Winter Newsletter 2011/12

Christmas festivities spread right across the globe during the month of December in Tabora, Tanzania. All of the TCET sponsored children travelled

back from their boarding schools for the holidays and enjoyed the Christmas

celebrations with their families for four weeks.

It was a very busy time for the children with many exciting events planned such as a special Tanzanian Independence Day festival, Chips Myai Day and a very special visit from Father Christmas! This was a particular highlight for the children as, for many, it was the first time they had ever heard about Father Christmas and after watching a film of the Christmas story the big man arrived himself to give out presents. After all the excitement the children and their

families enjoyed a Christmas lunch together and were treated to their favourite meal of Chai Mayai and vegetables. TCET would like to say a special thank you to Sarah’s colleagues News International who donated £70 towards all the

December activities!

Christmas in Tanzania!

Up and coming fundraisers...

Look out for our

Fairtrade TCET

Easter eggs!

TCET

Issue 2 Winter 2011/12 Registered charity no. 1125725

Contact Details

Email: tzchildren@gmail.com

Website: www.tzchildren.co.uk

TCET now has a Twitter page, remember to

add “@Ttchildren” to show your support!

TCET is now also registered with Virgin

Money Giving, if you wish to make a

donation please go to the following website

www.virginmoneygiving.com.

Thank you!

Issue 2 Winter 2011/12 Registered charity no. 1125725

After their well-deserved Christmas break the children looked forward to their next school year as there was A LOT of shopping to do for uniform and school supplies

before the January term. Two new children have also joined TCET this year, Mwajuma and Athumani, They are

starting private tuition to improve their English so that they will be able to sit the entrance exams for St Francis Private School next year and move into Standard 3. If they did not have the support of TCET they would have to start again from Standard 1 in a private school as they would

never have been taught English. Mwajuma and Athumani are both working really hard every day after school and

we wish them the best of luck with their entrance exams.

Back to School

Tanzanian Independence Day!

Tanzania celebrates Independence Day on 9th December each year. On this date in 1961, the East African

nation of Tanganyika gained independence from Great Britain. It is the second most important event in the

country after Unification day celebrated on April 15th. In 1964, Tanganyika united with several islands in the

Indian Ocean, including Zanzibar and Pemba, to form the United Republic of Tanzania.

For Independence Day, Tanzanians celebrate the day with fireworks, and there is excitement in the streets of

Dar es Salaam, the former capital. The official celebrations are held at National Stadium with the president,

prime minister, government officials and

celebrities usually in attendance.

Simultaneously a torch is taken to the

summit of Kilimanjaro, in the north of

Tanzania, as a symbol of determination

and freedom for all African countries in

their independence struggles.

The children had a celebratory meal and

learnt the history of their Independence

Day.

Gerrald is 18 years old and the son of Dr and Mama Sekasua who set

up the charity HAPO in Tabora. This is the organisation where TCET

founder Sarah Robertson first met the orphaned children which in-

spired her to form the Tanzanian Children’s Educational Trust in or-

der to continue the charity’s work in England.

Gerrald recently finished his GCSE exams in November of last year,

graduating from Ujenzi Secondary School. He is now a TCET volunteer

and has worked with the children on projects such as writing thank

you cards to their sponsors , co-ordinating school reports, buying

school supplies and collecting children from their boarding schools at

the end of each term.

Before Christmas volunteers from the King’s School interviewed Gerrald about his experiences with his parent’s charity HAPO:

1. Why did you first get involved with the charity?

I have been involved with the charity since I was in primary school and during my secondary education. When volunteers used

to visit HAPO, which was based at our home in Tanzania, I would often play with the children and help to look after them with

my family.

2. In what ways have you helped the charity so far?

When a group of sponsored children joined my secondary school at Ujenzi last year, I helped them to settle in as part of my

role as Head Prefect and School President. I assisted them in their studies as well as accompanying on the journey home at the

end of term.

3. What is the biggest achievement you think the charity has made?

Definitely providing access to private education for some of the poorest children in the region who would otherwise have ben

going to overcrowded government school if they were lucky, and certainly would not have attended secondary school.

4. How do you think volunteers in England can help the charity?

The best way to help the charity is to have a genuine interest in the lives of the children and their community and to approach

all fundraising activities with enthusiasm and commitment.

5. How do you see the charity progressing in the next couple of years?

We hope the charity will progress in the next couple of years in order to support more children going into secondary education

through the sponsorship programme. We hope that one day HAPO will be able to build a primary and secondary school that

will offer quality education so that the talent of sponsored children can be identified and developed. HAPO also wishes to ex-

pand the primary school sponsorship programme this year as well has offering private tuition to children in government

schools in order to improve their English. We hope that these children will then go on to sit the entrance exams for private

schools next year as they are taught in English.

6. What do you think is the most rewarding/enjoyable part of your work with the charity?

The most rewarding/enjoyable part of my work with the charity is living with and helping the children at HAPO who were pre-

viously marginalised through poverty. It is very rewarding to see their enthusiasm and to see how they have started to aim

higher with their future aspirations. For example, the children at secondary school in Ujenzi now want to be Doctors, Pilots and

even Prime Minister! These are careers they would never have imagined without sponsorship and which are now a real possi-

bility.

View from Africa

Issue 2 Winter 2011/12 Registered charity no. 1125725

Issue 2 Winter 2011/12 Registered charity no. 1125725

Children’s Page

This letter was written by Elisha

Joseph, a grade 7 boarding pupil at

Ujenzi. Her favourite subjects are book

keeping, English and Business Studies.

This letter was written by Adelina Juma, who

is also a grade 7 pupil at Ujenzi. Her favourite

subjects include Maths, Chemistry and

Biology.

TCET MONEY-METER We hope to raise £5000

in order to build a new

school in Tanzania! £2000!

£2000

£1500

£1000

£1250

£1750

£750

£500

£250

The King’s School Christmas

Fayre was a great success

with £203.42 being raised

overall and proceeds from

the TCET Christmas Cards

totaling £113.20. Thank you to

everyone who contributed!

Another thank you to all Sixth

Formers from The King’s

School Senior Choir who

unexpectedly went carol

singing before Christmas and

raised £79.81!

Issue 2 Winter 2011/12 Registered charity no. 1125725