|
I was able to sneak away from the hospital to photograph our students in classes. It was wonderful to peek in and I always forget how much they all love to be “snapped”! The eagerness that these young people show for learning is inspirational and encouraging. The outreach ended at 2:00 p.m. We all grabbed a quick lunch and boarded the school bus for the trip to Kaduna! The bus was full of Kaduna friends who were to be dropped at various locations. Bob and I were to stay overnight in Kaduna before an early pick-up to travel on to Kafanchan, the next leg of our trip. It was important to be on the road and get to Kaduna before dark. We began our journey, traveling out of Gusau through farmland - fields and herds of cattle. We had been on the road for several hours when the bus began acting up - it slowed to an idle. The electronic throttle was not working properly. We pulled to the side of the road and the hood was lifted, wires jiggled - to no avail. Luckily, we were on the outskirts of Zaria, a large college town. The bus limped along and coasted into a gas station - with a mechanic! It took the mechanic and his electrician friend about an hour to rewire the throttle . . . and we were on our way once again. We arrived in Kaduna around 7:30 and dropped our friends at the the bus transfer stop, continuing on to our hosts, where we were to spend the night. We were welcomed with a delicious meal and were then driven to our nearby lodging for the night - showers and sleep!
0 Comments
There was a buzz of excitement as we got dressed for the dedication of the hospital and the hall. Festivities started at 10:00 and lasted until noon. The grounds were filled with dignitaries and clergy, including the representative of the Emir of Zamfara State. We gathered within the school walls and then set off to the hospital, a football field length away. The crowd gathered at the emergency room entrance, where Dr. Samaila from Kaduna cut the ribbon. We then walked to the man entrance, where Bob and I were given the honors of cutting the ribbon. From there, clergy proceeded in and blessed each room throughout the building.
We then proceeded back to the exam hall, where the Emir’s representative cut the ribbon. Bob and I were given the honor of unveiling the plaque. The crowd streamed into the computer lab, library, and teachers’ room before heading upstairs to the hall. Blessings were given in each room. Throughout the dedication, the local television station covered the news. It was a wonderful celebration, bringing together friends, partners, cultures and religions- amazing to see in person! The support pledged for both the school and the hospital from all involved was truly moving.
After the festivities ended, around 12:00 noon, we gathered to eat lunch and change clothing...then proceeded to the hospital and treated 153 patients! I was able to meet with a small group of teachers and the administrative team to discuss the progress made at the school. In addition, we discussed the formation of a maintenance budget, which would allow us to make necessary repairs from normal wear and tear. We discussed items such as replacement of computers and furniture, bus maintenance, supply requisitions, and physical plant repair including painting, plastering, plumbing, and other miscellaneous expenditures. This budget will be discussed with members of the building committee, as well as with administration, and forwarded to AEP for review.  Items still needed to make the school complete In addition, there was a discussion of a wish list of items still needed to make the school complete. The list includes the following:
 We were very excited to get a tour of the school after our survey of the hospital. The changes in just a year’s time were quite remarkable. The exam hall was completed and is truly beautiful. The exam hall is on the second floor; below on the first floor is an 18-desk computer lab, a media center with two computers, a teachers’ work room, and three administrative offices. The structure is quite large and is outfitted with fans and lights. The upstairs hall can also be used for community functions when not being used during the school day. There is also a high speed copy machine, something that was desperately needed the last time we visited! The site for the new borehole was shown to us. Although the ground is still too saturated with water from the recent rainy season, the blocks are made and once the water table lowers, construction will commence. The borehole is oversized and will service both the school and hospital. Many thanks to Canton/Avon Rotary Club for their support of the borehole project.  We arrived in Abuja in the early morning at approximately 5:00 a.m., Nigeria time (5 hours ahead). We had been on the move for about 24 hours. We got through immigration and collected our bags and were met by George, Bishop John’s right-hand man, at about 7:00 a.m. People and bags were loaded into the Graceland International school van and our journey to Gusau began. After seven hours in the van, we arrived in Gusau at about 2:00 p.m. After a lunch break, we headed over to Graceland Hospital to scope out the traffic flow for the medical outreach, scheduled to start the next day. At 4:00, we headed over to the Graceland International School to meet with the team of volunteers who will be working at the outreach. We were surprised to see many old friends from Kaduna who graciously volunteered their time and talents in support of this initial Gusau medical outreach. In addition, Gusau volunteers consisting of school personnel, local community members, and area doctors and nurses. We all met in the school library and discussed logistics and gave out assignments. After the meeting, we convened upstairs to the hall and shared a meal together. What an amazing site to see - there had been a transformation since our last trip in August 2017. The hall fully functioning and is beautiful!  A view of Graceland International Hospital from the school exam hall. The vacant lot is school property and is currently being used to grow rice as a cash crop.  Logistics meeting held in the Graceland School Library with volunteers, in preparation for the medical outreach. Board member Elaine Chagnon and her husband Bob are left on a trip to Nigeria, visiting Gusau and Kaduna state, on Monday October 8th. While in Gusau they attended the official opening and dedication of Graceland Anglican Hospital, on Saturday October 13th. The hospital is a project of our sister organization, Kateri Medical services, which has already built several clinics in Nigeria, these mainly serve the rural poor, who have little access to medical services. Graceland Anglican Hospital is adjacent to Graceland International School. The proximity of the hospital to the school will give our students the opportunity for hands on experience in a medical environment.  On the same day the multi purpose hall (aka Exam Hall) was also officially dedicated. This day of celebration is the fruit of a lot of planning and hard work by Africa Education Partnership, both by our partners and donors here in the USA and by our dedicated partners in Gusau, whose original vision is now realized. The Celebrations began at 10 am with many national and local dignitaries in attendance. A representative of the Emir of Zamfara State cut the ribbon at the hall opening.  Board member Elaine Chagnon and her her husband Bob are leaving on a trip to Nigeria, visiting Gusau and Kaduna state. While in Gusau they will will attend the official opening and dedication of Graceland Anglican Hospital. The hospital is a project of our sister organization, Kateri Medical services, which has already built several clinics in Nigeria, which mainly serve the rural poor, who have little access to medical services. Graceland Anglican Hospital is adjacent to Graceland International School. The proximity of the hospital to the school will give our students the opportunity for hands on experience in a medical environment.  On the same day the multi purpose hall (aka Exam Hall) will also be officially dedicated.
This day of celebration is the fruit of a lot of planning and hard work by Africa Education Partnership, both by our partners and donors here in the USA and by our dedicated partners in Gusau, whose original vision is now realized. The Celebrations begin at 10 am with many national and local dignitaries in attendance, including The Most Rev’d Dr. Nicholas D. Okoh Archbishop, Primate and Metropolitan of All Nigeria Anglican Communion, as the guest of honor.
His vision of the power of education is one that is sorely needed in Nigeria, where school attendance even at the most basic level is far from where it should be. This lack of access to education is hampering the economic and community development of Nigeria, especially in the Northern States where school attendance is the lowest in the nation. Mandela (aka Madiba, his clan name), understood the power that education has to overcome prejudice and promote reconciliation. “We are steadily but surely introducing education that enables our children to exploit their similarities and common goals, while appreciating the strength in their diversity.” He believed that children educated together would do much to eliminate the historical racial divides that plagued South Africa since the arrival of European colonists in the mid-17th. Century. Africa Education Partnership has a similar vision, we and our partners in Nigeria want Graceland International School to provide a quality education for boys and girls from all backgrounds, regardless of religious and ethnic background. One of our stated ams is in the spirit of Nelson Mandela’s vision to “promote peace, reconciliation and gender equality in education”
We welcome our very first Guest Blogger the Revd. Amjad Samuel. What do you call an event that brings together churches, youth, Irish music, concert goers, and sandwiches to help change the world through education halfway around the world? On August 1, 2018 Africa Education Partnership created a beautiful synergy between a diverse gathering of interest groups to raise over a thousand dollars for Graceland International School in Gusau, Zamfara State of Nigeria. Last year St. Paul’s Episcopal Church youth, Carly Hajducky, had collected books for Graceland School. This year she took on the challenge of organizing and promoting a fundraiser for Graceland. She designed a beautiful flier, and with the help of her mom, Jody Wilson, she placed the flier at different locations in Shelton, CT. She created an engaging campaign on social media to promote this event. St. Paul’s Episcopal Church also paid to boost Carly’s campaign on Facebook. The response to Carly’s hard work and the popularity of the Highland Rovers Band resulted in a crowd of over 400 people gathering on the Huntington Green for a beautiful summer concert with family, friends and pets.  AEP, through some timely effort by Peter Dewberry – an AEP board member, provided Carly and her team of volunteers some simple and yet eye-catching T-Shirts. St. Paul’s Mission and Evangelism Committee, Vestry, and parishioners wore those T-shirts as they joined Carly and her team.
Elaine Chagnon, a member of Trinity Episcopal Church in Tariffville, CT and AEP board member, organized a beautiful information booth. Her booth included poster size photos of Graceland International School through the various stages of its growth, telling the story of collaboration and success in some very effective ways. Elaine also had newsletters and brochures sharing information and news about the various activities surrounding AEP’s commitment to Graceland. All this together created a presence for AEP on the Huntington Green that simply could not be missed! Adding to this presence was The Whey Station Food Truck. The Whey Station is a gourmet sandwich food truck company. On the day of the event, it generously donated all its income – including the cost of the sandwiches and the time of its staff and other overheads – for this cause. This is the second time this year that The Whey Station has made such an incredibly generous contribution to AEP. We are deeply appreciative of their generosity. The sandwich truck, the information booth, and the supporting team were all in place by 6:30PM when the crowd started gathering to listen to the Highland Rovers, a popular Irish music band from Shelton, CT. As the concert goers walked to the green for the concert at 7PM, the AEP team started interacting with them and sharing with them the story of Graceland International School. The Highland Rovers encouraged people to buy the sandwiches and support the cause. In just two hours the team raised over four hundred dollars in direct donations from the most cooperative crowd! The online donations and checks are still trickling in. Please feel free to donate to this fundraiser during the month of August. The net result of the event is an important reminder: we can all come together, from all different walks of life, to create a better world. Musicians, concert goers, church members, young, not so young, businesses, passers-by, anyone can join in to change the world by building schools in parts of the world that may not otherwise afford to do it on their own. And yes, if you are reading it online, you can go to www.africaep.org right now and contribute to keep this important work going; there is no reason not to! Photo: The AEP team that made the event so successful. |
Categories
All
Archives
October 2018
|
RSS Feed
About |
Projects |
|
Africa Education Partnership 501(c)3 | 99 Sand Hill Road, South Windsor CT 06074
© COPYRIGHT 2018. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Site by PluginMatter