Education support has been on-going in HUYAWA work. The main objective is to ensure that orphans get equal opportunities to education. There are orphans who do not go to school and others who stop schooling when their parents die. As such, part of HUYAWA’S responsibility is to make sure that such children also get education. Among other duties in the education department, Special Classes for over-aged orphans have been on-going since 1997. These classes have helped to boost such orphans’ ego and self-esteem. Until end of 2003, 463 orphans have gone through Special Classes and they have been absorbed in ordinary primary schools in classes I-III, thanks to the good co-operation with the Regional and District education officers. One such child is Josephat Gaspare.
Josephat is a determined young man, 18 years old, in Primary School and in class VII this year. His age mates are now in their fourth year of Secondary education.
Josephat has two siblings, an older brother and a younger sister. Their parents died of AIDS; the father in 1996 and the mother in 2001. The family lived in a small shed in one good Samaritan’s plot. They did piece work for their living. They had no own property. The mother was sick over a long period of time and since they had to work for their livelihood, help to care for their mother, and with lack of resources, they did not get enrolled in school. HUYAWA enrolled the boys in a special afternoon class, which was 6 km away from their home. That was in 1998 and Josephat was 12. In 2000 he joined ordinary primary school classes in class III. In 2001, HUYAWA moved the family to the maternal uncles’ place, about 100 km away from Bukoba town.
The mother who was then on deathbed died within a month.
The children continued with school in their new home, but Josephat was dissatisfied with the poor teaching in that school. He made friends with an uncle’s friend who lived about 40 km away from his new home, moved to live with him and got permission to join a better school. Josephat was pestered by his “guardian” to change his religion but he refused. Because of this, life became unbearable, thus he sought refuge with another friend in the vicinity, determined not to change schools again. He is ranking at the top in his class and he feels proud of his efforts. Josephat is quite tall yet he is not ashamed of studying in the same class with his juniors in age. As he once told one of HUYAWA staff, “ I know what I am doing, I know what I am looking for therefore I will persevere”
We believe that his perseverance will see him through. HUYAWA is there for him and his siblings. They get support with school gear, healthcare and sometimes ordinary social care. Unfortunately, his elder brother refused to continue with schooling.