The One Person Project is a program of The Friends of Kahama Society
Volunteer
Volunteers don't just do the work - they make it work!
As a One Person volunteer you can learn new skills, strengthen the ones you have and meet new people as you impact the lives of children in East Africa. You will see photographs and videos and hear and read first-hand accounts of how you are helping to change lives for the better in a third world country.
The One Person Project is run by a volunteer committee and board. Over 99% of funds raised go towards helping our sponsor communities to become self-sustaining. With the support of our dedicated and enthusiastic volunteers we have taken the first steps in making a real and enduring difference to children and families in Kahama.
Volunteer here in the Okanagan, or volunteer at our orphanage, the Simon's Children Centre, in Kahama, Tanzania.
As a One Person volunteer you can learn new skills, strengthen the ones you have and meet new people as you impact the lives of children in East Africa. You will see photographs and videos and hear and read first-hand accounts of how you are helping to change lives for the better in a third world country.
The One Person Project is run by a volunteer committee and board. Over 99% of funds raised go towards helping our sponsor communities to become self-sustaining. With the support of our dedicated and enthusiastic volunteers we have taken the first steps in making a real and enduring difference to children and families in Kahama.
Volunteer here in the Okanagan, or volunteer at our orphanage, the Simon's Children Centre, in Kahama, Tanzania.
We are based in Summerland, British Columbia, Canada. Contact Denise to join our committee or to become a local volunteer. Contact Brenda for information on volunteering at the orphanage.
What We Do:
Strengthen the Community: Providing medical, educational and entrepreneurial resources.
We have shipped 5 forty-foot containers filled with life-changing resources to to E.Africa - a lot of work! (Four went to Kahama, Tanzania and one was shipped to Muhanga, Rwanda.) We take regular self-funded trips to monitor progress, ascertain needs and to maintain a connection with the villagers, officials and organizations that we work with; and to bring back photographs, family stories and evidence of progress to the people of B.C. We engage in capacity-building programs, which means that we are building a long-term, reciprocal relationship with the community, rather than just transferring resources.
Provide shelter, food, medical needs and education for orphans and vulnerable children: Including a sponsorship program and volunteer trips.
HIV and Aids are a huge problem in Africa and this has left millions of children orphaned and homeless. The official Tanzanian definition of a child who is orphaned is a child who has lost one or both parents.There are also 'social orphans' referring to children who have one or both parents alive but who are unable to provide care. Tanzania's policy is to reunite children with family members who are tracked down/come forward at a later date.
In 2013 we took over the funding of the Simon's Children Centre (Previously known as Muvuma.). A wonderful group of women in Kahama had raised funds to build the children's centre on land donated by the township of Kahama. In the space of two years they had raised enough money to build the first few feet of the structure. One of our trip volunteers donated $1,000 to continue building and we took it from there! Thanks to our supporters and sponsor-families we have completed the 7,000 sq. ft. main building, created a separate kitchen and dining area, erected walls and gates around the buildings, created gardens for growing vegetables, provided chicken coops and chickens and much more.
Programs that support girls & women, and children and youth with HIV/AIDS.
We funded an HIV/AIDS Care & Treatment Clubhouse at the Kahama District Hospital; we provide sustainable, cloth feminine hygiene kits in our Giving Girls Dignity program, and have provided sewing machines so that the kits can be made in Kahama.
What You can Do:
Other tasks might include physical work such as painting, yard-work, shopping, and unloading resources from the shipping container.
For more information Contact Brenda
Dr Glen Burgoyne took part in our 2011 and 2013 Medical Volunteer Trips:
"I have been on several third world volunteer trips and this was one of the best. It is also good to be involved with a project with local roots so we can stay involved with the work here at home. Being involved with a small project is also good as you know directly where and to who the money and donations are going. Aside from the medical work I was involved in, which was interesting, the part I enjoyed most was helping to distribute the contents of the container. It is hard to imagine the amount of work that went into the obtaining, packaging, shipping and distributing all the contents of that container. What makes it worth the effort was the look on someone's face when they received a T-shirt or a quilt which we might take totally for granted."
Strengthen the Community: Providing medical, educational and entrepreneurial resources.
We have shipped 5 forty-foot containers filled with life-changing resources to to E.Africa - a lot of work! (Four went to Kahama, Tanzania and one was shipped to Muhanga, Rwanda.) We take regular self-funded trips to monitor progress, ascertain needs and to maintain a connection with the villagers, officials and organizations that we work with; and to bring back photographs, family stories and evidence of progress to the people of B.C. We engage in capacity-building programs, which means that we are building a long-term, reciprocal relationship with the community, rather than just transferring resources.
Provide shelter, food, medical needs and education for orphans and vulnerable children: Including a sponsorship program and volunteer trips.
HIV and Aids are a huge problem in Africa and this has left millions of children orphaned and homeless. The official Tanzanian definition of a child who is orphaned is a child who has lost one or both parents.There are also 'social orphans' referring to children who have one or both parents alive but who are unable to provide care. Tanzania's policy is to reunite children with family members who are tracked down/come forward at a later date.
In 2013 we took over the funding of the Simon's Children Centre (Previously known as Muvuma.). A wonderful group of women in Kahama had raised funds to build the children's centre on land donated by the township of Kahama. In the space of two years they had raised enough money to build the first few feet of the structure. One of our trip volunteers donated $1,000 to continue building and we took it from there! Thanks to our supporters and sponsor-families we have completed the 7,000 sq. ft. main building, created a separate kitchen and dining area, erected walls and gates around the buildings, created gardens for growing vegetables, provided chicken coops and chickens and much more.
Programs that support girls & women, and children and youth with HIV/AIDS.
We funded an HIV/AIDS Care & Treatment Clubhouse at the Kahama District Hospital; we provide sustainable, cloth feminine hygiene kits in our Giving Girls Dignity program, and have provided sewing machines so that the kits can be made in Kahama.
What You can Do:
- Volunteer at our orphanage. Many of those who have taken the trip are also medical and educational volunteers. You can follow our trips on our blog and on facebook - here are some details from our 2018 visit to Kahama and our work at Simon's and at the Kahama District Hospital.
- Duration: You can choose how long to stay but we recommend a 2 week minimum. Brenda takes a team once or twice a year and stays for around 6 weeks. Some volunteers have taken the trip on their own. We have many contacts in Kahama, including our One Person Agent, Emmanuel. We will be in regular contact with volunteers.
- Fees: We do not charge you to be a One Person volunteer
- Costs: You will pay all your own travel, food, accommodation and associated costs
Other tasks might include physical work such as painting, yard-work, shopping, and unloading resources from the shipping container.
For more information Contact Brenda
Dr Glen Burgoyne took part in our 2011 and 2013 Medical Volunteer Trips:
"I have been on several third world volunteer trips and this was one of the best. It is also good to be involved with a project with local roots so we can stay involved with the work here at home. Being involved with a small project is also good as you know directly where and to who the money and donations are going. Aside from the medical work I was involved in, which was interesting, the part I enjoyed most was helping to distribute the contents of the container. It is hard to imagine the amount of work that went into the obtaining, packaging, shipping and distributing all the contents of that container. What makes it worth the effort was the look on someone's face when they received a T-shirt or a quilt which we might take totally for granted."
