Projects Malawi New Building: True Friends Rejoice
Site Articles:
New Building: True Friends Rejoice Print E-mail
Saturday, 16 January 2010 13:07
Community members at the opening ceremony with the multi-purpose orphan building in the background.

By Heidi Pronk

The air was electric with excitement. The sight that greeted us reminded us of the Bible story of Jesus riding into Jerusalem amid children singing “Hosannas.” Both sides of the dirt drive were lined with children waving leafy branches and singing. Some were so excited, they hopped from foot to foot as we drove in. Many children had been there all day and their enthusiasm was both palpable and infectious. It was impossible not to smile.


What was the occasion? We were arriving in Chinchethe for the official opening of the True Friends Orphan Care multi-purpose building. Generously funded by two businesses in western Canada and after two years of diligence, they finally had a beautiful building and a reason for rejoicing. Our visit was short-lived that day as we stopped just to drop off some food and to use the bathroom. (North American-friendly rest stops are scarce in Malawi.)

We returned early the next morning for the festivities and the same enthusiastic reception as the previous day. There were women who had been cooking since daybreak and others who had been rehearsing their native dance performances for hours. We were ushered into the small office where we were served tea and biscuits as we awaited the arrival of the other “dignitaries.” Those dignitaries included the head of the Local Social Welfare office, the local police commissioner, two pastors, an assortment of village chiefs and traditional authorities, a truckload of children from one of the more distant orphan care centers, and dozens of children, caregivers, and church members. It was truly a festive occasion.



After the many greetings and introductions, Ernest Banda, the administrator of True Friends Orphan Care, stepped aside and allowed the children to perform.

They sang, danced, recited Scripture verses, and performed a drama (the latter occurring amid much giggling.) After this part of the program concluded, the Social Welfare Officer stepped forward to cut the blue ribbon that was strung across the door of the building. Bernie Pennings held the ribbon, the official held the scissors, and within seconds there was a full court press to get inside the new facility. Several hundred people crowded through the doors and settled in where we were treated to numerous speeches from the project administrators, caregivers, pastors, local officials, and beneficiaries. It was an exhausting morning but one filled with thanksgiving and joy.

What was so remarkable was the amount of fanfare that accompanied a rather plain building. However, one does not need to spend much time in Malawi to understand why it is such a big deal for a building like this one to be completed. Everywhere you travel in Malawi, the landscape is dotted with unfinished structures. In some cases, foreign organizations started a project but ran out of funds or motivation. In other cases, the indigenous people themselves started a project but were cheated by a contractor, did not properly fire the bricks, or just ran out of money. A completed building of this magnitude is definitely a cause for celebration.

The purpose of the new structure is to serve as a community center of sorts. It will be open to the public for civic meetings, celebrations, educational opportunities, and of course, it will serve the orphans as a gathering place, a classroom, a recreational facility, and a symbol of hope. In a place where there are so many children who suffer from poor nutrition, personal loss, family hardship and lack of educational opportunity, True Friends Orphan Care is making a difference in the lives of children one at a time. The staff members are committed not just to the physical well-being of the orphans, but to their spiritual well-being also. Ernest’s wife Alice requested daily devotional material for the children and for herself because, as she so aptly put it, “It tells me that God’s Word is for me, for everyday.”

True Friends is now meeting the basic needs of 300 orphans and is planning to add another 50 by the beginning of next year through the Basic Sponsorship Program. This enables them to provide meals, clothing, agricultural inputs (such as hoes and cassava cuttings), basic medical treatment, secondary school fees, and biblical training to these children. In many ways, 350 children is just the tip of the iceberg, but God is not limited by our failures or our funds. We pray that He would multiply the efforts of those like Ernest, Alice and Maggie at True Friends Orphan Care to the glory of His Name.

Heidi Pronk is the Executive Director for Word & Deed USA. She traveled to Malawi this summer with Bernie & Ina Pennings to visit the Word & Deed projects there.
 
Website by Pronk Graphics