Tanzania Development Support

08/12/2026

Chicago friends, here's an easy way to support TDS this month.

A volunteer is hosting a Pampered Chef fundraiser for Tanzania Development Support, and Pampered Chef is DOUBLING all donations back to us in August. Every order placed through Aug 31 raises money for our work in the rural Mara region: Willmann Scholarships, the Library and Community Resource Center in Nyegina, and the 4H Career Pathways Program.

Shop the party (online orders welcome, no need to be local):
https://table.pamperedchef.com/party/3675427akx

Open house at the host's on Sat Aug 23, 12-3 PM if you're nearby.

Asante to Carly Hill for organizing this and to Lauren Wasulko (Pampered Chef Independent Consultant) for the double donation match.

Table By Pampered Chef

07/17/2026

When TDS board member Solonge Robinson toured 4H gardens at two secondary schools in the rural Mara region this June, she noticed the girls at the first school were hauling water by hand, buckets carried from a small pond at either end of an expansive plot.

She showed them a video of her son watering their Chicago community garden with a hose. In her words:

"They smiled and laughed, but also said that is what they needed, a watering hose to help water their crops."

The second school, Etaro Secondary, already has a watering hose thanks to earlier TDS-funded work. The 4H Career Pathways Program (4HCP) builds school gardens, career skills, and infrastructure like this across the Mara region.

Help fund the next hose: givebutter.com/Kili2026/johnkubojastudents

07/14/2026

Chicago showed up.

TDS was in the program at World Kiswahili Day in Chicago on Saturday, connecting with the Tanzanian Community Association and community members who share our love for the language, the culture, and the work.

Huge asante to Edith Njuguna for representing TDS on the ground, and to the Tanzanian Community Association for hosting.

Our 2026 Kili Climb campaign is still working toward $20,000. If you connected with us through the QR code at Kiswahili Day, or if you're just seeing this now, the easiest way to keep the momentum is here:

givebutter.com/Kili2026

Full climb story: www.tdsnfp.org

TDS is a US-based nonprofit supporting education programs, including girls' scholarships, in the Mara region of Tanzania.

07/13/2026

They summited.

Eight American climbers (Andrea and Scott Trudeau, Eric Hill, Solonge Robinson, Christine Hill, Hanna and Bentley Martin, and Josh Hocherl) joined Tanzanian teacher John Kuboja and two of his students on our June 2026 Kilimanjaro Climb. John and Mareges Mberege reached Uhuru Peak at 19,341 feet with the TDS flag.

Andrea Trudeau, TDS board member, on the students they met at the schools:

"Their confidence, joy, gratitude, and grit were consistently evident throughout the climb, the kind of qualities that build a bright future for Tanzanian youth."

The campaign has raised $18,515 from 114 supporters. $1,485 to $20,000.

Close the gap: givebutter.com/Kili2026

By Tanzania Development Support

07/11/2026

Chicago friends, today's the day. TDS is in the program at Kiswahili Day. Look for our QR code at the event, or head straight to www.tdsnfp.org for the full 2026 Kili Climb story and how to help.

Huge asante to Edith Njuguna for repping us on the ground.

We're $1,485 short of $20,000. Every gift closes the gap: givebutter.com/Kili2026/johnkubojastudents

By Tanzania Development Support

07/10/2026

500 students and teachers in Tanzania just got a global learning resource.

Kids Discover has donated a subscription to the Madaraka Nyerere Library and Community Resource Center (LCRC) in rural Musoma. Any student, teacher, or patron at the library can now access their nonfiction texts — including Swahili translations.

Thank you Ted Levine and Kids Discover. Thank you Andrea Trudeau for making the connection.

Support the LCRC and TDS: www.tdsnfp.org

TDS is a US-based nonprofit supporting education programs, including girls' scholarships, in the Mara region of Tanzania.

07/08/2026

A student in the Mara Region asked Solonge Robinson a direct question on the 2026 Kili Climb: "we need a watering hose for the school garden. Can you help us?"

That's the ask on the table now.

The John Kuboja & Students team — including teacher John Kuboja and his students Veneranda Manyama and Mareges Thobias Mberege — funds 4H gardens, watering hoses, and computer labs at Mkono Secondary. Every donation to their page powers the 4H/Career Pathways program directly.

Every $25 buys real supplies for a real classroom.

https://givebutter.com/Kili2026/johnkubojastudents

The 2026 Kili Climb campaign has raised $18,515 from 114 supporters. Every gift to the Kuboja team stretches that impact further into the schools that need it most.

06/24/2026

They made it. 19,341 feet.

Andrea, Scott, John, Mareges, Solonge, Christine, Hanna, Bentley, Eric, and Josh summited Mount Kilimanjaro for the work TDS does year-round in Tanzania's Mara Region.
The team page that includes Mareges, and their teacher John is still working toward its $6,000 goal. If you've been waiting to give, this is the moment:
https://givebutter.com/Kili2026/johnkubojastudents

Thank you to everyone who got them up the mountain.

06/21/2026

Day 9 on the mountain.

Somewhere on Kilimanjaro's slopes right now, our team is moving steadily upward — Andrea, Scott, John, Veneranda, Mareges, Solonge, Christine, Hanna, Bentley, Eric, and Josh.

They left DeKalb and Tanzania's Mara Region a week ago. Every step they're taking is fueled by the donations that came in over the last month.

We don't have a live photo to share — they're well above where cell service reliably reaches. But they're up there. They're climbing. And the fundraising you helped power is already funding the work waiting for them when they come down.

Thank you for getting them this far.

https://givebutter.com/Kili2026/

06/02/2026

Two people. One mountain. 19,341 feet.

Andrea Trudeau fell in love with Tanzania as a Fulbright Hays scholar in 2022. This June, for her 50th birthday, her husband Scott is going with her — together they're summiting Mount Kilimanjaro and raising funds for Tanzania Development Support, where Andrea serves on our board.

Andrea's focus through TDS: the Reading Circles program in the LCRC library.

Small gifts add up fast. Even $25 brings Scott and Andrea closer to their $4,000 goal — and helps power Reading Circles and the other work TDS does year-round in the Mara Region.

https://givebutter.com/Kili2026/andreatrudeau