Flotsam and Jetsam

Not in the sense of nautical wreckage but rather in the way of odds and ends, I have a bit of “F and J” to share with y'all.  Seems like I haven't had time to write a proper blog entry regaling you with all my goings-on for weeks now, but I suppose that means I must be busy doing something, right?  And the Kardashians are on hiatus, so it must be work-related….

To start with, I've been talking to everyone and anyone with ears about The Toa Nafasi Project and, quite delightfully, my incessant chatter has been met with positive results!  I have a list of potential partners starting with a woman I met back in 2009 when I first began researching this project.

Angi Stone-MacDonald is currently Assistant Professor of Early Education and Care in Inclusive Settings at the University of Massachusetts in Boston.  When I met her three years ago, she was doing research for her dissertation on the role of culture and local context in developing curriculum for students with disabilities at Irente Rainbow School in Lushoto, Tanzania.  I reunited with Angi over email and then a lengthy phone conversation.  Next weekend, I'm headed to Boston to see her in person and go over plans for the assessment and curriculum modification phases of the project.  I'll be armed with copies of the Tanzanian syllabi for Standard One and Two subjects and I imagine we'll hash out details of our gameplan.  I obviously am headed back to the motherland in just a couple months, but Angi will be coming over to help implement the assessment next summer.  So not only am I gaining a partner, I'm also getting a roommate, at least for a couple of months!

Mary Gale Budzisz from the International Association of Special Education is next on the list.  I've mentioned her before on this blog and I'm sure her name will come up many times in the future.  Retired from the profession, but a tireless crusader in support of children with developmental disabilities across the globe, Mary Gale is powerhouse of energy and enthusiasm.  Under her watch, IASE has built up projects in schools and hospitals in Mexico, India, Bangladesh, Malawi, and Tanzania and they supply a steady stream of volunteers to each of these sites.  I'm hoping she will be adding The Toa Nafasi Project in Msaranga to the sites she already has going in Tanzania: Mnazi Mmoja Hospital in Zanzibar, Diana Women Empowerment Organization in Tanga, and Sebastian Kolowa University College in Magamba.

Speaking of Sebastian Kolowa (or SEKUCo as its known by its acronym), the third person on my list is a current IASE volunteer at that site.  Richard Zigler has been heading up the masters program at SEKUCo since 2010 and is very keen on staying in Tanzania long-term.  I met with him in Moshi on my last trip this past June and he gave me lots of advice and feedback about the project and proposed activities.  Now, due to *issues* at SEKUCo, he finds himself looking for alternate employment in the Tee-Zed.  Enter Toa Nafasi.  Not only will he find further purpose in Africa using his special education skillz, he will lend credibility to my project and provide invaluable insight and guidance.

Another excellent contact is Dr. Derrick Matthews, an American pediatrician currently based at Selian Lutheran Hospital in Arusha.  Just like everybody else, I first met him in 2009 but reconnected with him recently now that Toa Nafasi is a reality.  We have yet to sit down again and talk in detail but I think he could be a good resource in the referral phase which is when I will address students who are under-performing due to reasons other than a learning difficulty, possibly medical or psychosocial.  Says Doc Matthews, “I may have to contribute in the areas of treatment of physiologic disabilities and behavioral management by pharmacology means when necessary.  There is definitely a need for this type of approach to children with special educational needs.”

Aside from blabbing about the need for special ed in TZ, I’ve also been flexing my artistic muscles designing a logo and putting together an identity kit of business cards, letterhead, brochures, and a website.  Oy vey, it’s a heavy-duty job, this business of branding.  Not only is it time-consuming, it’s expensive!  My first year budget has been sadly whittled down….

Oh!  That’s another thing I’ve been up to….banking.  Business banking is a real bee-yatch.  And CitiBusiness Online does not make things easy.  There’s about a million passwords and tokens and secret codes.  It’s like safe-cracking just to get into my own damn account.  And wiring money to Tanzania?  I’ve tried three times now.  Haiwezekani.  I can’t wait until I’m too legit to quit and can hire a proper accountant….and IT person….and marketing manager….

Finally, and possibly most importantly, I’ve entered the world of fundraising.  Now that the IRS is officially considering The Toa Nafasi Project for tax-exempt status, I need to get my ish together and produce a viable plan for how I’m going to keep this damn thing afloat.

Easier said than done. 

However, I’ve started off by attending seminars at the Foundation Center, which is an amazing resource and I highly recommend it to anyone who is considering starting their own NGO or is currently in the nonprofit sector.  The library is fantastic, the database is comprehensive, the classes are informative, and the instructors are incredibly knowledgeable.  The headquarters is in New York (of course), but there are branches and various sister libraries all across the country.  So far, I have taken Introduction to Fundraising Planning and Grantseeking Basics.  These will be followed by Introduction to Finding Funders, Social Media, Starting a Nonprofit, Before You Seek a Grant, Sustainability, and Grantseeking for International NGOs.  Check out some of the handouts from Intro to Fundraising Planning below.  Methinks my stool is a little one-sided, no?  And I’ll never get any earned income from this project….Maybe I can just put a balled-up napkin under the chair leg like you do with a tipsy table in a restaurant….?

Anyhoo, I may jest, but this part of the process is definitely the most daunting, especially in this economic climate.  Nevertheless, I am still optimistic enough to think that after a few applications and a few events, I’ll get the hang of it.  After all, I was a publicist in my former life; I know how to persuade and cajole people into doing what I want! 

The big difference here is that this is something I’m really passionate about and, as opposed to getting an author into the New York Times Book Review or on National Public Radio, this work is about quality of life, not luxury.  That raises the stakes tremendously and is actually pretty scary.  What’s also scary is that this whole project is entirely dependent upon me: my ideas, my passion, my energy, my direction.  So far I’m doing okay, but who knows what the future holds?  When I can’t sleep, I think about what I’ll be doing (and where I’ll be living) a year from now.  I don’t think that last year I would have ever thought I’d be here, in this place, in this moment, today.

At any rate, there it is, my long-awaited update.  I hope I haven’t bored you with my various views and random ruminations.  Stay tuned for next week’s entry which will no doubt be just as fascinating….!

A Worthy Example

Busy as a bee and very little time to write, but wanted to share this article I peeped online at AllAfrica.com which talks about an inclusive education program for students with special needs being launched in Liberia.  This is exactly the kind of precedent (if it works) that Toa Nafasi needs to legitimize our ideas in the Tee-Zed!  Kudos to the Liberian MoE and Handicap International for thinking about how best to protect and encourage the most vulnerable learners, and ways in which to uplift and promote teachers who often regard their jobs as dismal and thankless.

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The Ministry of Education in collaboration with Handicap International over the weekend conducted a one day workshop on 'inclusive' education rather than special education.

Speaking to journalists last Friday at the Corina Hotel where the workshop took place, the Director of Special Education at the Ministry of Education, Madam Kemeh Gama, said the one day event is part of a memorandum of understanding signed with Handicap International to pilot a three year inclusive education program.

Madam Gama said that the program was intended to make education accessible to everyone especially those with disabilities.  "So we are piloting in three counties, Montserrado, Bomi and Margibi, and in each of these counties, we have two pilot schools and four cluster schools.  The cluster schools will learn from the pilot schools, but we will direct our attention to the cluster schools," Madam Gama stated.

She named some of the pilot schools as Samuel D. Hill in Clay District and Sumo Town Public School, both in Bomi County, and Paynesville Community School and Dauzon Public School in Montserrado County.

Madam Gama said the schools were strategically selected due to their own surveys and the 2008 national census report.

"We put the project in public schools because too long our teachers have complained of their inability to take care of the children in school," she said.  According to Madam Gama, through the inclusive learning program, teachers will be taught how to talk and take care of students thereby creating an enabling environment for the students and even those with disabilities.

More than forty participants including Ministry of Education officials, county education officers, and principals of some pilot schools attended the workshop.

Summer Has Come and Passed

Today feels a little sad for obvious reasons and I can't bring myself to write about the generally-noble-but-somehow-made-mundane-by-the-magnitude-of-this-day activities of my life, even this project.

This is the first time I have been in New York on September 11th since 2006, then the five-year anniversary of the terrorist attacks and, while I have never forgotten what I saw or experienced on that day in 2001, I have not felt as close to it as I do right now.  On a more positive note, I've not felt as much a New Yorker in years as I have since I've been back on this trip.  Bittersweet indeed.

Nevertheless, I continue to be hugely busy with The Toa Nafasi Project and have been working on a big update for this blog (and for my board of directors, and for my organizational consultant, and for my Tanzanian staff, and for my parents!), but I can never seem to find enough hours in the day to perfect my prose and send the damn thing off.  Fortunately, the "there's no hurry in Africa" mentality has stuck with me and I'm not giving into a typical Sarah freak-out....  Quite frankly, there's too much work to be done and the stakes are too high for me to have a meltdown right now!  So, I'm keeping calm and carrying on....  There is always tomorrow.

I'm just about to head off to bed but I'll leave you with actual proof that the IRS knows who I am, and inform you that I am thisclose to hiring a graphic designer for the branding of Toa Nafasi.  Tomorrow, I return to the Foundation Center to basically squat at their library and, over the weekend, I'll be reunited with one of my most favorite people in the world, Mary Gale Budzisz, the past president of the International Association of Special Education, who will be in the city for a UNICEF conference.  I'll try and get some time to write more about those aforementioned mundane activities o' mine by early next week.

So with a lil' old Green Day on this chilly early Fall night, I say, "Usiku mwema, lala salama, njozi njema...."

Summer has come and passed / The innocent can never last / Wake me up when September ends ....

.... As my memory rests / But never forgets what I lost / Wake me up when September ends ....

.... Ring out the bells again / Like we did when spring began / Wake me up when September ends ....

Fruits of My Labor Day

Happy Labor Day to those of you reading this blog entry from the United States, and happy regular old Monday to everyone else.  I’m currently writing to you from Cacapon State Park in Berkeley Springs, West Virginia where ¾ of the Rosenbloom fam (my sister Julia couldn’t make it being a busy doctor type and all that) are celebrating the end of summer, all-American style.  (We’re also trying not to draw too much attention to ourselves as the mixed-race/mixed-religion, highly educated/highly opinionated bunch of New York Times-reading, CNN-watching, pinot noir-sipping city dwellers we really are since WV is an exceptionally red state, so I’ve taken to going incognito in a Redskins cap and we're all discussing the upcoming election in hushed tones.)

At any rate, I think that this week, for the first time since I left Tanzania, I can finally say that events have occurred worth blogging about!  However, due to time constraints and a faintly "African" internet connection out here in the boonies, you'll have to wait for a more complete update later this week when I am back in Washington and have more time to work and access to a better computer network.  However, I'll leave you with this image of my Tanzanian Certificate of Registration and the news that the IRS has cashed the check accompanying the 501c3 application so they have definitely received the packet and are hopefully on their way to reviewing and approving it.  So allow me to enjoy this last remnant of the first wet hot American summer I've experienced in five years and concentrate on getting out of Appalachia in one piece; expect a full report on Toa Nafasi haps in about one week!

The Latest

So, as you may have guessed, I did NOT attend the webinar this past week.  Though it looked promising and certainly the subject matter would have been beneficial for the Project, my computer (and let's face it, me myself) rejected the idea completely.  The first sign that it wasn't gonna happen was when I tried to prepare my Mac by downloading something called "wimba" or "wimba wizard" or "a-wimoweh" which was apparently crucial to participation.  My computer just would not load the program, something to do with Java or Cookies or some other item one would think you'd get at Starbucks and not on the internet.

I called the NYU Tech Help Desk and the girl from “Level One Assistance” was at a loss as to what the issue was though I tried my best to explain it to her.  I am sure however that my increasing agita did not help the situation, and eventually she gave up on me and told me to expect a call from the next level up.  But instead of waiting for “Level Two” or whoever, I called the NYU department responsible for holding the webinar and was told that if the Help Desk couldn’t assist me, the best they could do was offer me a refund so I took them up on that because really, isn’t starting your own non-profit organization in the midst of an economic downturn hard enough without the added pressure of trying to join a webinar??

Anyhoo, in successful seminar-not-webinar news, I have signed up for two classes at the Foundation Center, one called “Introduction to Fundraising Planning” and the other called “Grantseeking Basics.”  Both of these will be good follow-ups to the six-week NYU course I took in February on proposal writing, which I think I’ve got the hang of, but which the Foundation Center also offers instruction in should I want to get a refresher.  Fantastico, right?

I also sorted out the Toa Nafasi Citibank account, so Mama's got a shilling or two in her pocket these days.  Thank God the interventions I am proposing are fairly simple and cost-effective and I've no capital costs (construction, expensive equipment) nor capacity-building costs (increasing staffing) to contend with.  In fact, most of my anticipated expenses are programming-related and even then, I am fairly sure I can count on volunteers and donated materials for the most part.  However, that means fundraising will be tough because the major costs then will be overhead (my flights, staff salaries, fringe) and those are generally not covered by grants, or just a very small percentage.  Oy vey.  I guess I will cross that bridge when I come to it.

Not too much else to tell you all at this point except for one sad note.  Pastor Lyatuu of Msaranga has died.  Apparently, his death was caused by diabetes and high blood pressure, which is actually quite common in Tanzania.  The food is high is salt, sugar, and oil and people do not exercise often nor do they regulate their diets.  You hear a lot about illnesses related to "sugar" or "pressure" like limbs that have stopped working, circulatory problems, or heart attacks.  It's really too bad because of course these things are completely preventable, but I know from having worked with other NGOs in the health sector that there are people dealing with these issues, educating the masses about proper diets and moderating the bad stuff, including alcohol.

At any rate, though I have been to many Tanzanian weddings and even baptisms, I have never been to a Tanzanian funeral, so I don't know quite what to say and pole or even pole sana does not seem enough.  This was a man who I knew very well, who welcomed me into his community and made me feel at home.  Obviously, he was a man of God and so that should be noted, but he was also a man of the people and I can attest to the fact that his parishioners really loved him as I attended church services on several occasions.  Obviously, I'm Jewish, but I feel that Pastor Lyatuu was sensitive to this and never tried to push the churchy stuff on me too much which I really appreciated.  (Even the Ngowis who I love like my own family want to save me.)  I'll just end this entry with remembering Pastor Lyatuu as an integral character in one of the seminal stories of my first few months in Tanzania in 2007.

I was walking to school one morning on the route that I had grown accustomed to taking when a man who was seemingly loitering aimlessly on the side of the road jumped me and, after a rather violent struggle, ran off with my bag.  (This was my first mugging in Tanzania; the second - and hopefully last - occurred just weeks ago in Dar es Salaam.)  Of course, I became hysterical and after a few moments, some of the villagers heard my cries and took me to the church.  By that time, everyone in Msaranga knew I was Mwalimu Sarah, their mzungu, and they were very protective of me.  It was fairly easily discovered that the culprit was one Freddy Lyimo, a known drug abuser and "very bad boy" in the village.  Pastor Lyatuu consoled me and apologized for the misfortune I had suffered in his community.  He then made it his mission to retrieve what he could from my stolen bag and put the word out on the street of the items I had been carrying and what Freddy was likely to sell in order to supply his habit.

After I'd say no more than two weeks, I had everything back.  I mean, EVERYTHING.  Not cash, of course, but my wallet, my books and school supplies, my bank card and ID, etc.  All due to Pastor Lyatuu's efforts.  He had even gone so far as to buy my phone back from the mama who had unknowingly bought it off Freddy.  I had only been in-country a few months and yet the kindness I was shown by these villagers with Lyatuu at the helm was remarkable and I will certainly never forget it.

Hopefully, he went quietly and peacefully, dreaming of sweet, full-fat milky tea and thick, buttery chapatis.

Webinar Schmebinar

Unfortunately, it's been another fairly uneventful work week and I don't have much new to report on Toa Nafasi haps other than some upcoming events.

The first is a "webinar" sponsored by New York University's School of Continuing and Professional Studies in which I will participate on Tuesday.  Ugh.  I was in a rush when I signed up for this course otherwise I would never, ever, IN A MILLION YEARS, have agreed to take part in a "webinar."  I don't even know what that term means, and I don't want to!  Now, I have to spend part of what should be a lazy Sunday afternoon (I'm currently in my pajamas on the couch, mud mask on my face with a diet Pepsi on my left and a fresh Us Weekly magazine on my right - all the makings for a perfect Sunday chillax session) figuring out how to log into the NYU system and "access the Epsilen online academic platform" in time for Tuesday morning's webinar jam.  It's even more ironic because when I got the email invitation to join the class, I started to register online but huffed off because there were too many damn fields to fill out, so I ended up calling the office instead.  Now it seems there's no way to avoid technology.  Highly annoying.  (And what on earth is "Epsilen"??  Sounds like a depilatory product....)

However, the seminar itself, "How to to be a Successful Fundraiser, Including the Art of the Ask," looks interesting and I think it will be a good way to ease into the fundraising arena (a slightly premature move since I'm still waiting on my 501c3, but definitely in my future.)  Topics to be covered are: planned giving, capital campaigns, annual campaigns, major gifts, the use of technology, and the latest methods of research as well as direction on how to ask for money like where an "ask" should take place, what the best approach is in making an "ask," and who should make it.

The next big thing coming up in a couple weeks is a meeting with a graphic designer about the logo which will then inform the shape and design of the website, promotional brochures, and business cards among other things.  I have a few ideas such as an educational emblem like a pencil or a book, an image of a child engaged in an educational activity, or a symbol representing "opportunity" which is what Toa Nafasi is all about.  Check out a few of the images I found online and feel free to comment on what you all like.  None of these will be the real deal, but they are starting points to work with.

Other stuff in the works: going to Citibank and activating Toa Nafasi's account; keeping up my correspondence about the Project, with folks both here and in Tanzania; organizing a meeting with my U.S. board members to apprise them of the things I accomplished on the trip; a ton of research; a ton of meetings; and framing my official documents including the Tanzanian Certificate of Registration!  So that's where we're at two weeks before Labor Day, and I'm hoping I can get a lot of it done before the break.  We shall see.  At any rate, stay tuned for next week's post which will be sure to include some kind of Sarah-type rant about the webinar.  (I know I should embrace modern technology and the age of innovation, but I HATE IT!!  Which reminds me, I'm overdue for a Tweet....!)  Until then....

Quickie

Pardon me for hitting and running this week, but I wanted to post a lil' sumpin sumpin though I have very little time and even less energy.

The major news is GOOD, however, which is a nice change from my usual trend.

The Toa Nafasi Project is officially registered as an active international NGO in Tanzania!! 

I found out just before I left the country last week though of course it was not without some stumbling blocks that we got the job done.  However, faced with two long days of travel and three months stateside to follow up on my 501c3 and work on branding and programming from the U.S., I tried not to sweat the small stuff.

The biggest issue we faced was that, for some bizarre and unknown reason, the Tanzanian government authorities rejected the word "project" in Toa Nafasi's name.  They seemed to think that it suggested a for-profit outfit as opposed to a humanitarian organization, demonstrating in my opinion not only a dubious grasp of the English language but also a certain pestiferous tendency to meddle in totally inessential matters.  So when Diwani Kiwelu went to register for me in Dar and was told as much, he went with the word "organization" as opposed to "project," i.e. "Toa Nafasi Organization" instead of "The Toa Nafasi Project."  Naturally, when I was told of this news, I pitched a fit of rather gargantuan proportions, but was gradually appeased when Baba, Kiwelu and I came to the conclusion that "organization" could be used solely on the legal documents, simply "Toa Nafasi" would be printed on our office signboard, and the proper name, "The Toa Nafasi Project" would be used everywhere else.

It's not perfect, but it's done and that in itself is an accomplishment.  I have a proper Tanzanian board of directors, a set of bylaws in Swahili, and a certificate of registration as well as two staff members and an office.  If I want to amend the name legally - I would have just registered as "Toa Nafasi" had it been me in Dar or had Kiwelu consulted me - I can do so after six months.  But it's not crucial, and there is much work to be done in other areas.  I've only been back in the States a few days and already my To Do List is several pages long and fairly demoralizing.  But polepole, things will get done.  Hopefully, by the time of my next post I will be in better spirits and a bit more organized and encouraged.

So, until then, I leave you with this methali or Swahili proverb which I find to be apropos for the moment at hand: Hakuna masika yasiyokuwa na mbu.  It means "There is no rainy season without mosquitos."  Sigh....indeed....