Bridge 2 Aid : 'Restoring Smiles - Changing Lives'

6th December 2007

The community development team went on a ‘road trip’ this week to Musoma (3 hours from Mwanza) and Shirati another 2 hours north.

We visited 2 leprosy centres both run by people with a huge amount of compassion for people who are rejected and down trodden but both very different.

The Musoma centre is run by a Franciscan Catholic Father who is full of compassion for the poor, he has been living with the community for over 20 years and started by walking the streets of Musoma asking to help with funds to open a centre. There is a real sense community about the centre, where no one is turned away but where people are brought together and taught how to live together with one another and made aware of each other needs. It caters for people not only with leprosy but those with mental health issues as well as physical disabilities.

The second centre in Shirati started in the 50’s when the leprosy community were ‘sent’ to live by the Lake away from other members of the village. Now it is home to about 35 elderly people suffering from disabilities relating to leprosy, some who live at the centre and others who are cared for on the specialist ward in the neighbouring hospital.  In talking to the administrator we got the sense that the centre has been a real success and a place of hope, having managed to work with families of people with leprosy and integrated many people back into their home villages and communities. The centre demonstrated a real understanding if the issues of people affected by leprosy.

Both places left us with much to talk about as we compared our situation at Bukumbi to these two centres. It left us feeling positive and determined to develop our work alongside the community at Bukumbi. (JT)

December 13th 2008

The kids are now on school holidays and so Fay took this opportunity and gathered them together for some fun and games, with the help of some teachers from the International School in Mwanza the kids enjoyed making cards, playing football, skipping games and generally having fun!