Sunday in Dodoma and Mwitikira

“Bwana asifiwe. Ninaitwa Elizabeth. Nimetoka Mmarekani. Ninawaletea salaamu toka Kanisa Kuu la Mtakatifu Yona, katika New York. Nilifika siku ya Jumanne na nitafariya kazi na watoto wa Seremala kwa mwaka mmoja. Nimefurahi kuwepo hapa, na asanteni kwa kutukaribisha.” (approximate translation: Praise the Lord (typical greeting). My name is Elizabeth. I have come from America. I bring you greetings from the Cathedral of St. John in New York. I arrived on Tuesday to work for Carpenter’s Kids for a year. I am happy to be here. Thank you for welcoming me.)

That’s what I said today by way of introducing myself, over a loudspeaker, to almost the entire village of Mwitikira. Thanks to the Swahili skills of Miriam, Noel and Mmoti, I was able to say more than ‘Habari za mchana’ (good afternoon).

Today started out like any normal Sunday for me: I went to church in a cathedral. Of course, instead of the cathedral being in New York, it was here in Dodoma - which must be the dustiest place I have ever been. Sarah and I left our compound at about 8:45am and walked the two and a half blocks down to Miriam’s apartment so we could all walk together to chuch. On our way, we stopped at the New Dodoma Hotel where Eric, visiting from Berkeley, CA, was staying. Then the four of us headed off to the Cathedral of the Holy Spririt to attend the English-language service. As we crossed the railroad tracks, we saw a large crowd of people leaving the Cathedral indicating that the 7:00am service in Swahili had just ended. We entered the gates of the Cathedral and were warmly greeted by a few of the other expats we know. We took our seats and the service began. One of the congregation members spoke briefly and then Bishop Mhogolo gave a brief report about Lambeth. It was nice to hear that we still have an Anglican Communion! Then it was time for all of the visitors to stand up and introduce themselves, so Sarah and I got to introduce ourselves to the congregation.

The celebrant and preacher for the day was Father George Okoth from St. John’s College here in Dodoma. He gave a nice sermon about how we should all be imitators of God. He even had us turn to our neighbors and say ‘We should be imitators of God’ just to make sure that everyone got the message. The service music was provided by a keyboard and a guitar and the hymns were much more contemporary than what we sing at the Cathedral in New York.

After the service, we stood outside talking with members of the congregation. We saw Elisabeth and Pierre, two of our travel companions from the trip to Mikumi and Morogoro, and met more of the teachers from the international school and several of Pierre’s colleagues from MAF. After we’d chatted for about 20 minutes or so, Eric, Sarah, Miriam and I said our goodbyes and headed back to Miriam’s compound so we could meet up with our fellow Carpenter’s Kids staff members to head out to Mwitikira for a distribution.

A distribution is what the official presentation of school uniforms, supplies and shoes to the 50+ Carpenter’s Kids in each linked parish is called. They are big events and are well attended, even by children and families whose children are not officially Carpenter’s Kids. Mwitikira is a village located about an hour and a half’s drive outside of Dodoma. Mwitikira is linked with a church in Virginia, and is one of a small number of parishes in the diocese that is not linked with a church in New York. I believe there are about five such parishes, but I could be mistaken.


Today’s distribution was extra special. A woman named Suzanne (I don’t recall her last name) from Mwitikira’s linked parish has been living out at Mwitikira for the past 6 weeks. Today was her last day in the parish and so the distribution was a sort of big goodbye party in a way.

When we arrived in Mwitikira, there was already a large crowd gathered around the area that had been roped off for the distribution. There was a group of about 15 women singing and playing drums. We got out of the cars and were immediately greeted by some of the village’s children. Shy faces extended shy hands and whispered “Habari” or occassionally “Hello.” We made our way over to the house Suzanne had been living in for the past six months and were introduced to the parish priest, Father Erasto, and his wife, Rebecca, and several others, including the head of the village primary school. We sat on chairs and couches in the living room and chatted for awhile as we signed the village guest book. Then warm water was brought around and poured over our hands so we could wash the dust off before we had lunch. We had a hearty lunch of rice, beans and chicken and when Miriam, Sarah and I finished our food (we had been served first) more food was brought over so we could finish it. Considering that Suzanne said she’d been eating mostly vegetarian fare for the last six weeks, we were certainly honored to have chicken.

After we’d finished, Pastor Noah said it was time to begin the distribution. One of the Carpenter’s Kids land rovers drove through the village playing music and announcing that it was time to begin. In the 30 minutes or so we’d been inside an even bigger crowd had gathered. We made our way over to where a table and row of chairs had been set up inside the roped off area. The villages 136 Carpenter’s Kids were assembled in front of the table, some sitting on benches and others sitting on the ground. There were people all around the roped off area, standing, sitting on short benches, sitting on the ground and even in a large tree. The women were still singing and drumming, so Miriam suggested that we (Miriam, Sarah and I) go over and join them. So, we did. We joined the circle and the women showed us the hand movements and dance steps and we danced along with them.

About 10 minutes later, everything was set up and it was time to go back to our seats for introductions. Pastor Noah opened with a prayer and then we each introduced ourselves. I stumbled through my Swahili, but I think people were able to get the gist of it. After everyone introduced themselves, Pastor Noah made some remarks about each of us. I have no idea what he said about me, but people clapped so I would assume it was good. Once we’d all introduced ourselves, Suzanne made a short speech in Swahili. She’d been studying Swahili at home since January, so she was able to say a great deal. Then, the fun began!

Suzanne’s church started out sponsoring 50 children, but this year they added an additional 86 children to bring the total number of children from Mwitikira that they sponsor up to 136. So, on Sunday 86 children received their very first school uniform, shoes and school supplies as well as 2 family sized mosquito nets. The original 50 children also received new school uniforms, shoes and supplies. They’d already received their mosquito nets during their first year in the program. All of the Carpenter’s Kids received a bright blue sweater, a sturdy backpack, a compass set and rulers. The children’s guardians received a large bottle of lotion and about 5 bars of soap. The big excitment came when each of the 136 Carpenter’s Kids were given their very own mattress to sleep on. Suzanne also purchased enough pencils so all of the children in the village could have one, not just the Carpenter’s Kids.

The distribution took longer than I imagined it would, but I got to help as well. After all of the uniforms, backpacks and supplies had been handed out and the children had changed into their new uniforms, it was time to distribute the shoes. We helped to unpack them and then we got to call out names and hand the shoes to the kids. They immediately pulled out the pair of socks that was stuffed into one shoe and put them on and then tried on their new shoes. Miriam and I helped some of the kids tie their shoes, which was fun. Once that was done, there were 136 children in new uniforms and shoes sitting proudly in front of us. A few people made some closing remarks, including Miriam as this is the last visit she’ll make to Mwitikira on staff with Carpenter’s Kids, and then Pastor Noah closed with a prayer.

It was amazing how quickly the crowd dispersed, taking new clothes and school supplies and mattresses with them. Many people wanted to shake hands and say thank you. Some of the elder village women even kissed my hand after they shook it. I couldn’t even begin to tell you the number of people’s hands I shook.

I am extremely grateful that I get to be a part of something that obviously makes a difference. It was a shock to go from the relative affluence of Dodoma to the complete need of Mwitikira. I was struck by how little people had in terms of material wealth-the way in which we in the so-called developed world tend to measure things-and yet there was a richness in Mwitikira that I have never experienced before. The women who were singing before the distribution began were singing songs of thankfulness and praise to God for their many blessings. After spending a few hours in Mwitikira and being welcomed by everyone, I really understood why they were so sincere in their singing.

I think this will be an experience that I’ll need to continue to think about and reflect on to really ‘get’ everything. The things that will stay with me the most are the looks on the faces of the children who received their school uniforms and supplies and the looks on the faces of the children who are not part of Carpenter’s Kids who watched from the sidelines. Big smiles of joy on the one hand and looks of longing on the other. Shaking small, rough hands and looking into the eyes of the village elders who look far older than they actually are truly brings the importance of the work that programs like Carpenter’s Kids do home. I can definitely understand why Suzanne said that the 137th child, the one who didn’t make the final list to become a Carpenter’s Kid, haunts her.

There is a great deal of need in Mwitikira. There is a great deal of need in all of the villages of the Diocese of Central Tanganyika. But it is not a need for pity. It is a need for action. For togetherness. We can do that. We can do that very easily and we are doing it. Through programs like the Carpenter’s Kids we are, with our partners and friends here in Tanzania, making very real difference in the lives of some wonderful children. This morning Father George said “We are called to be immitators of God.” I saw that happen today in Mwitikira and it was amazing.