The Foundation For Tomorrow

This past week has been amazing, a week of learning, of growing, of being present. I have been working on the new after school program "Full Circle" which will facilitate progressive social change through our children's exposure to and appreciation of the benefits of environmental restoration and conservation, healthy lifestyles and creativity. On the way to FK I always drive past a sign for "The World Vegetable Centre" how could I not be intrigued?! So I finally called them up and went to meet the lovely Dr. Mel - we now have a partnership! http://avrdc.org/. Last week 30 of our staff, teachers, and mamas from our partner orphanages learnt about Vegetable Home Garden Production Techniques (using Organic Gardening approaches); Preservation, and Processing of Vegetables. New recipes were introduced in such a way that nutrients are preserved and bioavailability enhanced. After the training, each participant received a pack of seeds with 14 indigenous vegetables - enough to feed a family of 10 for a year to set up their own gardens. This was our first step in trying to promote nutrition, and decrease micronutrient malnutrition! As part of our "Full Circle" we plan to set up a huge organic vegetable garden, and have a school full of green thumbs. It has always been a dream of mine to set up a fully functioning organic garden, as growing up one of my favorite things was being able to pick my own vegetables, and spend time in the garden.

My second mission of the week was to find an art teacher to help us introduce creativity into our children's lives - creativity with a theme of "Go Clean", promoting recycling and reusing local materials. Today I met with an incredible lady, Linda, from the Umoja Art Centre, who is putting together a phenomenal one month art initiative which will involve an introduction to drawing, painting, and constructing 3-D pieces for us to follow at school! So it seems Full Circle is almost complete.

TFFT also had the great fortune of being donated Henry, our new dog! He is divine, so naughty, full of character and a great asset to our team! Thank you to the Roots n' Shoots ladies!

So our life out here is full, we love having Meghann, Adelaide, and Jessie out here to help out this month.