Dear friends,
Greetings! Ruhtt has been sending a running account of the goings on in Zambia via photos on WhatsApp. I hope they will convey to you some recent events with students, and construction at Butale. Blessings from all of us with ZMFC!
In Kalomo there is Bata shoe shop and last week it was invaded by a group of sponsored students! Shepherd and Ruhtt accompanied the teens while they looked over various styles and calculated their shoe size. This has been an annual event for many years now. Most of our pupils come from villages and all of them are from families with little buying power. I expect these teens will always remember the first time they received new shoes from a store!
And likely, when they are finished with their shoes, They will be passed along to a younger brother or sister.
Thank you to those who are sponsoring students. The shoe shopping event is made possible with surplus funds within this program.
Can you imagine the strength needed to stir a pot of thick nsima this size? Zambians are strong! As they say – “we are used”…. Each weekday a volunteer group of parents and community members prepare a noon meal.
Pupils come to school with their own plate, or container, and line up with their class to be fed. Often, at this time of year, the harvest from last year’s maize is depleted and parents are grateful to know their children are fed before they return home from school.
The rainy season should begin in late November, and when the first rains arrive, life pauses while people plant their seed.
It is a family affair, and all hands are needed.!
Ruhtt helps over 40 communities to plant a field of maize specifically to provide food for vulnerable people.
This concrete slab was recently poured and is now curing before bricklaying begins. The project is at Butale and the building will be a duplex to accommodate two teachers and their families.
Butale is beyond the electricity grid, and water is provided by a hand pump at a nearby borehole. It is hard to imagine, but teachers are very grateful for these houses!
Village construction is very simple….oxen transport sand and river stone for the foundation, while local people make and fire the bricks. ZMFC provides materials such as cement, door and window frames, roofing materials – along with finishing materials. Thank you to those who have contributed to these construction projects!
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