Destiny. It's a popular idea these days. We hear it all the time - "She was destined for stardom" or "He was destined to fail." Time and again we are told that our paths are determined by an alignment of stars and the circumstances of our birth. For a great many, this concept is less than comforting.

SFK acknowledges the challenges faced by children born into extreme poverty, and then teaches those same kids and their caretakers how to transform hardship into opportunity. Anyone familiar with the program can attest to its success. In some of the poorest regions in Malawi, children and caretakers are looking at their own lives through new eyes, thanks to SFK.

This past week, the SFK program reached another 382 kids at Mai Aisha Kachere Prison, Home Of Hope, Social Rehabilitation Centre, Mwalandiridwa Community Based Organization, and Chiwa Approved School.

Instructor Chimwemwe Masina's SFK class discussed stereotyping and preconceived ideas. The idea that "girls drop out of school and marry early" was supported by some of the students, including many of the girls themselves. But even a female student who believed the statement to be true agreed that stereotypes can be overcome with effort and certainty in one's own unique abilities.

A class at Chilwa Approved School is learning about cause and effect. A student called Samuel shared how stealing a panga knife had caused him a great deal of trouble. He'd intended to sell the knife to buy soap, but when his friends began to shun him, he rethought his decision. Having lost all peace of mind, Samuel realized that stealing wasn't worth the pain it caused, no matter the intention behind it. Another boy also applied the principle of cause and effect to his own history of theft. George once had a habit of stealing things, even though his Granny advised him against it. He never listened to her until it was too late. Finally caught in the act, an angry mob beat him and sent him to prison. Fortunately, he was reassigned to Chilwa Approved. Now, with the help of SFK, he is able to connect his actions to their consequences.

It's not just children reshaping their destinies in Malawi. Adults are applying the program's simple but deeply profound concepts to their own lives as well. Very often, caretakers who take SFK classes learn new ways to raise and teach the kids in their communities.

Facilitator training sessions at Consol Homes and Mpemba Reformatory School provided quite an education for SFK volunteers. Instructor Fainess reports that a woman at Consol Homes confessed that she'd never really appreciated her children, and had often spanked them. After considering the pain of those without children, she has promised not to mistreat her own. Another class discussed the importance of appreciating children, even the most difficult ones there at the reform school. The staff volunteered a number of ways they could do better by the kids, simply by listening to them, and being more available to help them when they need emotional and physical assistance.
As many SFK graduations as we've seen in just the few short years the program has been in Malawi, each one is still exciting and inspiring. Graduation at Hyphen Education Aid Foundation featured booth presentations, sketches, and songs. Plans for a June 6th ceremony at Mzando is currently underway. It's a great time to share with our supporters a letter of recommendation written for SFK by Lucy Chipeta Malitowe, Executive Director at Home of Hope Orphanage:

Let us first thank you for the wonderful teaching you have rendered to our organization. It is very important because we have already seen the impact this is having on the children, mothers, and staff, and this is very encouraging.

We have noticed some behavior changes after the curriculum. There is love or good relationship compared to the past. The kids have developed a spirit of sharing and helping one another. Their school performance has improved. The head teacher has realized there is a role here for SFK.

Parents and caregivers have said that they are not having the same problems they used to have such as stealing among the boys, or going out of campus without permission. There is unity among them now despite coming from different homes and backgrounds. The kids help. Teachers have reported more respect, and the children can be trusted now.

The children themselves report that they believe in themselves more. At first they felt that, being orphans, they don't have bright futures. Now they realize they have a role to play.

Lucy goes on to say that she would love to see the program grow in Malawi, with teachers throughout the country and courses taught in government agencies and in private schools.

A good indicator of any nation's destiny can be found within its classrooms. Unfortunately, too many of Malawi's children, especially its girls, are going without a comprehensive education. SFK is working to enhance and improve the lives of some of the world's most vulnerable children by teaching them to help themselves, and one another. There is a great deal of work yet to be done. But if the stories and smiles of SFK kids are any indication, the destiny of Malawi is a happy one indeed.

Raising Malawi is in the business of uniting powerful forces to empower vulnerable populations. By linking community organizations with much needed resources, we are able to help some of the most overlooked and cruelly stigmatized populations in the developing world.

One of the communities to whom we are dedicated is that of Malawi's often misunderstood albino citizens. Albinism is a genetic condition resulting from a lack of skin pigment called melanin. In addition to suffering poor eyesight and high rates of skin cancer, albinos are ostracized and even persecuted in villages where their pale skin and yellow hair is looked on with great suspicion. Parents often keep their albino children from attending school in an effort to protect them from bullying, and albino adults seeking employment face mistrust and discrimination.

A recent online article by Lameck Masina of Blantyre praises the work of Raising Malawi, and provides further insight into the superstitions faced by African albinos.

Some African folktales hold that albinos are victims of witchcraft, or that they are the product of a mating between humans and a water spirits. In economically depressed and educationally challenged areas area, these superstitions are too often all the encouragement needed to turn desperately poor individuals to brutal opportunists.

Last year, Raising Malawi partnered with the skin clinic at Kamuzu Central Hospital to reach as many of Malawi's albinos as possible by hosting awareness events and skin cancer prevention seminars. When the clinic asked Raising Malawi for assistance in procuring sun block - an expensive luxury in Malawi - as well as sunhats, long sleeved shirts, and sunglasses for the hospital's albino clients, we turned to a company called Sun Precautions for help.

Sun Precautions' Solumbra clothing line provides 30+ SPF all-day UVA and UVB sun protection. It's safe, effective and can protect wearers from head to toe. Founder Shaun Hughes generously donated over one thousand Sun Precautions items including hundreds of hats, shirts, pants, and an assortment of gloves, scarves, jackets, tunics, skirts, and full length covers to Raising Malawi. These pieces were distributed at Kamuzu Hospital's skin clinic, and have made an appreciable difference in the lives of a population often overlooked by aid organizations.

In addition to providing Malawi's albinos with sorely needed medical care, Raising Malawi continues to help educate Malawians about skin disorders and inform the global medical community of the dermatological challenges in sub-Saharan Africa.

"Our partnership with Sun Precautions and Kamuzu Central Hospital, have made it possible for albino children to attend regular classes and unemployed adults to find jobs," says Raising Malawi Executive Director, Philippe van den Bossche. "In time, we hope to challenge the misconceptions about albinism in Africa and to change the lives of those who live with it."

The title is derived from the concept of "Ubuntu," an idea in African spirituality that states that all of humanity is connected, that we cannot be ourselves without community, that an individual's well-being is dependent upon the well-being of others.

These heart-wrenching stories are a call to action. In Malawi, a country of 13 million people, over one million are orphans. Looking into the hearts and minds of children who have suffered more than one can imagine, the book provides an unflinching view of life at the center of the global AIDS crisis. This is not just a story about orphans in Malawi, but about global responsibility and human interconnectedness.

I Am Because We Are includes a foreword by Madonna, an afterword by Ashburn, excerpts from interviews with Malawian children, their biographies, and extended captions. Author proceeds from the sale of the book will be donated to the charitable organization Raising Malawi for their extensive work with orphans throughout Malawi.

From the Author
While preparing this book, I looked through thousands of images. Each brought back a memory.

I will never forget the first family I met who asked me if I could provide them with arvs -- the life-saving AIDS drugs. I was sitting in the living room of Wendy and her son, Valentine. They were both HIV positive.

Wendy looked me straight in the eye. As she talked, she labored to breathe: "Is it true that in your country people no longer die of this hiv?"

It was a question I would be asked over and over. People had heard that the drugs existed, and wanted to know how they could get them. With so many in need, I was completely overwhelmed. I convinced myself that I was only there as a journalist and that I could help the most by documenting the crisis. Now, looking back, I could have found a way to provide the drugs. And I should have. I could have helped to save one person. I could have saved Valentine.

Always eager to help, Valentine tagged along as I conducted interviews in the neighborhood. Once, trying to brighten his day and mine, we ate fast food and saw the movie Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Afterwards he practiced his karate kicks and talked about what he would do when he got better.

Valentine died a year later. He was ten years old.

AIDS drugs are now cheaper and more accessible then ever. We've run out of excuses. Valentine's death was preventable, and so are the deaths of millions of hiv-positive people in sub-Saharan Africa. This is not just about medicine, though. It's about involvement. It's about elevating people out of poverty, and addressing the unjust distribution of resources.

These images span my journey through Botswana, Zimbabwe, South Africa, and Malawi -- all countries heavily affected by the virus. Much of what I experienced I can never convey in words. Each person in this book allowed me into their lives and shared their most difficult times so that we could bear witness to their suffering. Their hope, and mine, is that their stories will help us understand the heartbreaking reality of the pandemic and just how much is at stake.

Product Details:
Hardcover: 180 pages
Publisher: powerHouse Books (December 2008)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1576874826
ISBN-13: 978-1576874820
Product Dimensions: 11.2 x 10.7 x 0.9 inches
Shipping Weight: 3.1 pounds

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