Village

With your support we have a new fresh water well at Healing Place School in Zambia. The school has fresh water for students and is able to sell water to the local community for funding school lunches. The community is so excited to have clean water for the first time.

The roof and floor of the two classroom block is now completed.

In July, 2012, a team from Enumclaw will travel to Zambia to build a toilet block at this site. Then the students can move from a shared church building to these new classrooms.
Currently, 250+ students are meeting in a church building with no floor, desks, chairs, or books.

Fortunately, we have a strong couple to manage the school. Both are pastors and she is the head mistress at the school. They are committed servants who are dedicated to the students. W

17 graduates of Healing Place School from 2010 are attending a government middle school even though they didn’t have money for fees. We sent $800 for half the fees. The school administrator said that she knew VillageSteps and knew that we would do what we said. 10 graduates from the 2011 class have received government scholarships but 8 others still need tuition support.

The administrator of a school for the deaf that we support is working with women’s cooperative of guardians/parents to teach learn skills to support orphans in their community. 35 women are now able to do basic sewing and one has learned hair dressing and set up her own salon.
 
One of the university students we sponsor has graduated and two more will graduate in 2012.
University of Zambia student, Winnie Sakala, has only two semesters remaining to complete her degree in sociology. Winnie hopes to work with other orphans such as herself and give them encouragement. She was able to address the students at Healing Place and tell them how VillageSteps had turned her sorrow and hopelessness around, and that they should persevere in their studies and faith. Remarkably, Winnie discovered she had a twin sister, who arrived in Lusaka and she met for the first time while we were in country. This girl Catherine, also orphaned as a young child, had been raised by a relative, now deceased. She had completed 12 years of schooling and Winnie, the sister we sponsor, obtained a scholarship for her to attend the University of Zambia as well. These sisters are also caring for another sister and a younger brother, 13, who is HIV positive.