It Takes a Village to Raise a Child

You have no doubt seen the African proverb “It takes a village to raise a child.” Having heard it recited a few too many times, especially in education circles, I felt it had pretty much lost its punch until I had the powerful experience of seeing the phrase come to life in its continent of origin― in a small African village in Zambia. Then it took on a whole new meaning.  

While staying at the quaint Waterberry Zambezi Lodge halfway between Livingstone, Zambia, and the famed Victoria Falls, I spent one morning traveling by boat down the wide and beautiful Zambezi River to visit the tiny neighboring village of Siandunda that you won’t find on any map. It’s where many of the employees at the Lodge live, and our guide, a Waterberry Zambezi Lodge employee who spoke excellent English, was proud to show us his home.

In Siandunda, there’s no running water, plumbing or electricity. Families live in simple mud huts with thatched roofs. When the huts start to fall apart, community members come together to build new ones. There are no windows and no locks on the doors of these simple residences. Goats and chickens run freely. The people in the village are friendly and seem happy. Their care and concern for their neighbors is obvious.

In the center of the village hanging on a large tree is a makeshift bell that can be tapped with a stick to make a loud noise. Our guide explained that the elder of the village might “ring” the bell to call all the adults in the village to a meeting.

“What would be discussed at a typical meeting?” I asked. He explained that most commonly, the elder would call a meeting to ask parents for help with a particular project at the nearby school. I couldn’t help but think that even in tiny Siandunda, just like in bustling Burlingame, schools need parent involvement to be successful. These parents, despite different cultures and languages, thousands of miles of distance and tremendous economic disparities, are just like us.

There’s no school in the village but there is one about seven miles away. Most of the older children walk that distance to get to school each day. As I walked through the village, I struck up a conversation with a teenager. I asked him what he wanted to be when he grew up. He proudly told me he wanted to be a teacher. He loved learning about math and English, and he wanted to pass that on to future generations. He will most likely get his wish. Most of the teachers at the village school have a high school education, although there are a select few who get sent to the university to continue their education. Those few who go on to the university may choose to become teachers, or may discover other careers that beckon them.

At the Waterberry Zambezi Lodge, the innkeepers consider themselves part of the community and are concerned about the people of Siandunda and making their lives better. They’re working with the villagers to build a school in Siandunda for the younger children who are too young to walk the seven miles to the nearby school.

“Our main objective is to empower the community to run their own school – facilitating and guiding, but not taking over the process,” Kevin Immelman, the Lodge manager told me. They’re collecting funds and supplies to make their dream a reality.

Donations go towards teachers’ salaries and training, stationery, equipment, toys and teaching aids, and curriculum materials. A feeding scheme to supply one meal per day to the children and teachers is in the pipeline. Eventually they hope to raise enough money to expand the school, train more teachers and buy desks, chairs and playground equipment. They tell all their guests about the project and ask for donations.

The village community has chosen the name Tukongote Community School. This name describes the open billed storks as they fly off together, and that’s the image that appears on the school logo. Their motto is "Together we educate." It really does take a village.

If you too would like to be part of the extended community supporting the school, you can send a monetary donation. The simplest way is via Western Union. This is the most efficient as the post office is slow and unreliable.

On transfer, you will need to state the name of the recipient and the country. You have to send to an individual and not a company, as proof of identification is required to claim the money. You can send transfers to Lynette Rink, who co-ordinates community projects for Waterberry Zambezi Lodge, or to their General Manager, Kevin Immelman.

Name: Lynette Rink or Kevin Immelman

Country: Zambia

You will be asked to give a personal test question and answer.

Once paid, let them know the following information via email at Waterberry Zambezi Lodge:

Lynette: community@waterberrylodge.com or Kevin: activities@waterberry.com

1. The name that you sent the payment to

2. The MTCN number (reference number they give you on sending)

3. Your personal test question

4. The answer to your personal question

5. The currency and amount paid

Or if you would like to send specific items, the school is in particular need of story books, picture books of real things, and children’s bible stories, books of activities, games and things to make for little ones, coloring books and colored pencils, educational toys, plastic animals, stickers, Play-Doh, Legos, mini blackboards, teddy bears and fluffy toys in bulk quantities of 35 or more. Send items via DHL (connected to Postnet) or FedEx .  Address to: Waterberry Zambezi Lodge, Livingstone, Zambia. Include the contact details and telephone numbers below on the parcel:

Kevin Immelman  Cell: +260 97 427 0990  Land line: +260 21 332 7455.

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