Another new program implemented in the past few months has been the Library Scholars. These are students that assist Mr. Mando and Mama Grace with duties involving arranging and straightening books on the shelves. This duty is seen as a high honor for these kids.

One way of involving students in literacy is to get them involved in the process of bookmaking. As a pilot project, two books were proposed and photos taken. The first book was about colors.

The second book was about fruits of Tanzania. Some students had never seen an apple or passion fruit. The students involved enjoyed a fruit buffet after the photos were taken. Both books will be in English and Kiswahili.

Dates: Friday, December 18 – Saturday, December 19
Times: 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM Friday and 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM Saturday
Place: 8924 – 40 1/2 Avenue North in New Hope, Minnesota
Directions: East of 169 N/exit at County Road 9 East/go through one stop light and turn right on Ensign Avenue/the house is located at the corner of Ensign and 40 1/2 Avenue North/gray cedar with driveway on Ensign/numbers 8924 above the garage door.
Contact Person: Kenneth Wall
Phone: 763-544-6086

(If you are unable to attend during these times and would like to schedule an appointment, please call Kenneth Wall to do so.)

Trays and Baskets made by women in Singida region where we work.

Assorted batiks of people at work.

Assorted batiks of animals and Mt. Kilimanjaro.

Assortment of handbags and purses.

Assorted Banana Leaf Prints.

Tanzanian instant coffee – some of the best instant coffee ever made.

Maasai Beaded Ornaments.

Maasai beaded key chains.

Assorted Leather Bookmarks.

Small Wooden Giraffes.

Baskets made in Iringa region.

Deputy Head Mistress, Patricia McKelvey, and Honored Guest Principal Moses Matonya from Msalato Theological College.

Introducing the teachers…

Fellow classmates participated through songs and dances.

Japhet will be continuing on to an undetermined secondary school starting in January 2010. Please let us know if you would like to contribute to his school fees, uniform, bicycle for transport, and other misc. expenses. Please e mail us at pen_trust@yahoo.com

Chalula Library was built by Bruce and Rosemary Harris of the US through Friends of African Village Libraries. It is located in the village of Mvumi which is about a half hours drive from Dodoma.

The children’s corner.

The children are fascinated by the map of Tanzania and of the world.

Learning anatomy and parts of the body in an interactive way.

Bruce Harris meeting with Chalula Primary School Headmaster Henry Lyandalah.

US Volunteers, Holly and Lauren, taking inventory of all the books in the library.

Mungwe handing over more books to Library staff – Mwalimu Joram Mondo and Mama Grace Myakwaka on one of PEN Trust’s monthly visits.

On the PEN Trust Cause page, you will find additional stories that aren’t on our main webpage like this one on the delivery of books to Mwitikira Village by visitors from Virginia, USA. The village is part of the Carpenter’s Kids program run by the Anglican Diocese.

Facebook has allowed us another forum to spread the word of our activities in Tanzania allowing links to articles like this one on our article on CNN.com.

Children’s clothing from friends in Minnesota.

Women’s clothing…

Men’s clothing…

A few of the Rubbermaid tubs holding the remaining items yet to be distributed.

The grounds crew of St. John’s quickly went to work unloading the container.

Each pallet was unloaded into its own pile making it easier for the Library staff to sort by subject and by immediate need.

The majority of the books were brand new coming from McGraw Hill Publishing through a grant from World Vision.

A surprise for PEN Trust was primary teacher resource materials from Pastor Wes and Donna Marie Lossing Jones from Ohio. These books were turned over o Vice Chancellor Meshack for the Anglican diocese to distribute within their programs.

The forty foot container unloaded.

One of the only times we have had an almost all woman unloading team.

Sister Vativa and two class representatives welcome the parents and friends of the graduates.

Sister Joan and class representatives welcome the honored guests of PEN Trust with a special necklace lei.

Time to sing our national anthem and patriotic songs in Kiswahili.

Time to sing and dance in English!

Ngoma – traditional dances.

A Tanzanian tradition often seen on special occasions such as weddings, confirmation, etc. Class representatives feed each other, their teachers, special guests and a parent representative a small piece of cake.

Getting their caps on straight as they anxiously await the certificate ceremony.

Receiving their awards from Sports Day. PEN Trust and NW Ohio provided the prizes.

Sister Rosaria is a jovial woman who has been close friends with Mungwe for years. She is persistent in her desire to make her school even better like in this photo asking for something else she desires for her students.- – notebooks, pens….

Half of the school is focused on sewing and tailoring skills.

The other half focuses on wood and metal machinery production.