12/15/2017
As I write this, I am reminded that there is one thing we can be certain of in life - there will be change. It is with so much gratitude that I am writing to celebrate and inform you that 18 years of The IMAGE Project’s work in Tanzania is complete and The IMAGE Project will dissolve on Dec. 31, 2017.
When I started this small organization 18 years ago, I was answering a call to do one good thing in the world. But, with all of you walking alongside me and the Maasai girls in Tanzania, you have provided nearly 500 scholarships for girls who would otherwise be forced into early marriages and never have a chance to dream of a different life. Together, we built a primary school that is now being totally sustained by the Maasai community, and beginning in 2013, we built a secondary school that now consists of two dormitories, five classrooms, a library and a science lab that is one of the best in Tanzania.
My vision has always been that the Namnyaki Secondary School be transferred to the Maasai community as a gift on the day that the first girls graduated. It is with a grateful heart that I can tell you that with the guidance and leadership of Edward Tunyon, a Maasai man who is dedicated to his people, the school now belongs to the community. They have a viable plan to move the vision forward. I am confident that the school will not only be successful; it will thrive and be one of the best secondary schools in Tanzania.
In the past 18 years, I have received the greatest gift that anyone can experience in life.
As we know, when you help someone, the joy is returned multiplied to the giver. Although there were times we faced great challenges, when we experienced dark nights of the soul, it is those moments that make us resolve to persist, weather the storm, and emerge stronger and more resilient.
The girls taught me, and I am sure many of you, that we must never give up on our dreams. They also taught me to believe anything is possible in our lives - if we trust, if we believe, and we act. We learned to let go and let God work miracles through our lives.
I am blessed beyond words and grateful to all of you for what we all have accomplished together in the lives of these girls and women. The world is a better place thanks to you.
If you feel called to make one more contribution to help the girls at the school this Holiday season, we wish to give the school one final gift to help them with the new school year.
We welcome any donations through December 31, 2017. After that date, the donation aspect of our website (www.imagetanzania.org) will be removed.
Thank you. Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas.
Deb
