Touchstone meet the families we will be building houses for this year.................................

With only 13 Sleeps to go before the team fly to Malawi, we receive details of the families we will be helping to build houses for this year.

Touchstone family profiles 

Name		Gender	Level of Education	Relationship	Status
Fayiness		F	-	Mother	Elderly caregiver
Thokozani	14	M	Grade 5	Grand son	Vulnerable
Alinafe		F	Grade 7	Grand daughter	Vulnerable

 Fayiness is from Mpanje Village in T/A Kalonga in Salima district, Malawi. She lives in a one-roomed, thatched roof house, with dirt floors, no ventilation and walls built using unburnt bricks. Fayiness used to live with her two grandchildren children; Thokozani and Alinafe but now Thokozani moved from the village. “My blindness is a problem as it disturbs my ability to take care of my orphan grandchildren, who are too young to help in earning for our household” comments, Fayiness on her predicament.

On sanitation Fayiness and her family uses her granddaughter’s latrine as she does not have her own. 

 

Name		Gender	Level of Education	Relationship	Status
Violet		F	-	Mother	Single parent
Patuma		F	Grade 4	Son	Vulnerable
Chisomo		M	Grade 1	Daughter	Vulnerable
Emeles		F	Grade 1	Daughter	Vulnerable
Robert		F	Not yet	Daughter	Vulnerable
Tomas		M	Not yet	Son	Vulnerable
Rashida		F	Not yet	Daughter	Vulnerable

 Violet is also from Mpanje Village in T/A Kalonga in Salima district, Malawi. She lives in a very small, one-roomed-house that is also  roofed with thatching grass, floor made using dirt, with no ventilation and walls built using unburnt bricks. Violet lives with her 6 children; Patuma, Chisomo, Emeles, Robert, Tomas and Rashida in her house. “The children and I are not comfortable living in this extremely small house but we cannot afford a bigger and decent house” comments, Violet on her predicament.

On sanitation Violet and her family uses her younger sister’s latrine as she does not have her own.

 

Thank you from the families we helped last year.........................

If you have ever, even in the smallest form thought about helping others less fortunate than yourself, you only have to read this to spur you on.  As you know, last year staff from Touchstone flew to Malawi and built 2 houses with Habitat for Humanity and made a huge difference to the lives of the families, here is what those families had to say;


1. Regina

Regina in front of her old house

Touchstone team happy after building Regina’s house to roofing level

Regina very excited in front of her new house

This is what Regina, a disabled widow, had to say when she was visited by Habitat staff. 

“My life has been so miserable for a long time because of the house I was living in. The house was so bad that mosquitos and other insects could breed inside the house during rainy season. My children and myself have suffered from malaria for a long time especially the young child.  As that was not enough, fever and coughs were frequent due to dust that could easily enter in the house during the dry season. I can now open my windows in the morning and let fresh air come in.  I can now mop my house for good hygiene, our beddings now are dry and clean. I would like to sincerely thank the Touchstone friends who came all the way from UK to come see me and build my house. I will never forget their love as we played together during the construction of my house. I hope I will see them again. May God continue to bless Touchstone and Habitat for the greatest gift that I will cherish for the rest of my life.”

2. Esinta

Esinta in front of her old house

Touchstone team happy after building Esinta’s house to roofing level

Esinta’s family very happy in front of her new house

Esinta now can sit on the veranda of her new home and eat her meal with her children peacefully.  Esinta thanks Touchstone and Habitat Malawi for this rare opportunity. “I am now able to have plans in life like any other person in the community with no worries at all because I have a good house with a beautiful paint that many people admire, my future and that of the children is bright and secure” Said Esinta. 

The children are now living a healthy life as malaria cases have been reduced since habitat Malawi gave them mosquito nets.  Furthermore, diarrhea cases have also been reduced since a ventilated improved pit-latrine was also constructed for the family.  Thus, no more use of poor and smelly latrines that attracted flies which are the carriers of germs. The air borne diseases have been greatly reduced because the house has air vents, cement floor, plastered wall and windows that make it possible to have clean air.  The children have a conducive place for study and Esinta is no longer buying grass for roofing because her house has iron sheets hence the money is used to buy other basic needs for the family.  The family is no-longer afraid of the heavy rains which are currently falling in the area as they feel protected by the strong house.

“I would like to sincerely thank Touchstone for helping me and my family to have a new life. I have never seen this kind of love and I would like to wish them all the best in their lives.  As you can see now, although the heavy rains are coming I have peace of mind because I know my house is strong that it can withstand heavy rains and wind.  My children are now sleeping peacefully thereby being very attentive in class and I know that they will have good grades. Thank you Touchstone and Habitat, may you continue to do the same to other needy people like me”, concluded Esinta full of smiles. 

As you can see the Touchstone Team left lasting impressions on the homeowners and the members of the community. The homeowners and the whole community were excited and touched with love and commitment demonstrated by the Team to come to Malawi to make a difference in the lives of the needy.  The community and HFHM staff are looking forward to another great experience with a new Touchstone team in 2017.

What's it all about?

You may be wondering what this blog is all about, well it all started when Touchstone committed to a 3 year partnership with Habitat for Humanity in 2016.

Who are Habitat for Humanity?

Habitat for Humanity is a charity dedicated to eliminating poverty housing worldwide; to achieving the vision of a world with no poverty housing and homelessness, and to making decent housing a matter of conscience and action for all.  In the industry we are in this partnership makes perfect sense

What have Touchstone committed to?

With Touchstone’s help, HFHM will construct 24, fully-subsidised decent and permanent low-cost houses for 96 orphans and other vulnerable children (OVCs) (average of 4 individuals per family). A family with up to 3 members will have a 2-roomed house, and a family with 4 to 7 members will receive a 3-roomed house whilst a family with 8 members and above will receive a 4-roomed house. Each family will also receive a ventilated and improved pit-latrine (VIP) to improve sanitation and hygiene. Each house will meet Malawi Government housing quality standards in terms of ventilation, space, and other features.

 

The project will also:

• incorporate HIV prevention training for the 24 OVC beneficiary families;
• provide 3 insecticide-treated mosquito-nets per family (on average) and also provide the 24 OVC families with malaria prevention training. Training will also cover better hygiene practices around the homes to eliminate mosquito breeding places, signs of malaria and when to seek medical help.
• provide property-rights and wills and inheritance training to safeguard the lives of the OVC from property-grabbing. In many communities in Malawi, when the breadwinner dies, children are subjected to property-grabbing and are often left destitute. The training will be offered not only to the OVC care-givers, but also to traditional leaders (village headmen), child protection workers, CBO representatives and other influential people (gate-keepers) in the villages.
   
  The project will provide an opportunity for Touchstone staff to visit Malawi and participate in the construction of the houses. This will enable the team members to have an opportunity to interact with the homeowners and the wider community. Through the global village visit the Touchstone team will see first-hand the need these vulnerable families have for shelter and the impact that this project will have on the targeted families and wider community.
  Tasks at the worksite may include mixing mortar, carrying water, passing bricks, laying bricks, cleaning the area, plastering walls, passing mortar and sorting bricks
   
  The first team of Touchstone volunteers travelled to Malawi in June 2016 and between the team of 12 built 2 houses in 5 days……..not bad going
  This year sees our second team of Touchstone volunteers heading out to Malawi in June 2017.  The team are really excited and can’t wait to get their hands ditty.
  We will see more blogs leading up to the time they go and will see how they are getting on while they are out there (despite the very intermittent wifi)
  Good luck guys, an amazing cause and what will make a life changing experience for you all

26 Sleeps to go...............

With only 26 Sleeps to go before the team;


Margaret Grant
John Midgley
Charlotte Greaves
Julie Kemp
Lee Bartle
Alison Spink
Harley Jones
Caroline Evans
Rebecca Beer
Steven Dobbins
Claire Woodhouse
Steven Orrick


Start their long journey to the Salami district in Malawi where they will spend a week helping build houses for the Orphans. 


The flights are all confirmed with South African Airways;

  1  SA 235 L 04JUN 7 LHRJNB HK11 1810 2  1900 0700+1 *1A/E*                   

  2  SA 170 S 05JUN 1 JNBLLW HK11 0910 B  1000 1220   *1A/E*                   

  3  SA 171 S 12JUN 1 LLWJNB HK11 1215    1305 1535   *1A/E*                   

  4  SA 234 L 12JUN 1 JNBLHR HK11 1905 B  1955 0625+1 *1A/E*                   

All are excited to get there and get stuck in.  They have an amazing experience ahead of them.

67 Sleeps to go!!!

67 Sleeps to go!!! Until the Malawi 2017 Team fly out to Salima for the second round of house building.


Who are the team?
Margaret Grant - HfH volunteer and Team Leader
John Midgley - Touchstone Director & Deputy Team Leader
Charlotte Greaves - Touchstone Milton Keynes
Julie Kemp - Touchstone Bath
Lee Bartle - Touchstone Leeds
Adam Elmasri - Touchstone London
Alison Spink - Touchstone Milton Keynes
Harley Jones - Touchstone Bath
Caroline Evans - Touchstone London
Rebecca Beer - Touchstone Milton Keynes
Steven Dobbins - Touchstone Bath
Steven Orrick - Touchstone Newcastle


When is the Trip?
The team fly out on Sunday 4th June 2017 and return to the UK Tuesday 13th June 2017.  You will be able to follow their progress on the blog.


What will they be doing on the trip?
Building some awesome houses to help the orphans; the team have a lot to live up to in comparison to last year's team who built 2 houses in under a week........ no pressure guys!!  The team will be involved in all aspects of the site, from passing & laying bricks to mixing Matope, climbing scaffold and genuinely building relationships with the community.


Are you all getting prepared?  Have you booked your vaccinations?  Have you bought copious amounts of Deet? (you will need it)

A very big THANK YOU to one of our clients; Liz Williams for her generous donation to our Build fund

A poem from Dan ....

A poem written for us by Daniel Chinawa who works with Habitat and Humanity and the villages.

You were born with the ability to change someone’s life and you didn’t waste it

 

 

 

YOU CHANGED A LIFE

 

‘Eat, Sleep, Build’ that is one motto that links well with Habitat for Humanity,

But how can you jovially eat in a house that is leaking at a great gravity?

How can you sleep in a house with no proper windows?

How at all can you comfortably live in a house with weak or destroyed doors?

 And so this leaves one super important facet of this three word motto,

Build, yes! That’s right build,

For if you build you bring about a shelter which august well with one of Abraham Maslow’s physiological need,

This word build is exactly what brought together Habitat for Humanity Malawi, Habitat for Humanity Great Britain and Touchstone to come to Salima,

It saw the need of Esinta Banda, Regina Mtambalika and their families,

And so has met the need in a way that leaves beautiful indelible memories for years,

 

Now if someone wants to give directions to Nakondwa, one would say ‘...then you will find these two beautiful houses’

Truly in some sort of new local mesmerizing Global Positioning System beyond the beauty of a garden of roses,

I pass by the two houses that you constructed I am met by the priceless smiles of Precious and Petra so young and free,

And it’s all because of the initiative of Touchstone, Habitat Great Britain and Habitat Malawi,

And I know, I really know that this mark made in the hearts of the two families will last a lifetime,

Protecting the families from many dangers and increasing their joyful laugh time

So Sam, Mahroof, Stacey, Manuela, John, Rae, Fenna, Brad, Dane, Lins, Symon and Mela, I want to tell you how grateful I am,

Thank you for building not only houses, but also memories, smiles and hope for a future that’s much brighter,

May this be imprinted in your hearts everywhere you go ‘I changed a life’ for you made the beneficiaries’ problems much lighter,

Never at one point just reminisce that you only built houses in that community,

Always find satisfaction in that you brought everlasting smiles and changed lives by your humanity.

You should also find solace in the fact that you offered to the less privileged a long lasting housing immunity,

Make sure that you keep in memory the Chichewa phrases that you learnt like Dzina lako ndani? (What’s your name?) Zikomo Kwambiri (Thank you very much), chonde (Please), Tionana Mawa (See you, tomorrow), Matope (Mortar) and Njerwa (Brick/s)

INDEED YOU CHANGED MANY A LIFE!

 

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has - Margaret Mead