Nyenyezi Ministry

Focus Group: Children and women in the rural community

 We organize activities for children and women in the community. Most of the children that attend our programs are orphans or half orphans. Many of these children live with grandparents or other extended family. Most of the children do not attend school because they cannot afford it. They need money for a uniform, shoes, notebooks and pencils and for the minimum school fees. Our programs are for children between 3 and 16 years of age, and we have reading programs for the women.

Area: Chinsapo, Lilongwe District 46

The area where we serve is officially a district of Lilongwe. The living standard is very low, most people live in huts, and some have metal roofs. At this time there is no electricity (yet). Water is in a central location, and the women can go there to get there water, but they have to pay 6 Kwacha per bucket. For some even this is too much so these women get their green/brown water from the river. The area is widespread but is very densely populated.

Purpose: To instill HOPE for today and the future

This is accomplished by means of our Evangelism programs such as the Children’s Bible Clubs, as well as Christian reading lessons, hygiene and health lessons, games and occasional distribution of clothing, snacks, booklets, etc. We hope to establish a Christian preschool for the children between the ages of 4 to 7 to give them a solid educational foundation before they go to the “big school”. (We have seen many children drop out of school because the lesson material was way beyond their level of comprehension).

Community Support:

We are blessed to have a good relationship with the local Chief. We regularly discuss our plans with him. He is very thankful for our programs. He believes there is much less gossip and boredom because we keep the women and children occupied. Currently we have our programs under the canopy of a large tree where all the public functions are held. Last May (2014) we were able to obtain a large portion of land, which was partially donated by the Chief. At this time the bricks are being made there by members of the community. The women haul the water from the river, the men make the bricks and another team is building the brick kiln.  An acquaintance has designed the building plans for what we have imagined. It will have two large rooms, a storage area and living quarters for a teacher.

What we do: Children’s and Women’s Programs

Four times a week we offer reading classes for the women in the community. In the cold season the attendance is high, in the hot season it is very low. People are out preparing their fields before the rainy season begins. Each lesson begins with a topic from the Bible and we end with an opportunity for questions. Those questions can be about anything you can imagine! Sometimes we enjoy fellowship with a cup of tea. Occasionally we offer a small reward such as a bar of soap. We introduce health issues, and we plant Moringa and Papaya trees.

One day a week we offer two children’s programs. We tell Bible stories, teach many songs, let the children make up and sing their own songs, sometimes we teach a lesson with drama, teach HIV-Aids prevention, colour pictures, play games, and offer treats or surprises. For these children this is the highlight of their week. The children earn points for memory, which they can use to exchange for school supplies. Several of the older children who have been attending the Bible club are now attending school for the first time.

We also help people who have extreme needs. For example, there is a 14 year old handicapped girl who has a 2 year old baby. She had been raped. She lives with her Grandmother who has 7 other children in her care. She is spastic and cannot speak, and they were both very malnourished, so we give them cereal and milk for breakfast every day.

Vision: Nyenyezi Community Building for Pre-school, literacy and child evangelism

The new building will become multifunctional, in the mornings it will be used for Preschool, in the afternoon it will be used for the Bible Club and for the reading programs and eventually it will be used on Saturdays for other gatherings such as a mobile clinic, health and agriculture programs, etc.

Current needs:

We have been able to continue running our programs the past year with financial support and have also been able to begin our building project. We are extremely grateful for that. The land was paid for with a special gift we received from a Women’s ministry group in Canada. This was the confirmation we needed to continue with ‘our’ plans. To continue our mission we would like to appeal to everyone who has the means to bless those who are less fortunate. This could be individual donations, or groups such as your club, society, or school. Do you feel inclined? Listed below are the costs that need to be covered:

-     Firewood (and the means of transport) to bake the bricks

-     Building and plastering the brick kiln

-     Digging a water cistern

-     Building outhouses

-     Digging and transporting building sand

-     Cement

-     Building the foundation

-     Construction (salaries for brick layers)

-     Wood for the trusses

-     Metal roofing material

-     Carpenters for roof construction

If you are willing to support our building project, or you know of a group who would like to fundraise for it, we would greatly appreciate it! Send us an email and we will give you details on money transfer.

On behalf of hundreds of children and many women, we already thank you SO much! We would like to say wholeheartedly: MULUNGU AKUKUDALITSENI! (May God Bless You!!!!)

Neema Grace Muhone and Mirjam Molenaar, founders and project leaders