Last February, the Woven Africa team was visiting a Masaai village far in the bush.
While there, our partner Philip Nasari started drawing a map in the sand indicating a village around the mountain that had no school or water. Philip had been approached by the maasai elders of this community, asking for help in developing a school for their children, who had to walk three hours to the closest school each day. He spoke of the ‘children around the mountain’ and Loom committed to go and visit this place. Our first visit was in March 2019.
Now, come on a journey with Loom staff Janna and Colleen and see this incredible community and the transformation that has begun.
The drive to Ngusreo is dry, bumpy, and dusty. We left the paved road many kilometers back.
Water here is scarce – and must be carried in from over a hill, about 20 km away. (Even then, options were limited to stagnant water filled with bacteria or muddy water that gathers in small puddles after a rain).
But today, a celebration was happening with hundreds of community members present!
The brand new school is open….
…and, it has water!
A loud cheer went up about the water, and the tap is already built. When they turned it on to show us, people came running with containers.
We honor the grandmothers who pursued a future for the children of their communities, walking 20km to present their case to a pastor, who then connected them with Philip.
When Phillip shared his vision with us through a stick drawing in the dirt last February, we could never have imagined that eight months later, we would be standing here and celebrating the opening of a new school in Ngusero. Celebrating the opening of the school this week was a beautiful reminder that together, change is possible: The village grandmothers initiated the project, and together the village donated the land for the school property. A Korean businessman helped fund the building, others gave desks and chairs, and your contribution brought in a critical water supply and fencing.
Your donations towards our August matching fund, as well as the generous donations of other individuals, created the spark of acceleration needed for exponential impact to begin. Now, the community will live up to its name, The Place of Laughter, as children have their own school and the opportunity of a better life.
Thank you for believing in “the children around the mountain.” Thank you for believing in the power of local social innovators to build holistic models of sustainability. It is through your partnership that we had the privilege of witnessing this transformation take place.
