Joshua Trustee wins Times/Sternberg Prize for African aid work‏

Make sure you check out The Times today as we are delighted to announce that Joshua trustee David Pearson has won the Times/Sternberg Prize for African aid work.

The award recognises the dedication of those over the age of 70 in their work for good causes and their outstanding contributions to society. David has worked tirelessly for Joshua over the years and we are delighted that his efforts have been recognised by this prestigious award.

David designed and oversaw the construction of Joshua's Maize Mill, he has been involved in the construction of six feeding centres, two water harvesting tanks and the road bridge.

His current project is the footbridge at Mwandika and the £5,000 he has won with this award will go towards this. It's an incredible achievement, and we are so proud to have David as a part of the Joshua team - he shows us all the age is not barrier to determination.

The footbridge over the Milo River will save lives by ensuring that hundreds of children have a safe journey to and from school. To see a video of the site click here.

We can't think of a better winner for this prestigious award, Congratulations David!

Tiyamike Feeding Centre update

Tiyamike feeding centre - Built by the "Young Ones" on a Quest

Whist I was in Malawi I visited Tiyamike feeding centre, where Margreet, a nurse from Holland who lives and works in Malawi was running her weekly under-fives clinic. Every Friday Margreet runs a clinic at one of four Joshua feeding centres.

Margreet weighs every child who comes to the clinic and asks their mother if there are any problems at the moment. She record the children's weights and does this in order to identify common illnesses such as diarrhoea, malnutrition, worms and malaria. If she is concerned that they are suffering from any of the above or more serious illnesses, she refers people to the Joshua clinic, local hospital or she gives out basic medication herself.

Margreet with Hannah (Joshua volunteer)  at the clinic

By taking healthcare into the heart of these impoverished rural communities Joshua and Margreet are helping to ensure that some of the most vulnerable families have access to healthcare services. Without this front line service many illnesses would not be identified until much later, and the damage done by them would be much greater and in some cases life threatening.

Whilst at Tiyamike, Stevie, one of Joshua's field officers gave me a tour of the area. I learnt that up until 2012 this feeding centre had been little more than a grass hut. But thanks to the incredible hard work of a team of volunteers from Northern Ireland, called the Young Ones, this centre was built in 4 weeks - which is truly remarkable.

Sarah Muthere dreams of becoming a teacher

I also learnt that the group had been so touched by the lives of the people they met in Malawi that they are currently sponsoring 8 children through secondary education at the local school, Limbera. Primary education is free in Malawi, but secondary is not. As a result many of the poorest children are unable to continue their secondary education, which is vital for their future job prospects.

I visited Limberia School and met three of the students the group are sponsoring. Sarah Muthere is 18 years old and lives with her Grandmother. Her parents separated when she was 11 and since then her mother struggled to care for her and her younger sister. Her grandmother works on other peoples land (this is called piece work) in order to support them, but she struggles and when Sarah was offered a place at secondary school, she wasn't able to go because she couldn't afford the fees.

But thanks to the support of the "Young Ones" she is back in school.

"My grandmother was so happy when she found out I was going to be sponsored, our family struggles for money and this makes such a difference. I want to say thank you for sponsoring me. Education is important to me. It will help me achieve my dream of one day becoming a teacher."

Tiawanda Binauri wants to study humanities at University

I also meet 18 year old Tiawanda Binauri, his parents separated when he was just six years old. His father has completely abandoned the family and his mother struggles to earn a living selling tomatoes and ground nuts in the market. Tiawanda started at secondary school, but unfortunately his mother couldn't afford to pay the fees and he was thrown out. Thanks to support from the Young Ones he is back in school and is working hard. His family still struggle though, and during the "hungry season" he often eats just one meal a day.

But despite this adversity he is an optimistic and generous student, “Education is important to me because it helps me work towards my future plans, I can help myself and my parents, and hopefully other needy people like me." 

I also met Owen Banda. A charismatic young man, Owen comes from a family of three. His father is unemployed and his mother earns less than £12 a month fetching water and cooking on a local building site.

Owens parents are"so happy" he is sponsored

With their monthly earnings less than the cost of school fee's Owens parents were unable to support him at Secondary School. He was identified by the local Head Teacher who approached Joshua for sponsorship on his behalf. Thankfully the "Young Ones" support came at just the right time and Owen was able to continue his education.

Although life is hard from Owen and his family, he gets up every day a 5.30 to collect water from the well and after school he has to collect firewood, things are much better than they were before he was sponsored. His favourite subject is English and in the future he would like to be a mechanic. "Thank you for sponsoring me to do my secondary education, it is important and will help sustain us in the future."

Joshua is incredibly grateful for the support from this group, we only exist because of this support from individuals and groups and without it we simply wouldn't be able to help thousands of HIV/AIDS orphans, vulnerable children and their communities every year.  Thank you.

If you want to find out more about volunteering with Joshua click here. Or if you want to find out about sponsoring a student, e-mail Heather heather@joshuainmalawi.org.uk

Joyful return to school in Malawi

Thanks to the generous donation of over £500 from his Art for Africa exhibition, Ray Mitchell and his wife Sheila have enabled two vulnerable young children to go back to school in Malawi

Brian at home in his small room

17 year old Brian Muleso lives in the semi urban village of Baluti with his two elder brothers. Brian’s father died when he 13 years old and since then his mother has struggled to care for him and his 4 siblings. Two years ago Brian’s mother was under so much strain that became unable to care for him so he moved in with his elder brother who works as a cleaner in the city of Blantyre.

Brian was selected to go to the local Secondary school, but unfortunately his brother was unable to afford the school fee’s and he was chased out of school due to non-payment.

In Malawi at the moment we are in what is commonly known as the “hungry season.” This is a season from November until April during which household maize supplies run low. Families are waiting for the rains to come so that they can plant more maize which they will harvest next April/May.

On the day I met Brian, he hadn’t had any breakfast, and he said at this time of year they mostly ate just once a day, in the evening.  And some days not all.

Brian tries to help out by getting odd jobs on building sites like collecting water and mixing cement and sand. But Brian wants to be back in school and thanks to Ray and Sheila in January he will start in form 1 at St Kelmon Secondary School. He’s looking forward to going to school again, his favourite classes are English, Maths and Biology and thanks to their incredible support he can work towards his dream of one day becoming a doctor.

Dorika and her grandmother in their two room home

Dorika Kamanga is 16 years old, she lives with her grandmother and sister in Manase, an semi-urban slum on the outskirts of the city of Blantyre. She is also going to benefit from Ray and Sheila's support.

Dorika was abandoned by her father when she was just three years old and her mother struggled for years to look after her and her two siblings. Unfortunately things came to a head for the family last year and Dorika had to move in with her grandmother as her mother was no longer able to provide her with even basic necessities, such as clothing, food and shelter.

Dorika lives in a simple two room house, we were accosted by a drunken man from the local pub on the way in and it was at this point that I realised just how vulnerable she is.

But despite all this Dorika is determined, and smart. Her favourite subjects are English, Maths and Biology and she would love to one day be a nurse. And thanks to Ray and Sheila's support she can start working towards that dream in January.

If you would like to sponsor s vulnerable child through secondary school, please get in touch with Heather on heather@joshuainmalawi.org.uk or by calling 01273 275713.

An amazing gift this Christmas

Since 2012 Joshua has been fortunate to receive funding from the Holy Trinity Church in Wimbledon. The first grant we received was through the Marian Esling Legacy Fund. This fund was set up after the church was left a sum of money in the Will of Marian Esling and Joshua was a lucky recipient of one of their first grants. The grant was for £4,345 and sponsored 40 children through a year of secondary education at the Joshua Secondary School in Malawi.

This year we were fortunate to receive a grant of £2,000 from the Tithe group at the church. This enabled us to continuing supporting students at the Joshua Secondary School, where over 140 vulnerable children and orphans now receive an education for free. I met 20 students who are currently sponsored thanks to this support from the church and with their help made a video to show our appreciation (above).

Students in class at Joshua Secondary School

So you can imagine my delight when I opened my e-mails this morning and discovered that once again the church is giving its support to this project, with another donation of £4,345 from the last round of the Marian Esling Legacy Grants. This money will ensure that we can continue to support some of the most vulnerable students through their secondary education.

As a small organisation Joshua relies on the incredible generosity of its supporters and we would like to take this opportunity to thank the whole congregation of Holy Trinity Church for their support.

Without it we simply wouldn't be able to help those most in need. But with your support we have, we are and we will continue to do so for years to come.

Thank you,

Heather Rayment, Joshua UK

Inner Wheel lunch is huge success

Whilst I was in Malawi things were far from quiet back here in the UK. Led by Ann Clark of the Inner Wheel club of Wells, a charity lunch took place in aid of Joshua's and raised over £760.

The lunch was well attended by Inner Wheel members and their guests.  In addition, they were delighted to welcome Marjorie and David Pearson (and their friends Jan and Don Pain ) from Sherborne Inner Wheel Club / Rotary Club.  Marjorie and David have personal involvement with Joshua as they are Trustees of the UK charity and visit Malawi yearly to provide help and support . They gave a short presentation on the work of the charity after the lunch.

The event was enjoyed by all, and over £760 was raised for Joshua. Pictured David and Marjorie Pearson with Wells Inner Wheel President Rosaleen Gripper and Ann Clark head of Overseas.

This money will go towards a much needed footbridge in an area where flash flooding killed a young girl last year. Our huge thanks to Inner Wheel of Wells for holding this lunch in support for Joshua.

Click here to find out how your Inner Wheel or Rotary Club can get involved with Joshua