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.

In a restaurant garden the graduates came dressed to impress. The sun shone as they began arriving. Alongside the food and drink were speeches from the school founder Gemma, the Community Service Year interns, the Beyond St Jude’s team and other graduates. It was more than just a school reunion; it was family reunion for the School of St Jude.

For Enock, the reunion was part of a very happy weekend of events.

“It was our first ever reunion and one of my best weekends of 2016. I had so much fun and 24 hours later I received my university acceptance news!”

The whole event was entrusted to a select number of interns and they pulled it off wonderfully! The staff who were lucky enough to be invited were all highly impressed by what the interns had organised. It was not just a social event, it became an opportunity for past students to communicate their ideas for the future with one another, with the school and with a few current students who were in attendance.

The event was a great opportunity to be reacquainted with everyone, as alongside our Community Service Year interns were the students who had decided to move straight on to university. Those who have spent the past year at university, including Jackson and Editha, got up to share tips and stories to help our interns for the year ahead. Jackson warned his peers about the struggles of budgeting, living with new people and coming to class adequately prepared to learn. 

Community Service Year interns, Joseph and Anna, shared an overview of how they felt their Community Service Year had been and what it had taught them. Joseph explained how proud he is to be from St Jude’s.

"I realised my colleagues and new friends treat me with great respect simply because I come from St Jude’s.”

It was heart-warming to see them all so excited to spend time with each other and share their stories.

“I haven’t seen some of these people for a year now, so it’s been really fun!” said Edina.

Anna thought the day was incredibly special.

“This was the first one, there will never be a reunion like this again. Of course, many will follow on from us, but this is the first! I loved everything – catching up with my classmates, many whom I have not seen in quite some time, and I loved the food!” She said. 

“What I won’t forget about this day is that this has been the funnest day of my life. We have not all been together since school finished, and may never all be together again. I have no words to express how special this is.”

Sadly, some of the Community Service Year interns who had chosen to keep working until they leave for university were not in attendance as they had too many papers to grade and exams to prepare. Talk about good work ethic!

It was clear that even after all this time, St Jude’s students will always be family to one another. This bond cannot be broken by time and distance.

The School of St Jude is not just a school, it is a family that will stay connected for years to come. We look forward to many more fun filled reunions in the future!

Want to help St Jude’s continue to educate future leaders? Sponsor a student today.

Two St Jude’s students who love all things that fizzle and pop were invited to participate in this years Tanzania Young Scientist (TYS) competition with their proud teacher Humprey Nkya.

Their project, ‘Developing a sustainable method of mushroom production for poor people using plant waste materials’, involves growing mushrooms in a way that can be easily adapted for local families who farm vegetable plots in Arusha.

As well as a valuable learning experience for the students, it was also a learning experience for our Biology head of department, Humphrey Nkya.

“I had the opportunity to meet and share science ideas with teachers from all regions of Tanzania. With the experience I got, I can now provide better advice and guidance to our students and provide them with the support to grow their ideas and skills for science projects”.

The two girls, Arafra and Lillian, were awarded a certificate of participation for their project.

“We grew the mushrooms and looked after them every day.” Arafra proudly explains. “We then had to write up our experiment like in a science paper.”

Lilian told us "The aim of the project was to find an alternative source of food for poor farmers. Mushrooms are a great source of nutrients people may not normally get in their diet”.

“They are easy to grow and don’t take a lot of time, so they are a really great option for poor people in Tanzania” Arafra said.

The girls learnt a lot through the project about scientific studies, practice and nutrition which will be helpful for the two in their future careers. Arafra wants to be an actuary and Lilian wants to be a neurosurgeon or a cardiac surgeon. 

Other high flying science students were recently invited to attend the Nelson Mandela African Institute of Science and Technology to present their new inventions and projects. Eric is one of the students invited, he presented his automatic vending machine. 

“The vending machine uses old computer parts programmed in a specific way so that people can purchase drinks when shops are closed. I researched the pros and cons of the system and came up with a list of requirements for places you may be able to install it”.

The project was also well received at our science day and at our careers day.

Although Eric loves science he is planning to be an accountant in the future.

The future is also something Eric’s Physics teacher Hashim, who accompanied him on the visit, is also looking forward to.

“I am very proud of them. I am looking forward to next year when we will also compete!” 

These achievements are the latest example of our commitment to fostering a new generation of scientists in Tanzania.

Our students have excelled in local, national and even international science competitions and camps. We believe that by fostering and developing a love for science St Jude's is helping our students prepare to make a real difference in a country where many government schools do not have science teachers or labs.

Following our three consecutive, successful years competing in the Tanzania Young Scientist (TYS) competition, sponsor and major electricity supplier Songas has awarded St Jude’s a special Passion for Science Award.

Want to help St Jude’s students continue to excel in science? Donate to Learning Resources today

Do you remember your school trips? Maybe you visited a local historical site or a zoo! This month our students climbed aboard the St Jude’s school buses and learnt beyond their classrooms.

To have a fleet of 21 buses that can visit some of the world's most fascinating national parks is an educational treat for our students. It is thanks to our fantastic sponsors and supporters around the world that we are able to make a student’s day filled with smiles and happy memories of local places that Tanzanian children do not normally get to see.

Our Standard 3 students visited Shanga, to learn about recycling and a range of art and craft making processes. ‘They made slippers out of car tyres.’ Said Amina, who was amazed to see unusual materials being recycled into everyday items. 

Hadija enjoyed seeing a crafts workshop in action. ‘It was so busy," she said. "They were recycling and making things!"

Standard 1 and 2 students visited Lake Manyara, one of the most picturesque stops on Tanzania's world famous northern safari circuit. Their geography lessons come to life as they watched hippos, elephants and buffalos cooling off in the water and living in their natural habitat. After seeing these animals with their own eyes, the students can better understand the importance of national parks in Tanzania and the need to protect such important wildlife.

The opportunity to see Shanga, Lake Manyara, and the ‘big five’ of lions, leopards, buffalos, elephants and rhinos is all here for our students and you! Why don’t you combine a visit to our school with a safari journey of your own?

Pendo Jeremiah is a hard working member of the team at St Jude’s Smith Campus. Not only is she the school registrar, girls welfare and character management mistress she also coordinates the peer mentoring program.

She enthusiastically explains to us what the peer mentoring program involves; “Form 5 girls act as big sisters for the new Form 1 girls, helping them feel connected to the school, supported, offering advice on how to get help, tips and tricks to study and improve their academics and how to deal with problems or issues that may arise.”

In a boarding school such as our Smith Secondary Campus; getting settled in and feeling at home is important. There is no one better to help a new 14 or 15 year old Form 1 student at the secondary school than an older student who has been there before.

When asked what she likes about the program, Pendo Jeremiah’s eyes light up.

“They become like a family, the little ones are connected with the big ones, who offer all sorts of help and advice. Then the older girls who are friends will spend time with all of their little sisters and they all become friends and care about each other”.

Gloria, one of our Form 6 students likes to help her “sisters” with the academic side of life at The School of St Jude.

“I teach them some difficult subjects they think they cannot do well and I advise them on the right path they can go through as youths”.

This is greatly appreciated. “The one thing I learnt from my sister is that she likes helping the younger ones. Like in class subjects she helps a lot, for example in mathematics!” Vanessa, Form 2, said.

As well as academic success, personal skills such as confidence and team work are important for a St Jude’s student to succeed. This is greatly supported by the peer mentor program as Jackline, in Form 2 explains.

“I learn from my elder sister to be confident because at first I wasn’t confident to talk to all people but I learnt from her. The confidence I have now is from her”.

Students at the school learn many different skills from each other and sometimes the lessons come as a real surprise! Karisma’s was surprised to see her sister, Rahma Form 2 perform at Careers Day.

"From my sister I was inspired by her confidence. The Career day that she went to sing at; her voice was amazing!” 

Peer mentors have also inspired their charges with their choice career path.

"The most inspirational thing about my little sisters is that at first I knew I loved children and the younger ones. Since I met them that passion has grown and I keep loving them every day" Gloria, said.

She is inspired to continue working with children, possibly as a teacher.

The shared learning and academic support is also an opportunity to have fun with a new friend. Kareen giggles as she remembers the program’s first day. She tried to stretch her arms over the much taller younger students in her care.

"The funniest day was the first day that I met my little sisters. They are tall and I am short!"

Vanessa remembers the fun her peer mentor friends have shared on the program. "We were playing chasing and she fell over!"

When asked if she helped her sister up off the ground her reply was immediate and delivered with the warmest smile, "Yes I did!"

Boys will also soon be a part of the peer mentoring program. As part of the Girls Welfare Team Pendo Jeremiah initially started the program just for the girls. However, she was soon approached by boys from Form 5 who wanted to be involved.

“The Form 5 boys approached me and said, it’s not fair that the girls get to do this, we want to have this program as well. So that is very good, we are happy when our students show responsibility and that they care about each other,” Pendo Jeremiah said.

The shared support, laughter and inspiration enjoyed by our students show the peer mentor program to be a huge success! These strong friendships will be treasured memories of a happy time at The School of St Jude.

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