The Story of PIZZ School – A Fantastic Project

The beginning

When I first met Mrs. Sianga in 2003 she was a full time nurse providing Home Based Care. One memorable afternoon she took me out to meet some of her patients. I was invited into the homes of women who were dying because of AIDS. The houses were invariably single roomed properties built mainly of mud bricks and thatched with elephant grass. Mrs. Sianga had a few paracetemol tablets to dispense to these ladies, but nothing that would prevent their imminent death. I felt very privileged to be welcomed and very humbled.

These women died, together with many more of Mrs. Sianga's patients. Having come to know the families, Mrs. Sianga was keen to support the orphaned children. In particular she wanted to keep the children from going onto the streets – with all the associated dangers.

Some volunteers from Italy wanted to help. Mrs Sianga set up a small local charity “Maluba Orphans and Vulnerable Children” - Muluba being a Zambian word meaning “flowers” . With the volunteers help, Mrs. Sianga started providing some extra food for the orphaned children and with assistance from her family she started a small school which became known as PIZZ School.

 

Growing the school

Soon the children had outgrown the small school buildings. Thanks to a wealthy benefactor, introduced through Hands Around the World, the school buildings were improved to provide more security and shelter from the rain. Another benefactor agreed to buy land for the purpose of building extra classrooms etc. for a school for orphaned and vulnerable children. The local chief agreed to sell some land specifically to be used for a school for orphaned and vulnerable children. It is important to know that the aim has always been very clear. The school was to provide a safe space for the most vulnerable children and to give them an opportunity to gain an education that could remove them and their families from poverty and also provide benefits for the wider community.

I have had the pleasure of working alongside Mrs Sianga to help develop the project. It was obvious to me that the buildings were
of little use unless there were teachers – and they needed to be paid. The school would need maintaining and stationery, books etc. needed to be bought. I persuaded the benefactor to pay the teacher's salaries and persuaded Hands Around the World to cover the other costs.

There are some projects which enable a community to generate income and therfore become more self - sufficient. A school for vulnerable children is not one of them. When I visited those ladies in 2003 I remember that a young girl (probably 8 or 9 years old) went out to see if a neighbour would give a little sugar to make her mother's nshima porridge a little more tasty. To expect families who have difficulty providing sufficent food for their children to raise funds to pay for education is unrealistic to say the least.

I have battled over many years to obtain sufficient funding for the school – always wanting to be able to do more, despite being told that money could not be raised. However, over the years the children at the school have flourished and there has always been money in the bank.

 

The need for a school specifically for orphaned and vulnerable Children

PIZZ was established as a Basic School.

At that time the Government schools were split into Basic Schools which taught grades 1 to 9 and were “free” and Secondary Schools which taught from grade 10 to 12 and charged school fees. Although “free”, government schools required school uniforms, shoes, notebooks etc.

Even these costs made government schools too expensive for the familes of the orphaned children, but the main reason that a school specifically for orphaned and vulnerable children was needed was the need for a system of pastoral care which PIZZ could provide. The children at the school have suffered the trauma of the loss of one or both parents – sometimes followed by other bereavements and disturbances to their lives. Problems regularly happen at home which result in the children not attending school. At PIZZ these issues are addressed, the family homes are visited and invariably a way is found to enable the children to continue with their education. There are few children who drop out.

 

A Success Story

Eventually the first children at the school reached grade 9. They took exams to qualify for secondary school. The results were good and some passed. I have always thought that if children have potential we should do whatever we can to help them reach that potential. Hands Around the World funded some children to attend secondary school.

The success of the project means there is a tremendous story to tell. The successes have continued. Many children have passed grade 9 exams and some have been funded at secondary school. Children have passed their grade 12 exams. 2 or three have been funded at university and more have been funded to train as nurses.

I met Mawini when I visited in October last year. She told me that she never expected to have a chance of any education, coming from such a poor family. She was delighted to be given a place at PIZZ School and even more delighted when she was given a new school uniform. She told me that she was about 8 years old when she first met me. Mawini is now a veterinary surgeon at the University of Zambia in Lusaka. After I returned to the UK, Mawini went to Kenya to attend a conference - her first flight and trip outside of Zambia. She is hoping to do a master's degree in Japan!

Not all the children have achieved academic success, but when I visit I see lively, happy, healthy and well behaved girls and boys. Many of whom I have watched grow up over a number of years. I see the change from the traumatised, timid, frightened children who enter the school.

PIZZ is a truly amazing project which has transformed the lives of many children and their families. It has given hope to the most vulnerable in an impoverished country. I believe that it will be very hard to find another project anywhere which provides a better return for relatively small donations.

I last visited the project in October 2022 and, despite the huge challenges presented by COVID, found the school and the children looking great. I will return very soon to support Mrs. Sianga through these difficult times.

Withdrawal of funding by Hands Around the World

In June last year two representatives from Hands Around the World visited the project and told Mrs. Sianga that, unless she changed the status of the school to a Community School – effectively handing the school to the Government – Hands Around the World would stop providing funds.

The PIZZ project has always been much more than just a school. The reasons for setting up a school specifically for orphaned and vulnerable children still apply. Mrs. Sianga believes that the suggested change of status would mean the end of the project. In addition the land was given only on the basis that it would be used for a school for orphans and vulnerable children. To hand the school to the government would be contrary to this agreement.

The current position

Mrs Sianga has refused to transfer the school to the Zambian Government and Hands Around the World has carried out its threat, stopped sending funds for the project at the end of December and says it will not send any more money.

The project has been highly successful in producing wonderful outcomes for the children. This success has resulted in plenty of support which has generated considerable income for Hands Around the World.

At the end of 2021 Hands Around the World reported that they has restricted funds specifically reserved for PIZZ School amounting to £39K, in addition there was a lot more money reserved for specific activities in connection with the project. There are currently more than 70 children at PIZZ School being sponsored by donors through Hands Around the World – paying £15 each month to support children at the school, I am sure that these sponsors would want to continue to support the schoolchildren. This money is not currently being passed on to the school.

HATW is currently refusing to release any of the money they have been given for the project, but the teachers need to be paid, the school needs to be maintained and the children need school meals to allow them to learn without constantly being hungry.

I will do all I can to keep the school from closing. If HATW released the money they are holding, there could be time to establish new funding streams.

I want the project to succeed because I don't want to see the children, to whom I have promised a better life, ending up on the streets. I believe this project can provide even better outcomes for the children than in the past. I will need a lot of help, but with your support we can make lots of dreams come true.

Chris Barrell

 

PIZZ School A Wonderful Project

My main reason for visiting Zambia this year was to meet with Mrs Sianga who has become a great friend over the years.

As I have said in previous blogs, she is the inspiration who made me return to Monze year after year to learn a little about the people, the culture and theirchallenges and get to make some friends in the process.

As a nurse Mrs. Sianga was supporting people dying of AIDS when I met her in 2003. The women died leaving orphans. It was to support these children and keep them off the streets that she started PIZZ School for orphaned and vulnerable children. Over the years the school has developed and with the help of donors, who are also committed to the support of these children, many students have been given the opportunity to develop and reach some of the great potential they possess.

I spent quite a lot of time time with Mrs. and Mr. Sianga during this visit trying to provide support during what is very difficult time for them. Mrs. Sianga is not well – suffering from high blood pressure. The school has continued to provide remarkable support for the children through COVID, however it is possible that new donors will need to be sought to ensure that the prospects of the children are not compromised.

On Monday evening – my last full day in Monze – Mr. and Mrs. Sianga took me to a good restaurant for a farewell meal. We chatted about many things including the future of the children. My nshima and Talapia (also known as St. Peter's fish) was excellent! Mrs. Sianga told me that when she received a vaccine booster she recognised a young man. He was a former student – now a lab technician. I told her about meeting Samson who was rescued with his brother by Mrs. Sianga. I told her he is now working in a shop outside Monze Market and she told me that Alick, his brother, is now a bricklayer and a very good one.

I travelled to Lusaka on Tuesday. While waiting for the bus, a boy came over to me and said he knew me because he used to be a student at PIZZ School – he was working for one of the bus companies. Arriving in Lusaka I caught a taxi to Longacres Lodge. In Lusaka there has been a lot of work on the roads – generally for the better! Robots (traffic lights) are now common and many bridges, or overpasses, have been constructed at roundabouts to ease traffic flow. One such has been constructed since my last visit at Longacres and it seems to have changed the nature of the place, as well as confusing me no end!

On Wednesday I rose at about 6.30 and then wondered how to fill the next few hours until 22 hrs! I had breakfast and formally checked out at 10, leaving my cases at reception, by which time I had printed boarding cards for my flights and topped up my talktime. I then headed for the Catholic Cathedral which is just behind the hotel – though it is a good walk around the roads - there being no obvious short cut.

I have previously found the cathedral a pleasant place to spend some time on my final day in Zambia. At first it appeared closed, but I found a small door ajar around the side and spent some time in prayer.

I remembered a grotto, mirroring the one in Lourdes where St. Bernadette is said to have seen Our Lady, the mother of Jesus, and which meant so much to me when I used to visit for many years with very sick and severely disabled people. I have always felt blessed because I feel closest to God when I am with the most vulnerable in society and gain so much from developing friendships with them. In Lourdes there are always flowers and birds – mainly sand martins.

The grotto at the cathedral has been moved and enhanced. It is set in what I term a lovely garden with trees, grass and flowers attracting many birds. I was treated to seeing a bird with enormous tails – I believe it was a paradise flycatcher. Swifts flew above and a variety of small birds, that I couldn't identify, flitted about keeping me company. On my way out of the cathedral complex I was treated to a display by a violet breasted roller.

In previous years I have visited Kabwata village which provides craftsmen with an opportunity to sell their products. I hadn't a map with me this year, so I wasn't sure that I would find it. I set off from Longacres and almost immediately came across a man with a stall selling some reasonable quailty items. He told me he also sold at Kabwata. I had plenty of time still to kill, so I told him that I would return and buy something. I half-heartedly headed off, vaguely thinking I might find the village, but soon decided to enjoy a walk and return to buy from this craftsman instead.

My route from Longacres took me past the Holiday Inn, various Government offices and State House. A little further I found the Anglican Cathedral. I hadn't visited before, so I decided to check it out. I enjoyed looking around at the variety of altars and noticed that everywhere there were screens installed. This is an innovation I think Catholic Churches should adopt! I had a chance to pray again. The cleaner was obviously enjoying her work, listening to appropriate music as she worked.

I returned, but by this time could feel that I was becoming dehydrated. So I told my man to be patient while I got myself a cup of tea and a bit more cash.

As usual when I again came to the artist, I got a bit carried away and filled my backpack with various objects. I couldn't resist a large giraffe, then wondered whether it would fit in my case!

I returned to the cathedral grotto with my goods and spent more time with Mary, her son and the birds!

When Mawini heard that I was back in Zambia she said that she would like to see me. I failed to see her in Monze so she agreed to come to the hotel to meet me.

Mawini told me that she never thought that she would go to school because her mother couldn't afford to buy her the uniform etc. She was surprised and delighted when she was offered a place at PIZZ School. She initially wore her own clothes, but was proud when she was given a new uniform. She thinks that she first came to know me when she was 8 or 9. Mawini was a keen and bright student and gradually came towards the top in class – eventually becoming number one. She passed her exams at grade 7 and grade 9 and was sponsored to complete her education at a secondary boarding school. I met her before she took her grade 12 exams and she told me that she wanted to be a doctor. It was clear that she was extremely bright and had that potential.

A few weeks later I was at a church service with David Steiner and we had been invited to say a few words. When I stood up I had no idea what I would say, but I remembered Mawini and I told some of her story. After the service a doctor in the congregation said that he would like to sponsor Mawini and so she was given the opportunity to study at the University of Zambia in Lusaka. God works in mysterious ways!

Some confusion with some exams meant she had to change to a veterinary course midway through her studies.

Mawini showed me her card authorising her as a veterinary surgeon. She is working currently at the University and seems extremely busy. She told me that she is very happy as a vet. She will be flying to Kenya in a couple of weeks to take part in a conference and hopes to go to Japan later in the year to study for a doctorate.

Like many of the students from PIZZ, Mawini would never have had a chance to pursue her dreams without the care provided at the school. There are currently about 650 students at the school – all with their dreams - and in years to come many more orphaned and vulnerable children, with their own dreams will hope to receive the care and support needed to bring them to fulfilment. I really hope that the school will be able to continue to provide this.

With love and prayers,

Chris.