Ken taught last year in Napa, California. When she found out that she was going to be in Zambia, she immediately set out on a mission to help supply RHO Appleseed School with very needed supplies. Over the past few months she and her parents have been very busy shopping and acquiring these supplies. We were absolutely amazed at the amount of wonderful things that they brought! We met them in Livingstone, Zambia, home of Victoria Falls. They were so kind; we spent a great evening together at The Cafe Zambezi! We hope the rest of your adventure in Botswana is amazing. It was so exciting to go through all of the wonderful supplies. We can't wait to get back to Lusaka to show the teachers their great new resources and get these into the hands of the students!! Thank you so much Amber!!!
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These are just some of the incredible school supplies donated and brought to us by Amber, Don and Julie Clark! We were absolutely floored by there kindness and generosity. Thank you so much Clark Family! |
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A special Thanksgiving Treat!My friend and fellow teacher at AISL and her children visited on this special day. Celia, Walter, Charlie and Florence Sandbloom were welcomed with delighted screams by the Appleseed little kids. Walter read a Thanksgiving story to the youngest children and passed out sweets that they brought for the children. Celia read another story to the older group. In addition, they brought bags of clothes that were distributed to the students at the end of the day! The Appleseed kids loved having the visitors, it made them feel very special. We send a huge thank you to the the Sandbloom family!!
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Thanksgiving Day!!
Ken and I were so happy to have the day off at AISL so we could be at Appleseed while school was in session. I spent much of my time teaching the older kids how to play a math and a reading game. Then we read a book together and they practiced writing the words from the book on the new chalk board.
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RHO Appleseed Beginnings......In August, 2011 we began meeting with children from the Bauleni Housing Compound, in Lusaka Zambia. We saw children in the streets of Bauleni and asked our housekeeper, Mary, if they go to school. She told us that most of them do not. Many are single or double orphans and have no opportunities for education.
We began visiting Bauleni each Saturday in a space with a few walls, no ceiling and no floors. Each Saturday, we would sing songs, play games and teach some basic academic skills. The 1st Saturday there were 25 kids, the next 65 and the numbers continued to grow. The children started asking if they could come to school everyday...... As Ken and I have full time teaching jobs at American International School of Lusaka, we knew we could not be there during the week. This is when Mary, Newlyn and Fanny stepped up to fill the need. They began carrying on school, each day with nothing more than some paper, tape and pencils. The children continued to show up for school each day! Fast forward to November 2011............. |
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The new RHO Appleseed School SiteAs the numbers of children continued to grow, we out grew the little space we had been using. We knew that we had to find a site for a real school. Mary set out to find one! She found this partially finished house. It needed a lot of work still, but the rent was manageable and we were willing to do some of the necessary improvements. The children took a field trip to see their new school in October, and on November 1st the lease was signed and the hard work began..............
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This is a new slideshow. A group of students from the American school went to RHO Appleseed School and spent the morning with the students. It was a great day. It was Oriana's birthday, and she brought cupcakes for all (about 100). Wow! There is a video clip toward the end of everybody singing happy birthday to her. It was a great morning.
The grass fence around the school is nearly completed!! It will be a very nice addition. It ensures that the students are within the school grounds and adds some privacy to the area. We still have a long way to go, but RHO Appleseed in shaping up into a place to be proud of!
Time for Lunch!!These children have very little to eat each day. There have been some instances where we have found that the families had absolutely no food in the home. So, we are committed to both educating and feeding them at least one meal a day. Today was the local specialty, Nshima with vegetables. Nshima is eaten with the hands, rolled into a ball and then used to scoop up the vegetable. It is very satisfying and filling. There are 3 wonderful ladies who volunteer their time each day to cook for and serve the children.
The oldest group of students happy to have their 'sweet' after class.
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Enjoying "lunch" at school.
We do our best to provide something for the children to eat each day. The local staple is a corn based mixture called mealie meal. It can be cooked as porridge or at a stiffer consistency which is called nshima and eaten with the fingers. This is what the children are enjoying in this picture. I know it doesn't seem like much. But for some, it is their best and only meal of the day!
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