2016 graduate and Community Service Year intern Godfrey has been working with the Marketing and Photography teams here at St Jude’s for the last two months. The talented 21-year-old has been hard at work, helping on a range of projects and improving his skills.
Godfrey’s most recent piece of work is a short video that shares the day in the life of our boarding students.
“I like videos,” he said.
“I like the way I can tell a story through photos and videos. They are a way of expressing feelings in the modern world, they allow us to share stories about the past, the present and look into the future.
“My favourite part of the Community Service Year has been learning new skills with videos and editing and getting the chance to take photos and film videos.
“I enjoyed doing that in A levels (Form 5 and 6) very much. Now that I get the chance to do it full-time, I feel very blessed and very privileged to do what I enjoy.”
Godfrey has big plans for the future.
“I had thought of studying engineering but know I have fallen in love with graphic design and photography and videography,” he said.
“I think now I will go for a course that includes graphic design, photography and videography to keep developing my skills.”
With work like this video it’s not hard to see why. Keep an eye on our social media for more of Godfrey's work!
When you support St Jude’s, you aren’t just providing free education to the poorest and brightest students in Arusha. You’re supporting almost 300 talented, dedicated staff members committed to fighting poverty in their community. In our Staff Spotlight series you get the chance to meet these impressive members of the St Jude’s family.Meet Francis and Godluck – our outstanding school photographers who capture the smiles of our students and let them shine on screens across the world.
Keeping supporters from around the world up-to-date with what is happening in school in Tanzania is a difficult job. But the dynamic duo of Francis and Godluck make it look easy.
These talented photographers capture the essence of the school every day with their beautiful images of students truly appreciating their free, high-quality education.
It’s a big job – photographing more all 1,800 students and providing all the images for our website, social media and newsletter, but Francis and Godluck are up to the task.
“Every child has the right to a good education like at St Jude’s,” Francis said when asked about why he enjoyed working at St Jude’s.
Not only are Francis and Godluck passionate about photography, they are determined to improve education in a country where most children only receive five years of schooling.
“The students are so talented,” Godluck said. “I enjoy how they look after visitors and it is a joy to take their picture.”
As children, neither expected to become a photographer. Francis, a natural mr-fix-it who is currently studying computer science at university, had plotted an entirely different career course.
“When I was younger I actually wanted to be a pilot,” he said.
“It was cool seeing planes fly. As I got older I started to fix radios and cell phones. Cameras were fairly basic until the first camera phones came to Tanzania.
“Then, oh wow, I loved taking photos with my first camera phone and found what I wanted to do!
“My Dad helped me start out. He believed in me. Cameras were really expensive but he was so happy that I had found my calling he did everything he could to help me get my first one. He said ‘We don’t have money but we will find a way.”
Like many young people growing up in Tanzania’s safari hub of Arusha, Godluck wanted to get into the tourism industry.
”I wanted to be a tour guide,” he said.
“I loved seeing the safari trucks and all the amazing animals we have here!”
While photography was not the career either expected, they have found it is their way to help their country and promote the beauty of Tanzania to the outside world.
“I love that so many people around the world are learning more about Tanzania because of St Jude’s,” Francis said.
“They aren’t only helping educate our students – they are learning more about our country and our culture because they are supporting St Jude’s.”
You can also help give underprivileged students a chance at a high-quality education by sponsoring today! Go to: www.schoolofstjude.org/sponsor
‘It was a day of its own kind,’ exclaimed Nestory Msoffe, our Secondary School Headmaster, as he proudly watched 2,000 students, teachers, members of the community and school supporters leave our secondary school.
They had just enjoyed our yearly St Jude’s Day celebrations when we celebrate our school’s namesake and give thanks as we continue our mission to fight poverty through education.
The day began with an assembly full of singing, dancing and speeches celebrating our success and growth from just three students in 2002 to almost 1,800 students now.
Secondary Master Adam Myombe enjoyed the dance performance by our youngest Grade 1 students.
“They sing with such passion. It is so enjoyable to watch them have fun,” he said.
The Glacious dance group of secondary school students was Elton from Form 5’s favourite performance.
“They looked so smart with their black shirts. Their traditional dancing was mesmerising to watch,” he said.
Our school choir sang gospel songs and members of the local church were invited to perform a mass service to bless the school and pray for our student’s success in upcoming exams.
George Stephen, our Primary School Headmaster, said that the mass service was his favourite moment of the day.
“The students behaved very well throughout the service and the choir was fantastic,” he said.
After assembly everyone poured out of the hall to enjoy a scrumptious lunch of ‘royo’, or roast beef, rice and fried bananas with fruit salad for dessert.
“I loved the performances but the lunch was the best,” said Gloria from Grade 6. “Such a treat!’
As Gemma, our school founder, was proud to announce at the start of the assembly, “How happy I am to see how this school has grown over the last 14 years. Here’s to 14 more!”
The future is bright for our graduates who chose to participate in the Community Service Year. Many have now been accepted into the top universities and courses in Tanzania. We are so proud to see that their hard work studying has paid off and wanted to share the happy news with you!
The career paths our graduates have chosen will greatly support the future of Tanzania. These include 16 students who will be studying a Doctor of Medicine or other health degrees, one of the Tanzanian Government’s national priority subjects. Agriculture, Education, Tourism, Engineering and IT are also on the country’s priority list and our list of University acceptances.
Life at University is a big step from Arusha and boarding at St Jude’s. Dorice said her family ‘will cry, but they will be happy for me’ when she leaves to study Medicine. The Catholic University of Health and Allied Sciences where she will study is in Mwanza; a port city on the shores of Lake Victoria in the north-west of Tanzania. Dorice’s new home will be an exciting change from The School of St Jude and Arusha!
Many students are moving to a new place to live. Suleiman is looking forward to life in Tanzania’s largest city Dar Es Salaam on Tanzania’s eastern coast. ‘I am looking forward to a whole new world down in Dar, meeting new people and new styles of living. I will miss this place. I hope I can have a break from the studying to drop-by on occasion and say hello to the people at St. Jude’s!’
To study at University is a great achievement for a Tanzanian; especially one from a background that has allowed them to gain a free scholarship to study at our school. Enock’s story explains this powerfully. ‘It was already a record for three people from the same family going to go to university from my area of Arusha. My young brother will be going to the same university as myself this year and this is the definite definition of the ripple effect. By not having to pay for my education, my parents were better able to help my siblings. Our parents are over the moon! We are now going out there to a new world and I cannot wait to see what my ‘future’ has been preparing for me.’
Suleiman, alongside Dorice, is one of our future Doctors of Medicine and is already getting used to the idea whilst finishing his last week’s volunteering in the St Jude’s Visitors department ‘People in the office have already started addressing me as Doctor Sule! That would make anyone feel important!’
Gemma hopes that she gets “to see our graduates out in the world, working in the careers they want to pursue. To see St Jude’s doctors, engineers and teachers!’ We share this hope and can’t wait to hear about university graduations in the next few years.
The graduates have been accepted into some of the top universities in Tanzania, including;
Christian University of Health and Allied Sciences – 2
Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences – 7
University of Dar es Salaam – 23
Ardhi University - 4
They will be studying;
Finance and commerce – 10
Medicine & health – 16
Engineering – 9
Education – 9
Business – 2
Agriculture – 2
Marine Transport - 1
Watch out; St Jude’s graduates are about! Want to help St Jude's continue to provide a high quality education, donate today!
Meet Winrose, a 2016 graduate, Community Service Year intern and future engineer who will be joining Gemma next year on her Australian tour. This amazing young woman is a shining example of the difference St Jude’s can make in a young person’s life. We are so excited to introduce you to Winrose and share her inspiring story!
As the daughter of a woman who loved learning, but whose parents couldn’t afford to send her to secondary school, Winrose understands the hardship that comes with not having access to education.
Unfortunately this situation is all too common in Tanzania, where 70% of people do not reach secondary school and less than 2% make it to the final two years of school (USAid, 2014). These rates are even lower for girls like Winrose and her mother.
Winrose grew up in the rural village of Mbuguni, where her father worked as a farmer and her mother was a tailor. Unfortunately, her mother passed away when she was in Grade 4 and the responsibility of raising her younger sister and helping her father around the house fell on her shoulders. Many girls in this situation have no choice but to drop out of school, but Winrose was committed to getting the education her mother was never able to receive.
As a primary school student, she walked 2.5km to school each day, shared a desk with 5 other students, had no books, no meals and sometimes no teacher, but she was pushed by a desire to make a brighter future for her family.
“Sometimes I got so hungry during the day at school that I developed stomach ulcers,” Winrose says. ”It was hard to study when there were no teachers and no books.”
After her father realised he was struggling to take care of Winrose and her younger sister, she moved in with her aunt when she was in Grade 5. It was two years later, when Winrose was in Grade 7 that she first heard about St Jude’s. It was the night before our 2009 Form 1 selection day, and at the last minute Winrose was told by one of her friends that she should take the St Jude’s selection exam.
“After hearing that I could fulfil my ambition here (at St Jude’s), I wanted it with all my heart,” Winrose says “I was worried and so excited at the same time, what if I don’t pass and I don’t get to come to this beautiful school?”
Winrose passed her selection exams and our poverty assessment, and in 2010 she started Form 1 at our Smith Secondary Campus.
With access to resources such as computers, a timetable filled with Maths and Science subjects, long hours spent reading in the fully stocked library and teachers who helped her to really understand new concepts, Winrose felt for the first time that her dreams were within reach.
“It (St Jude’s) has made so much difference, because it gave me the assurance that I could achieve my dream, which I never had before (at my government school),” she says. “At St Jude’s I am sure, I know that this is my goal and with this path I can reach it!”
Winrose’s dream is to become an engineer. She wants to work to develop industries that will empower Tanzanians to shape their future and end the cycle of poverty. After graduating this May with the highest possible result, it’s safe to say she is well on her way to achieving her goal.
Following her graduation, Winrose volunteered to be part of a Community Service Year through the Beyond St Jude’s Program, to give back to her community and to show appreciation for those who supported her during her time at St Jude’s.
“Somebody who didn’t know me, they had no idea I existed, but they decided to sponsor me - and I decided that I could help other people also, just like the way I was helped,” she says.
Winrose started her Community Service in July this year, and for the past four months has been volunteering in our St Jude’s Marketing team. If you want to see her in action check out her Winrose Wisdom Wednesday segments.
Interested in helping Winrose and Gemma spread the inspiring story of St Jude’s next year? Contact our tour organiser to plan an event!
From cow dung to insect repellent, industrial waste to bio-gas and plastic bags to building materials; St Jude’s students are applying their first rate scientific education, turning Tanzanian trash into sustainable treasures.
Secondary Headmaster, Nestory Msoffe, was beaming with pride as he inspected over 50 exhibitions from St Jude's students and invited local schools, at the 6th annual St Jude’s Science Day.
“Instead of being content in their circumstances, Science Day gives our students motivation and tools to look for solutions to community challenges and use the resources available to innovate for a better future for our nation,” Mr Msoffe said.
Here's a few examples from the day:
Making plastic fantastic!
Edgar in Form 3 has been working on his Plastic Recycling project since 2014. He was motivated by the challenges of affordable, durable housing in Tanzania as well as environmental concerns.
“Two years ago, I was in Dar es Salaam and there were terrible floods, most of the people’s houses were mud so they were swept away. They made mud houses because they didn’t have money to construct strong houses.
“Tanzania produces 8 billion plastic bags a year, they end up in the rivers so animals get choked and the bags don’t decompose. You can’t say, ‘stop using plastic bags’, because people have very low income and plastic is cheapest.
“Recycling them is the only way to reduce pollution,” he said.
Edgar’s innovation comprises a custom-made metal burner in which he melts plastic bags and combines them with a few other 'secret ingredients' before transferring the mixture into handmade molds to make roof tiles, paving tiles and bricks.
“Tanzania doesn’t produce any roof tiles, most of them are imported from South Africa. If you could recycle plastic bags to make roof tiles, bricks and paving, you could create a whole industry that will give employment to the youth and contribute to development,” Edgar said.
The tenacious teen is still innovating, not content with a first place prize he is looking for materials to incorporate a carbon capture mechanism, of his own design, into the melting machine.
Edgar is also looking to bio-gas options to replace his natural gas burners.
Waste not want not!
Clara, also in Form 3, took out the prestigious Chairman’s Award for her innovation in sustainable energy sources.
With help from her friends and staff supervisor, Mr Amani, the aspiring medical doctor produced bio-gas using cow dung, bacteria, potassium hydroxide, a handful of buckets and pipes, and some cement for sealing.
“Many gases are produced from the decomposition of cow dung using saprophytic bacteria, the main product is methane, which can be very useful,” Clara said.
“When the gases are combusted, they produce bio-gas and can be connected to a gas cylinder which you can use for heating and cooking purposes and can be compressed to produce electricity.
“By using agricultural waste, municipal waste, green waste, sewage and animal waste to make bio-gas, we can make heating and electricity more available, we can lower pollution and deforestation in our environment and save money,” Clara said.
Household Heroes!
Herbal insect repellent made by Juma, Martin and Kilimba (Form 3) out of cow dung and pine needles. When it is burned it can last for many hours and is much cleaner and cheaper than mosquito coils.
“Mosquito coils are not good for you in small spaces, they are like smoking 137 cigarettes,” Kilimba said.
Organic disinfectant using rice, water and fermented milk bacteria, Aneth and Sesilia (Form 3) produced a low-cost, effective disinfectant with applications as varied as unblocking drains, decomposing waste and treating livestock for disease.
"The mixture must be activated with sugar and with the right ratio of molasses to disinfectant; it can be stored for up to 3 years," Aneth said.
Shoe polish – charcoal, water and glycerin combined to make a nifty, low-cost shoe polish. This entry was submitted by Shepherds School, one of the eight local schools who participated in the day.
Crowd Favourites!
Quadcopter Anti-poaching System - The Kilimanjaro International Institute for Telecommunications exhibited a drone, programmed to monitor national parks and alert authorities to the presence of poachers.
"Thirty elephants are killed in Tanzania’s national parks every week, we need to put an end to this," KIIT staff representative, Lui J Ayo said.
Sensor walking stick - Arusha Technical College displayed a walking stick that vibrates when there is a dip in the ground ahead and beeps when there is an obstacle. Students took turns testing it out all afternoon.
"There are many blind people who need full time assistance, with a tool like this, they will be made much more independent and their helper will be freed up to work and bring in some money," ATC student Samoni said.
