Bethan Crisp, a recently returned Oyster volunteer, has formed a special bond with the people of her placement village in Tanzania. She spent 10 months as a childcare volunteer and her experience was life-changing as she became dedicated to going above and beyond what she originally signed up for!
Bethan gives us some insight into her exciting new project to fit water filtration systems in the community…
Bethan and other Oyster volunteers saw with their own eyes the struggles that the village orphanage and hospital have had in simply trying to supply their poorly and hungry children with water. They could not sit back and watch this happen so they developed “The Small Things”, starting with Project MAJI…
Bethan states, “I am determined to see that the orphanage is fitted with one water filtration system that I plan to personally install whilst I return (after just 6 months of being back in England!) over Christmas and New Year! (Which I am ridiculously excited about!) Also there to assist, will be Bekka, (Founder and Chair of The Small Things) and possibly a couple of other amazing Oyster volunteers that hope to join us and see the children before a few of them leave to go to school – another successful ongoing project, thanks to The Small Things!”
Today, Oyster financially contributed to this project and you can too by donating as much or as little as you like to Project Maji.
If you fancy getting involved in orphanage work, Oyster has loads of volunteering opportunities with projects not only in Tanzania but also in Brazil, Nepal and Romania. Volunteer from just one month up to 6 months with Oyster – or extend your stay to make an even greater contribution, like Bethan! With all our projects we offer full support both in the UK and abroad, we also organise everything from your accommodation, to in-country activities, right through to your flights! All you need is a love of kids and the enthusiasm to really make a difference!
If you want to get involved in a childcare project in Tanzania and see this project develop for yourself, or to help out in another exciting country, visit our website or get in touch with Jon at [email protected].
Hi, I am Bethan’s Mum and I think I must be the proudest Mum in the world. Although I missed Bethan greatly when she was away, I supported her each and every step. I worried when she left and when she climbed Mt Meru and again when she began her ascent of Mt Killimangaro. This experience has been the making of her so I thank Oyster for their support and giving her the opportunity of a lifetime. When Bethan was 4yrs old she was diagnosed with Nephrotic Syndrome
(a rare Kidney Disease) and she spent the best part of a year in Hospital. It took a few years for her to get to long term remission so she personelly knows something about childhood illness, pain and suffering so this experience has beeen extra special for all of us. Once again , a huge thank you to Oyster and a massive well done to Bethan. Shirley Williams x
Hi Shirley,
Thank you for your kind comments.
We are all really pleased that Bethan had such an amazing time in Tanzania on the Oyster program. It is clear that Bethan worked extremely hard to make the most of her time and it is great to see that she is continuing to raise funds for the orphanage – keep up the good work!
Jon
Thanks so much for doing this story on us and the work that Bethan, Emily, Emma, Megan and I have been doing with the Nkoaranga orphanage kids! It would be great if you could include a direct link to The Small Things as well. We also thank you for your generous direct contribution to project MAJI.
The next project will be raising money to get all of this year’s children enrolled in high quality boarding schools after they age out of the orphanage – this year it will be Stevie, Ericki and Dainess. We will miss them terribly but they are beautifully taken care of through the work of everyone at The Foundation for Tomorrow. However, we can only do this with help! We are still looking for a partial yearly sponsor for Dainess, as well as helping our year-to-year sponsors to raise the 3 year initial payment to ensure that, should the sponsors be unable to continue, the children will be able to continue to attend school without interruption. So as you can see, Project MAJI is a beginning, not an end!
Thanks again for everything.