Trust Report 2009

Dear all,

I would like to update you on the Trust's progress. Sanchat has had a very good year and I feel that we have achieved so much, so here is the report as of January 2010.

We now have 50 boys in the Restart Centre and think this will be the ceiling for the time being for my conscience tells me, we have to start a small pilot scheme for little girls. There are three little girls at the moment in particular, aged one and a half, two and a half and 12 from the same family, who has a father but no mother. The father was malnourished to the point of death and when we rescued him and his children we discovered he had a very severe thyroid problem. He was not functioning as a normal human being and his mind was delusional and hallucinatory. We brought his three young sons to us, rescued the father, treated the father but the little girls couldn't come to us, or could they go to Saidia for they have a father! We put them into another orphanage called the Bridge of Hope but I am very unhappy with them there and believe it will be closed down very soon. So, I have to take in these children and we will have to rent accommodation very close to the restart, one of our matrons will be with them all day and night and they will join in with food and activities etc etc. We will put a limit to 20 girls for honestly, Terry and I cannot afford more.

We started the Ethical Fashion Partnership in October. This is a combined project of United Nations and the Italian fashion houses. Since then we have taken on approximately 100 women and some men and have managed to produce 36,000 tote bags for Easter. This has been the most amazing experience for everyone involved. Not only do they work and earn good money but we also, at the same time, counsel them in living values, positive thinking etc. This has made a tremendous difference to all of them and we have a bright, happy, self empowered group of people! So we know it works and that is wonderful. We have HIV positive women, we have women from the slums, anyone can come as long as they are trained properly and their attitude is one of self respect, and positivity. I really do believe that we can actually start changing the people in this way.

The agri-project, whilst still waiting for a bore-hole, we have identified our project manager, he has completed an advanced computer course, and on February the 11th he will be going to Real IPM in Thikka for training. This is a unique place of study where everything is organic, natural and state of the art for Africa. There will be studies made on our soil in Gilgil so that we can train the people to grow the correct, nutritional plants and vegetables. All fertilisers will be natural and in and around their own shambas. We will use vermiculture (worms) so that our people in Gilgil can produce not only enough food for their homes and their families, that is of highest nutritional value, but the quantity will be so great that they will be able to sell their produce on the open market, for others to benefit from.

The waste project is coming on well - we have an expert from Texas called Pete who is coming next week and he is without a doubt the keenest and most enthusiastic person for waste that I have ever met! Our schools will be involved with this with the recycling of water and also waste food, not to mention that they are thinking of placing a gasification machine that will of course take up human waste and produce energy as the end product. Along with this, comes the briquette making which Pete is also an expert in. We are going to work with getting the density right and then will start producing briquettes from waste which people will buy and utilise for heat and cooking instead of charcoal and wood! This could be very beneficial to our whole community and will involve the youth and men in this scheme as before all who enter any Sanchat schemes will be counselled and their attitudes will be changed into one of self respect and self empowerment.

Our big news on the schools, the academic side of our trust, is that we have been inspected and investigated with the end result being that we have been granted exactly the same status as Starehe Boys and Starehe Girls School. This is a huge compliment to Kennedy Hongo, our schools administrator and to all our staff, not to mention the children. At this moment in time we have at least 85% orphaned, destitute or needy children, this is far greater that Starehe. We are hoping for the best that someone will recognise what we are doing and what we have achieved and help us financially with this really great cause for these children who otherwise would never have a secondary school education.

Just as an addendum, Sammy Smith, from our Restart got an A in his primary school certificate examinations and came top in the zone for social studies and English. He will be coming to Coulson Boys School at the beginning of February.

We look forward to 2010 as a year of more progress, more upliftment and more self-empowerment for everyone in the community.

Lots of love,
Mary

Executive Director,
SANCHAT, The Sanata Charitable Trust