INTERN REFLECTION BY: WESLEY MORRIS

Wesley at the Sasamani Foundation office.

I can't believe that my time in Tanzania will be coming to an end in just two weeks. The time absolutely flew by. It probably feels that way because I've been so busy in recent weeks. Since getting here, I've had the chance to be a part of so much of the great work that the team at Sasamani does on a daily basis; I didn't think that I would have been able to see and contribute as much as I have in such little time. In all honesty, I was concerned that two months would be too small of a time frame to be able to adjust to the new environment and then get any sort of momentum going. But that hasn't been the case. Since day one, Elias and Gladness have been a great help in making sure I felt comfortable every step of the way, and have allowed me the freedom and autonomy to pursue efforts in the areas I was most interested in contributing to.

​A large part of my time in Bagamoyo has been spent visiting secondary schools where we have sponsored students. At Kingani and Kiromo secondary schools, I had the privilege of being able to support teachers in the instruction of topics in Mathematics and Accounts to students in Form 4 who were participating in an extra-class program aimed at preparing them to sit their national exams this fall.

Wesley during a meeting with a teacher at Kingani Secondary School.

Since schools resumed regular class schedules earlier this month, the bulk of my time has been spent planning and working out logistics for what will be the foundation’s first and hopefully annual inter-school event. With this event, we will be bringing together over 400 students and faculty from the three secondary schools in the area that we work with: Kiromo, Kingani and Matimbwa. Our aim with the event is to bring students together in a setting that challenges them and promotes friendly competition, and which also gives them the chance to have fun with some peers they normally would not have the chance to interact with.

The day's events will include a debate, a spelling bee, sports and other games. We will be launching a fundraising campaign for the event this week, so look out on social media for a chance to make a contribution to what will likely be the first chance many of these students have ever had to interact in a setting like this!

Tihut, Gladness and Wesley posing in front of waterfalls.

Zanzibar 2019

In addition to contributing to the Foundation's initiatives and getting to do such fulfilling work, since being here, I've loved being able to explore Tanzania on the weekends. I spent a weekend discovering Dar es Salaam and the many things it has to offer, from beautiful Coco Beach to Mwenge Woodcarver's Market. Last weekend, Tihut and I had the chance to take a quick trip to Zanzibar, which was nothing short of stunning, and as I type this, we are driving back from a weekend spent in the Morogoro region, where we visited the Udzungwa waterfalls. Tanzania boasts so much beauty, both in its people and its natural resources, and I will definitely be coming back someday!