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Paces
at Osiligi By
the time you read this we shall be back from our 2008 winter break. We
have been to northern Tanzania again to a country we have come to love.
This is despite the fact that it is the 5th poorest country in the world
and life for most people is very hard. During the week we have lived with
a local family in a simple but properly built house. Although the only tap
is outside, it is kept very clean. We lived simply during the week but at
the weekends we went and stayed in good hotels in Arusha, the nearest
large town. Our
project this year has been to help develop a new government Secondary
School. One of the main aims of the government is to provide education for
all but this is very difficult in a country with so many young people. We
have been told that the government opened 1200 new schools last year but,
being such a poor country, it doesn’t have the money to fund them
properly. They simply have to do the best they can with what little they
have got. Osiligi Secondary School was opened in April 2007. It had one double classroom building, 85 new pupils and four teachers. When we arrived in January 2008 it was little changed though work had started on building 2 more classrooms. Before leaving, we had applied for and received a grant from the Waterloo Foundation, a grant making charity and we had also been given money by many friends. In total we had nearly £16,000 to spend. In the UK that might not build much, but in Tanzania it was a small fortune.
Having
worked there before, we knew the fundi (builders) and the local materials
suppliers so we were able to get started fast. In consultation with the
headmistress and deputy, we agreed a programme of work.
The
other great project was to try and get water to the school. This would
mean repairing a water main that had not worked for over 20 years as well
as running in a new line for over half a kilometre and providing local
water storage. This proved to be the most difficult task; the water main
was in worse condition than we had been told and matters were not helped
when someone decided to cut part of the line so they could get water for
their cattle (not a rare occurrence in these parts). But the local
community worked very hard with us and eventually we got water, if not
always reliable. Faced with the problems and lack of reliability, we also
built a 50,000 litre rain-water tank which should be enough to see them
through the 5 month dry season. And
it was all done in 11 weeks. It was hard graft with many ups and downs
(including problems with the bank in UK – again!) but it was pretty much
all done by the time we came home. We had missed another English winter
(shame!) and lost a lot of weight (Sue thinks of it as a 3 month detox)
and left the school in much better shape than we found it. Will we do it
again – who knows? Tony
& Sue Pace. If you want
even more detail, please read our letters on the LINK web site at
www.bugbrookelink.co.uk/Tanzania Mothers’
Union On
January 10th, at 2.30, MU members attended a meeting in the Sunday School.
The subject was “Childhood Memories”. Lyndsay took a small service.
Members contributed to a very enjoyable afternoon, especially Mary
French's stories of her childhood spent on her parents' farm. On
February 9th, MU held a table top sale in the Sunday School instead of our
usual jumble sale and found it most successful. On February 14th at a
MU meeting at 2.30pm in the Sunday School, a short service was taken by
Lyndsay. The speaker was Rev Yvonne Chapman, and as it was St Valentine's
Day, the subject was love in all its aspects. As members also contributed,
it was a most entertaining afternoon. 15 members attended. In Lent, house
meetings were held weekly. Pat
Archer Bugbrooke
History Group All
copies of ‘Pictorial Bugbrooke’ have been sold but because of demand
from disappointed customers an additional run of 50 books is being
arranged. Because of the small run the print costs have risen and the book
will now cost £13. It will be available in Cherrenee florists and the
Post Office from April. Those who missed out first time need to keep their
eyes open for its reappearance. The
group will be meeting on Wednesday, June 11th at 7.30pm in the Community
Centre when Malcolm Deacon will be talking about ‘The Life and Times of
Sir Christopher Hatton.’ These talks are free and available to everyone.
A small donation is asked for towards the refreshments. Did
you know? When
the Quakers were strong in the village in the 1600s, one of the most
fervent families were the Ashbys. After Cromwell was displaced and Quakers
were persecuted some of the Ashby family members were thrown into
Northampton Gaol for refusing to swear allegiance to the King for
religious reasons. One died in gaol for sticking to his beliefs whilst
others were released after many years. Some
might say that the stubborn streak of old Bugbrooke families might stem
from this example of fortitude! John
Curtis www.bugbrookelink.co.uk/history The
Wednesday Club Hello
everyone. When one door closes another opens so here I am again to report
on the new club. We are very grateful to Mrs Lynne Clayson and her team
for coming forward to run it for us. Jan
30th – Today being our first
meeting, it was a bit like first day at school (if we can remember it) but
everything went off smoothly with eighteen members and a new one, Mrs
Sylvia Abraham, who we are pleased to welcome at the whist table. What a
change to have two tables again. Feb 9th – Lynne booked a table for the club at the Mothers' Union table top sale. We raised £53.65 for the club. Well done.
Feb
13th – Izzy Hall from WRVS
gave a talk on their work. Each member received a certificate to mark
their number of years. A cake with 54 candles was cut and Chronicle and
Echo took a photo which appeared in the paper. Lynne's husband Dave showed
slides of old club events. A tasty buffet was served. A few old songs
were sung to end the afternoon. New
members are very welcome. Mrs
D M French Bugbrooke
& District Flower Society In
February our first demonstration of the new year was by Carole Johnson,
doing "From Dreams to Reality". She had some lovely ideas and
some beautiful containers and the evening was enjoyed by all. I was lucky
enough to win an arrangement, which still looked beautiful over a week
later. We
have no meeting in March due to Easter, but in the coming months there are
lots happening. Area Members' Day is at Rugby in April. Some members may
be stewarding at Gardeners' World Live and The Royal Show at Stoneleigh
and one of our members is involved in doing a flower arrangement in
Westminster Abbey with another area member, for Commonwealth Day. The
National Competitions this year are in Edinburgh in October. On
a local level we have Jane Fox demonstrating "Face the Music" in
April. May of course brings round again our MAMMOTH PLANT SALE at
Campion School, this year being the 14th one! An enormous amount of work
goes on beforehand, with members busy sowing, potting, growing etc., plus
the precision co-ordination on the day. Don't miss it if you like a
quality bargain. The date is Sunday May 11th at Campion School from 2.30. OPEN
GARDENS IN BUGBROOKE – Sat
19th and Sunday 20th July. If
you would like to open your garden to the public on these dates, please
ring Sue on 832516 on her return from Tanzania (after Easter) or Veronica
on 832179. Your garden doesn't need to be huge, just loved, interesting
and cared for. Veronica
Chambers
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