NEWSLETTER NOVEMBER 2024

Dear Kunyumba friends,

After a health-related interruption last year, Rainer and I were finally able to travel to Malawi again this year to experience the project on the ground—to accompany, advise, lend a hand, and gather impressions. By now, 40 children, adolescents, and young adults are being cared for, supported, and accepted in their uniqueness. Their ages range from four months to 30 years, with or without physical or mental challenges, often carrying emotional burdens. And yet, the moment Atupere’s mother (2.5 years old) arrives—before the staff even starts their shift—to bring her little daughter to the project so she can head to work on time, a new day begins, filled with zest for life, challenges, arguments, togetherness, and learning.

It’s moving to see how well most of the children are developing and how, despite difficult starting conditions, the support they receive from KUNYUMBA has a positive impact on their future paths. For many, this is a second—or even first—home that provides them with continuity, stability, and daily care. During shared meals (breakfast, lunch, and an afternoon snack), everyone patiently and eagerly sits at the blue-painted tables. Equally cherished is the chance to attend to personal hygiene in good sanitary conditions—something we take for granted, but which is a real privilege here.

Beyond this essential basic care (most children at home have no regular meals, and hygiene is often very limited), the kids—both big and small—are practically “hungry” for every additional offering the project provides for their development and inclusion. Every Tuesday morning, the physiotherapist, Mr. Landan, travels 20 km by bicycle to conduct special exercises with children who have disabilities. Several Kunyumba staff members join his sessions so they can continue the exercises with the children each day. Mothers from the local area also come by with their little ones so they can be “treated,” ask questions, receive information, and get practical instruction. Despite the sometimes uncomfortable movements for the kids, the atmosphere remains calm and focused.

Wednesday afternoon is undeniably one of the noisiest times at the Kunyumba grounds 😊. That’s when Derek the musician roars in on his motorcycle, guitar in hand, and thrills the children with rhythm, singing, dancing, and sports activities. Everyone has fun—only Bia and Ibu prefer to watch the goings-on from a quiet distance.

Otherwise, the local staff offers a small daily program (sports, games, reading, extracurricular lessons, gardening). They also handle tasks that arise in any home, tasks which the older children willingly take on. From the beginning, the organization wanted to embed participation, equal treatment, and social cooperation in the project. Meal prep, cooking, washing dishes, cleaning, laundry, and tidying up are all done by the children, adolescents, and young adults—though, of course, there are always a few “little escape artists” who try to get out of it but are gently brought back into the fold.

The daily nutrition program run by Kunyumba e.V. on site—launched in May, quite literally “brought to life”—is now visited by up to 65 children. Some arrive an hour before meals are served, sitting patiently in the sand or on the gently greening grass, curiously watching the activities on the grounds. But as soon as the two large cooking pots of high-quality porridge are ready to be served, a jostling line of children forms, each with their own little pot, bowl, and spoon. The bustling queue slowly settles, as there’s enough for everyone, often with a smaller second helping. Even in this hardship, a satisfying silence falls as they eat. Incidentally, the children in the Kunyumba project love scraping out the burnt remnants from the huge pots before cleaning them.

Gratefully waving and with full bellies, the local children head off the grounds after the meal—except on Kunyumba’s birthday party, when they all stayed longer, eyes shining as they watched the self-created program featuring songs, dancing, and even a fashion show. The mood at this celebration of Kunyumba Trust’s 15th birthday was exuberant, infectious, and, as always, brimming with the sheer joy of life.

In addition to the everyday routine at Kunyumba, Rainer (our wonderful do-it-yourself craftsman) worked on constructing a functional cistern system this year. Rainwater from the rainy season will be collected in a cistern to irrigate the garden during the dry season. To achieve this, gutters were attached to the manager’s house, and a 5,000-liter tank was connected with downpipes. Everyone is eager to see how the system will perform during the rainy season (starting in November)—fingers crossed!

And the self-sufficiency aspect seems to be bearing fruit: on some days, vegetables from the garden could be harvested, banana trees produced an abundant crop, and the chickens have settled into their chicken coop, laying eggs diligently. Two hens have even raised another 15 chicks.

Rainer and I are already looking forward to our next trip in 2025 to this small yet wonderful project, which offers people in an unimaginably different, impoverished environment a beacon of hope for a secure present and a better future.

Warm greetings and heartfelt thanks to all supporters and friends of KUNYUMBA,

Ute Reichl