Thursday, April 7, 2011

Cheshire Homes


Cheshire Homes
We arrived late in Livingstone after an 8 hour bus ride from Lusaka. The Sisters were awaiting our arrival at the guesthouse at Cheshire Homes. Monday morning the students arrived at the school. At this school the special needs children are provided transportation in a school van. I sat with amazement at the eagerness and interdependence these children showed at school. Once off the bus the children who walked went right up to the school building and came back to the van with the wheelchairs used by the children who were unable to walk. These children were assisted by their peers in getting out of the van and into their wheelchairs (they do not use their chairs in village because of the terrain). All were eager to be at school and ready to learn.

Cheshire Homes provides special education services to children who have physical and intellectual disabilities. Their donors, Touch Ireland, built a new structure that opened in 2007 and included a physio room. They are now beginning a new project to build a whirlpool. About 24 children are currently enrolled and attend the school. There is one teacher for all of these students, Evelyn Malumbe, who has been teaching at Cheshire Homes for many years. I met her the first trip I made to Livingstone before the school was finished. She attended training we delivered each year we have been in Livingstone. In addition to being a teacher for the school she provides home based education.

A women’s group also meets at the school. This group is made up of the mom’s of the children served by the school. A recent visitor taught them how to make dolls and bags from recycled products and cloth and they make these goods to sell as a benefit to the school. We have asked them to send us a box of dolls and we will try to sell as well. The parents are very committed to the school and appreciative of the efforts of the sisters and Evelyn. The teacher and sisters are appreciative of the Mom’s and they all work together to make the best for the children.

It is fun to see the progress of the school. With so little resource so progress has been made. Evelyn asked us to make sure we said hello to all from the University team who have spent time with the school and training teachers and families in Livingstone.

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