April- “RE-connecting with my 3 little friends"

On my first day at Lydia’s place of Safety in December I meet a very seemingly shy little girl who turned out to be a little wild-child of the best kind! She has spunk, spark and a quick tongue! As well she has an older brother and sister- who are also equally full of character! These three really became close to my heart. Each day Jenn and I tutored and worked with them on English and Math of which all three of them just soaked up the knowledge and soared beyond. These 3 little friends of mine are; Elea, Thalu, and Marshee. As December time is the holiday summer break from school some of the kids at Lydia’s place do go and visit family members or close friends so that they are able to keep up some connect even though they might not be able to live with these relatives due to poverty or seasonal working etc. I realised that one day Thalu and Marshee weren’t around and Lydia let me know that they had gone to visit some relatives but Elea has refused to go and hid under Lydia’s bed. Happily they both returned in a week, and we were blessed with a singing performance from Marshee during the New Year’s crusade at their church- [note I am going to try to post this on U-Tube as she is one who could go places if she had the opportunity!]

In the start of January it was time for me to leave Lydia’s and moved to the village of Manamani, however I promised to visit each Saturday. January also brought some more volunteers who were placed at the primary school where Lydia’s kids attended. Marielle is a math teacher from Holland and brought them so much love and help in a subject area where ALL students struggle- she was able to encourage the learners and the educators both at the school and at Lydia’s. Thalu was one of the students who excels at maths! However in the end of January Marielle let me know that my three little friends were gone- they were taken back by their mother. I didn’t get to say good-bye and no one was quite sure where they were staying- to say the least this sadden me deeply as I know that they were going to be living without knowing if they would have food for the next meal, be dry from the rain or able to be safe from the harm of horrible people. I asked around my village and still no one seemed to know. Ironically my host-mom Agnes knew the family and the situation as she had been their teacher in the pre-school. With the arrival of new volunteers different activities were planned and together each Saturday we continued to work with Lydia’s kids- THEN in the end of May while in the taxi with one of the volunteers, Karen who was staying in another village she said to me “Oh I meant to tell you that I met one of your friends, who said that she knew you at Lydias?”- I hugged her right away and asked if it was Marcia? And it turned out to be- I got off the taxi with her and found my way to their home- where I saw Elea, Thalu and Marishee for the first time in 2 months- we all cried and smiled!

We made a weekly date to hang out and play- they helped me with my Tshivenda and my dance moves, and I helped them with reading English and the multiplication table. It also allowed me to meet and become friends with their Mom and their youngest baby sister. I loved every minute of it! However the reality is that I still might never see them again as they have to fight everyday against poverty, hunger and the threat of abuse due to being vulnerable- I do remain hopeful, but I can’t be blind to what is reality.

April 2009 Important Women in my life here in Venda:

My host–Mom and Friend, Agnes. Agnes is my interrupter for EVERYTHING! The language, customs, food (identifying what I might be eating!) the evening news (it was in every language with only 3 words in English) and mostly she was kind, understanding and FUNNY ! In addition to being my host she is also the teacher of the 4 year olds at the Crèche, the organiser for the youth program curriculum at the church, and as she is the wife of the oldest son in the family she is thus the first person anyone in the family goes to. She always has a smile and a hug for me at anytime and we talk until we are both falling asleep!


‘MAMA MARIA!!’ When Maria isn’t trying to marry me off (you see apparently I would get a very large Labola!...) or have me assist with the beheading of a chicken we get along great! She is the ‘Mama’ of the village, meaning that she doesn’t take anything from no one! She is full of life and goes not stop- she will drive to and from Pretoria (about 5 hrs away) in one day to turn around and prepare a feast for the village the next. Maria is always on the go but makes time to chat and catch up me every day- and I know that if I haven’t seen her over 2 days she’ll send someone (usually a niece or nephew) to tell me to go and see her! Maria has helped me to understand how much has changed here in the new South Africa. When she was growing up she left school at age 9 and to go and work on a farm with her Mother, although Venda was a homeland during Apartheid the people were required to work for free for 3 months of the year on an Afrikaaner’s farm. The treatment and living conditions were appalling. Although she went through this and other hardships she has developed her own successful business which employs more than 10 women in the village. Let me know if you want some of her Macedonia nuts (they are exported all over the world!) or if you need fresh-fresh fruits or vegetables she only buys the best tasting!


Principal Grace Mudau- Principal Grace is the principal of Muthamaro Secondary School where I have been volunteering since January. To say that she has a tough job is a understatement- the challenges that she faces within the school system and on a daily base would make anyone question whether the job is worth it- however Grace is full of strength and determination- she sees the potential in students despite the fact that others say that “these students are hopeless”- she believes that each and every one of them has potential and will make a future for themselves. She grew up in a rural village like Manamani and understands the students’ hardships- which is all the more reason why she knows that they can achieve. I would be leaving out something if I did not mention that she also has to fight against the stereotype that typically a principal of a secondary school is to be a man, not a woman- despite the new South Africa patriarchy is very strong here and she has a daily battle to fight the backroom chatter from the system. However she is having strong achievements for the school and the learners and educators respect her.


“Mamma Lydia” Lydia started her place of safety by opening her home and heart to kids in need. She has done this with honestly and love which is why 7 years after she started her children have become successful and she continues to help more kids. I have spoken about Lydia in my previous posts as she is the one who started the orphanage where I stayed for the month of December and visited everyday during my time in Venda. Lydia was a school teacher for over 35 years and when she retired she did not just want to “sit under the tree and drink.” – the irony of her reasoning is that she is probably the most committed child advocate- in action and living that I’ve met- she lives with 23 children every day and she fights for them to be enrolled in school, sport and activities. Her commitment to the children and to change the South African Social system is making a difference- while I was there each week she would have some other group, government specialist or organisation stopping by to talk with her and ask her advise. However what she always would tell them and then tell me- “You know what these children need is love and school.” I couldn’t agree more. Below is Lydia- Dida- and one of her new little ones.

April 2009- “Conquering boredom with a little fun!”

In April here in SA there more days that learners spend OUT of school then in- Due to: School break, Good Friday, Easter Monday, the VOTE April 22, Freedom Day April 27 and Workers Day June 1. In the month of April we attended only 10 days of class. However during the Easter Break some of the older male learners gave their time and hand cut the super long grass in the soccer field and when we returned it was ready to be used! With all of this time away from school there was a cloud of boredom that seem to be hanging over the learners as the village just does not have any organised activities. With the cooperation of the Principal and the assistance of the Administrator (Who helped me to untangle and sort out the volleyball net!! Edward is probably the most patient easy going person I’ve met) I set up a sports day for everyone after they voted on Wednesday April 22- The girls had their netball, the guys had soccer, there was volleyball and chess for everyone- and a chair for me under the tree as the heat of +32 is not something I can be active in!! I decided that I would go to each classroom and write on the chalkboard that we were starting at 1:00pm- however by the time I was through half the classes (there are only 7 in totally)the learners came to me to say that they wanted to start earlier so it should be at 11:00 am- Thus we were set it was to begin at 11:00am (note: the ACTUAL meaning was that they would arrive by 1:00pm…..its ‘African time’) WE had a blast! And it was a day full of Muthamaro Learners and our new friends- The UniVen students and other Zote Volunteers!

[And the best part was that we did this two more times and the Learners then organised it themselves- "yeah" for Student Leadership!]

April 2009 “When getting lost ends up being the best thing that could happen!”

Frustration doesn’t even begin to describe how I felt about finding information for the grade 12 learners to apply to Tertiary- University or FET College. When I had arrived at Muthamaro Secondary School this was something that I wanted to do right away, however I had to wait as it was just too early in the year, their school year goes from January 1st to December 15th. I had envisioned getting resources about what to study, where to study, how to apply, the bursaries available, the scholarships available, having the schools and departments come and talk to the learners, getting copies of applications early for them to practice and also having the learners feel encouraged to commit to studying as the competition to pass the country-wide matric exam that they’ll have to write at the end of November is fierce!

WELL……- website searching and phone calls did not work to say the least. Thus after talking with the educators and the principal I decided to just go visit to the University of Venda in Thohoyandou http://www.univen.ac.za/ and to the municipalities to get information. After talking with the UniVen Administer and getting directions that went something like this “…go down the path at the ATM go down the stairs on the left…. Go to the blue door…..” I set out!

UniVen is a world renowned institution- and it’s campus is MASSIVE! (note there were many paths, ATMS, and ALL the doors are blue!!). Thus after admitting to myself that I was lost, I asked one last person who said- “Yes-yes, go down this hallway, down the stairs and there is a blue door at the bottom- this might be the administration ….?...”). Well this was the best thing to happen to me- as I found a new friend- who was seriously studying for his chemistry test and then walked me to the administration building. Along the way we chatted- only to find out that he and his friends were starting a Global Sustainability Club and wanted to connect with a local-rural secondary school AND I (desperate at this point) needed someone to come and talk to the grade 12’s about programs and careers available at university—but having 2nd and 3rd year university students is the BEST as the power of hearing from peers – in their own language!- was beyond what I thought could be arranged.

The rest of the details are really minor- we went to wake people up (I met a few of them still in their pj’s!) we sms’d various date/times- met over colddrink, had our meetings become birthday parties and best of all I made lifelong friends- who filled me, the school and our learners with hope that there is a positive future!

10 university students came to Muthamaro to talk to with the grade 10, 11, and 12’s- (in their home language of Tshivenda)- these are students who are studying LLB, Maths, International Relations, Chemistry, Business, Ecology etc. They have varied backgrounds some are orphaned or have been abandoned by their parents, or have had lives of continued hardship, or are just ‘regular'- as they put it- but despite all of this they have made it to university- and the fact that each one of these students came to Muthamaro to talk and reached out their hand makes me know in my heart and soul that it is the power of peers that will make our world a better and stronger place.

The UniVen students have continued to come to the school each month and assist in the areas of Maths, Physical Science and English- I am honoured to say that EACH of the 11 grade 12 Learners pasted their winter exams- and they are now determined to have “Pass one, Pass ALL” at the December Matric Exam. This is an enormous accomplishment for the school.

Thank you Gadisi for helping me find each of you!

"Chris I heard you!!"

Dear People,
Catherine IS doing a Blog Marathon. Thank you for not sending me angry emails directly- but I have now heard the chatter. I am sorry.
Happy reading! Love, Cat :)

Note: I partly blame the mountains, ocean and fresh air from keeping outside. See below:

Travel Tip #1

Traveling always brings with it a heighten awareness of the potential of being robbed! So don't carry all of your ID together, split your money, have a 'fake' wallet, and keep things separate. For me this all works well and has keep my travels to be problem free.

However while I was in Jo'berg I wanted to take my credit card with me 'just in case I needed it' so I put it in my shoe..... BUT I then forgot about it.

Now 2 weeks later I took it out to find the card worn, cracked and needing to be replaced... Oops!!

Tip #1: Don't put your credit card in your shoe.

The beauty of the animals

After having a few months break from game driving I was ready to go again! In February the other volunteers and myself headed to Kruger National Park for the weekend. Kruger Park is like a drive-thru mall for viewing animals. Not even 5 minutes into the park we were watching a mama and calf elephant enjoying their lunch and a herd of Elan's looking at us like we were their the new channel on TV. Despite having seen many of the animals already it is still amazing to watch them and be in their presences. On our way to stop for lunch we had to drive over a bridge that was a little washed over by the river below, which suited the crocodiles fine! We sat and watched them (and they stared at us!!) as they splashed their mouth in the overflowing water. When one of the crocs started to move towards the tire of the taxi we decided it was wise to move on, really not wanting to test our luck.

After living in the village with the basics for over 2 and half months at that point I welcomed the shower, air conditioning, flush toilets, window screens and swimming pool- I felt like I had just landed in another world! Although I kept thinking about the kids and friends I had in the village who would of loved to spend the whole day playing in the pool..........

We did a sunset drive and had a wonderful guide who explained that the park has over 15, 000 elephants, yet it should only have about 7,000. So what do you doing with an extra 8,000 elephants? This question has been debated and many people are trying to come up with some solutions but it is a big problem.

Watching the Zebra's drink at the watering hole, seeing the little baby warthogs chase after their parents, and having a giraffe stroll across the road reminded me of the great beauty of these animals and how fortunate I am to see them in their own environment.

When I was back in the village I shared my photos with the kids and students and told them about what I saw. It is my hope that when they have kids they'll be in the position to take them to the park and see the animals- and spend the whole day in the pool!

My typical day...

Today was an untypical one as I made my 3rd trip to the Home Affairs Office attempting to renew my visa. And it has been halfway successful as I still need to make a 4th trip to pick up the sticker- if my application is accepted.... A tid-bit of advise for anyone travelling- get your visa at home, even if the embassies say it will be "no problem!" The hassle is just that much more other here on the other side of the world.

So today has made me miss my typical day in the village and it looks something like this:

5:00 am BEEP, BEEP..... up I get! Kettle on to warm water for either my tub-bath or to thaw the milk. Eat breakfast- banana with Cornflakes.

6:00 am Dishes, brush my teeth- there is no running water in the house so I either get it from the tap outside or the water tanks inside. Put on sunscreen!!

6:30 am head out the door. My host-Mom Agnes is a teacher at the local community early years-education centre and has already left for school at 5:00 am!
On my way to school I greet about 100 kids with either "Good morning!" or in Venda "Macharoni!" and "How are you?" I stop by at the Tshivhengwa's house- where I stayed in the start of January and greet many women from the village who are always busy either hand cracking Macedonian nuts, hand washing blankets, or sorting vegetables from the farm- They are my mentors for learning the Venda language.

7:15 am I arrive at school -If it is a Monday or a Friday the students are singing at the morning assembly and they fill the village with their beautiful voices!

7:30 am - 1:40 pm School starts- depending on the day I am either in an English, History or Geography class sometimes assisting the teacher or attempting to teach the students myself. I many stay with the grade 11- which each class has about 60 students or the grade 12's. When I am not in the classroom I am doing typing for the teachers or attempting to fix the photocopier!

2:00pm- 3:00pm The students in grades 10-12 have studies, and I try to help the students with any questions- of course most of the questions are relating to math... thus I am now learning along with them and am brushing up on my Maths!! Although the school day ends around 3 for the older students I now have about a dozen who stay and are learning how to type and use the computer. I have now been able to find some typing resources and am starting next week to teach them how to type- pending the return of our power as the plug has gone....

4:30pm ish I leave the school and make my way towards home, often stopping and visiting with many kids and adults to talk about our days, and to work on my Venda and their English. I often arrive home to many kids playing in Agnes's yard. They come and sit with me, and we talk about our days- they are slowly learning the days of the week and the weather. While sitting outside I will always have many girls from the village come and sit with me, weather I am reading, washing or just relaxing- we are now reading stories as I was able to pick up a traditional storybook last weekend while I was at Kurger National Park.

6:30 pm ish Agnes and /or I realise we are hungry, and decide what we are going to make! "Pap" is the traditional maize (corn) portage here that is the staple. I enjoy it with other vegetables such as "marow"(pumpkin leaves), tomatoes or squash. This place is the land of fruits and vegs' so I am fortunate that with every meal there is always a variety! The sun drops very quickly here almost within 5 minutes, so by 7:00pm sharp it is totally dark. There are no street lights or light pollution so you really can't see a thing.

8:00pm By this time I am tired, especially if the day has been hot and sunny! (Don't laugh!) Around now I'm getting ready for bed, so I can get up and do it all over again as 5am comes fast.

My days are simple and always filled with many smiles!

Here we are- Zote volunteers!

In the end of January we bid good-bye to 2 volunteers- Marielle in the traditional Venda attire has arrived back home safely in Holland! And Sarah (beside me on the right) has landed safely in Kenya where she is volunteering for another month. Despite the remoteness of Venda- it is becoming a second home to many of us from around the world!

Manamani Village

I am not alone here in volunteering in Manamani Village, for the month of January there were also 2 other volunteers in the same village and 2 more in near by villages. We are each here for our own reasons but we are bonded together by the welcoming spirit that people have shown towards us, the shared experience of learning the very difficult language of Tshivenda, and often by the reality that we really are the only "Makuwa's" (white people!) in the village or in town. Thus this often causes many humour moments such as numerous marriage proposals! (None of us have accepted.... yet!. )

Although I am here in this rural area of South Africa I have made friends from Australia, Holland and the USA. Our time together is often short as we are each busy with our projects but it is always great to get together to hear how everyone is doing.

I found out about this placement through www.volunteer.org.nz - they also offer many other placements through our the world! The organisation that I am being directly supported through is Zote projects- and it's founders were born and raised in the village of Manamani! www.zoteworldwide.org

SO what is it that I'm doing??

In December I was at Place in Safety in town, and have since moved to the village of Manamani where I am volunteering a Muthamaro Secondary School. There are about 300 students from grade 8 to 12, and there are 12 teachers. My first week was rather confusing as everyone has about 3 jobs since they are very understaffed- so I just tried to help where I could from typing letters to chasing chickens out to classes. The students arrived on the Wednesday each one dressed in their school uniform of a powder dress shirt with gray pants and black schools. Since school started I have been helping in English, History, Geography and Economics class- some of the classes are very large with about 78 students but the grade 12 class only has 12 students as it is difficult for them to pass.

Many of these students are very DETERMINED to pass and are eager to work hard- it is very encouraging to hear them speak of their future goals and desire to attend university and college. Last year 60% of the graduating students (only 15 of them) are now enrolled in either college or university- this is a huge accomplishment for this school as they struggle with a high failure rate.

As I am getting to know the students and learning their stories I hope to share them here as the resilience and determination is what is giving me hope that these students will achieve and break the cycle of poverty that they are living in.

Sending everyone warm and sunny greetings!

Things to share about life in the village...

I have settled into life in the village of Manamani (manAmanEE) quite well and am becoming accustom to many things such as:
a) Walking down the road and being swarmed by children that just come from no where, smiling and yelling "How are you, How are you?" They are very cute and have tons of energy! I try to pronounce each one of their names, and they yell in a chorus "Catherine!!". Thus after being there for 2 weeks I hear my name very often- and other volunteers in the village are now being called Catherine...
b) A taxi CAN fit 22 people, 4 babies, 3 chickens and about 5 suitcases ..... don't ask about the comfort and when there is only 16 people it feels like a Limo! [ Note: the Taxi's here are mini- vans like the VW vans with 4 benches made for 16 people]. But the saving grave is the good music!
c) In the village everyone is your Brother! Or your sister! It seems that now my 'family' has grown drastically and I have 4 Mothers...... I have lost track of how many siblings but I'm sure they will tell me. They have made me feel welcome and I have learned to not try to figure out all the family dynamics- everyone has an open door policy- if you're at the house and it's dinner time you come for dinner!
d) Cows rule the road..... just stand back and let them pass....

These are just a few of the things, but I am enjoying the laid back feeling and am getting used to African time..... things happen when they happen!

Hopeful for 2009

(My New Years resolution is to write more on my blog!!)

I spent Christmas eve dancing with the kids and having a Braai (BBQ) until the rain came- we had hoped it would stop as it had already been raining for 4 days but our party didn't get washed out! We moved inside. On Christmas morning Jenn (the other volunteer) and I gave each of the kids mini Christmas stockings filled with candy...... they were still bouncing at 4pm! We then attended Church and made scones in the afternoon. I kept looking in the sky for snow but there was only rain....

My month with the kids in "PEast" has come to an end and I am heading to live with a host family in the village. I must admit I am feeling sad to leave them, each morning more of them are saying "Good morning!" and I am working on saying "Matchroni" (good morning in Venda), they are speaking more to me in sentences and I am also getting better at playing their games! These kids have their whole life ahead of them but they need support and encouragement otherwise I fear they will get lost again. They are now living in a safe place, free from violence, poverty and hunger but all of these things are still at their doorstep.

There are many volunteers here that are helping to keep these kids going; they get food donated daily from the local grocery store, on Thursday they get fresh vegetables from the market, they get bread donated daily from the bakery, and women come to help the kids with clothes washing. And now they are having volunteers like myself that come from overseas to help with English and Maths- but it still feels like we should do more! I have gone through feeling hopeless as I see how much these kids need; to feeling very hopeful that they will grow up and be independent. But the fact is that everyday work needs to be done and they need commitment from many people. The South African government has done nothing to help these kids and despite requests they will not provide support- so it is the community that is raising these kids.