Chapattis are go!

Good morning one and all,

As I am exploding my budget on airtime, I’m having to rein in my internet use a little hence no post yesterday. Times are hard.

To set the scene, as I pen this update, the sun is beating down outside and James is sat on the other side of our small living room come kitchenette in a cloud of flour making chapattis. He has been threatening to do so for the last 4 weeks but until today always found a reason not to: lack of time, materials etc. So last weekend I picked up the necessary chapatti flour and this week Benson made us a rolling pin so now there is no more excuses. He looks a little like a minstrel right now … are we allowed to say that anymore?

Following the excitement of the tea factory, the last couple of days have been filled with more traditional work… the work I am used to doing in Paris. At the start of the week I was asked to produce a document which presents how St. Anna must adapt in order continue to grow and serve its students and the community over the next 10 years. So on Thursday evening I started the loftily entitled “St. Anna Day Care Centre – Strategic Plan 2010-2020: A roadmap for the coming 10 Years”. Catchy title eh!

My story board is still broad brush, but to sum it up, the St Anna Day Care Centre was started in 1994 as monthly fellowship meeting for the elderly. Now over 15 years old, the centre is unrecognizable from its humble beginnings, and its role has changed considerably.

Before defining in detail what needs to remain the same/change/be done, my plan is first to revisit the existing vision of St. Anna with the teachers and governors:
. Core purpose: Why do we exist?
. Core values: What are the ideals that underlie the school and its actions?
. Envisioned Future: Does the vision of St. Anna established in 1994 still fit with that of today and furthermore 2020? If not what is the desired future state of the school? Where are do we wish to go?

Armed with the answers to the above questions and almost certainly a new vision, I will zoom in on the pillars of the school that together should deliver this new vision:
i. Structure & Organization: How will the school need to be structured and organized
ii. Stakeholders: How will we work with, and address and balance the expectations of the different groups?
a. Students
b. Teachers
c. Community
d. Sponsors
e. Partners
f. Education authority
iii. Infrastructure & Projects: What will need to be built, developed and undertaken to deliver the vision?
iv. Finance: How will the school and all its pillars be financed?

The answers to these questions will form the basis for our Strategic Intent i.e. what it is we have to do: a set of overarching measurable, time-limited goals that we should commit to achieving.
Impressed?!

What else has been happening? Hmm? This morning I was up at the crack of dawn to meet with my namesake the stone mason to walk the short distance to Jane’s place (the lady whose house is collapsing). We had agreed earlier in the week to go so he could cast his professional eye over the place and decide the best course of action: repair or rebuild. John the school tailor asked if he could tag along…maybe he fancied the walk, maybe he thought he could darn the holes her house, but whatever his motivation he brought mangos with him so he was more than welcome.

It had rained hard over night so the ground was very heavy going. By the time we had got to the school gate, it felt like walking with ski-boots on. Looking down at my feet I saw had brought most of the school grounds with me. Matthew and John didn’t seem too bothered, so I stamped my feet and carried on.

We found Jane sat on the ground peeling maize. She welcomed us with a smile of recognition and some bananas. Jane gave Matthew the guided tour pointing out the worst areas of erosion & subsidence which she had valiantly but unsuccessfully tried to plug with plastic bags.

Ever since I first met Matthew and greeted him in Kikuyu, he has been convinced I speak fluently, so having eyed-up the house he started to shout instructions to me. I personally find it quite comical, but seeing as the situation was serious I approached John for translation. Here is what Matthew was telling me:

. Her house could be repaired, but for the amount of work required, you might as well re-build it.
(I agreed and that was our decision right there)
. The new house is to be 30ft x 15 ft divided into 4 rooms
. We will require 900 bricks at KES7/brick (KES6,300 or £63)
. Transporting the bricks will cost the same again (KES6,300 or £63)
. Labour will be estimated and he will get back to me on Monday with the quote.

By my reckoning, we might be able to build Jane a new home for under £200!

I showed Matthew what I had noted down so he could double check, and he is now more convinced than ever that I speak Kikuyu.

When got back home from Jane’s about an hour ago, I set to work completing the design for the school & community library. Having thought more about converting the container into a library and the cost estimate I got from the States, I started to ask around locally and on Thursday found a company in Nairobi that do the same. They only require a design to give us a quote, so yesterday afternoon before football I began to design a library (floor plan, windows, separator panels, shelves etc.) It was great fun.

The design brief is as follows: “To convert the existing 20ft x 8ft container at St. Anna Day Centre into a library accessible to the school and community alike. It should be both a place to check out books and have a reference section; it should therefore also be able to receive 2 or 3 at a time people in relative comfort”.

The non-technical specs are simple enough:
i. Container: 20ft x 8ft
ii. Windows:
a. Cut into 3 walls (north, east & south facing) allowing sufficient light to enter
b. Must be possible to open windows, ideally with sliding mechanism
c. Protection bars for each window
d.Ideally made from PVC (the north side of the container looks onto the school playing field)
iii. Light fittings should be included. Possible deepening of the ceiling framework for connection/plug to be built in
iv. Power supply for computer
v. Thought must be given to airing/cooling/ventilating the container, possibly through a coating of some description

With it duly completed I shot it off to Nairobi and now await the quote. It goes without saying that I will let you now the full SP when I get a response.

Having had such fun doing the library, I am now starting the design for Jane’s house!

Before I sign off, I wanted to let you know that for those of you who have agreed to sponsor a child on the waiting list and who have already set-up the monthly transfer, the child should start arriving at the school next week (if the child isn’t already at the school that is). If you recall the story of Allen and Annette, they arrived on Wednesday of this week…and were greeted with 3 full days of exams! It’s that time of the term.

I hope you realise the difference you are making to their lives. The £17 it costs to put a child through school is half of what most parents or guardians earn in a month. One of the guardians of an existing student (Peter Mbugua) was so happy he brought me a bucket of mangos! I counted 53. We shared them with the children last night.

Oooh disaster for the chapattis…we are out of gas apparently! Well, that’s the afternoon errand sorted.

Kwihoka inyuthe muriega (I hope you all are well)