Chris volunteered with Upendo from January-April 2013, here is what he had to say about his time with us...
My memories of seeing site for the first time 3 months ago seem very blurry. It's hardly surprising, the place couldn't have been much more different from January to now. It was a building site, hundreds, if not thousands of hours of work had already gone into the planning and construction, but when I saw it I remember thinking '**** we have to make this into a home in the next couple of months'. It seemed like an impossible task and one I didn't feel up to. But some stronger souls than me got to work. Ceiling panels went up, walls got painted, showers and toilets got tiled, tile cutters got stolen, more bathrooms got tiled, earth got moved, beds got made, and finally on March 4th the children moved in. It felt like a momentous occasion, and it was. Maria did the honour of cutting the ribbon and a new era for Upendo Children's Home was upon us. To see the smiles on the kids faces on that first day as they stepped into their bedrooms and saw their own beds in their own home was nothing short of magical. Mussa and Masalu jumped straight up to the top bunks to claim their territory. People were running in all directions and shouts of joy were ringing out. The move had finally happened.
Along with 5 kids, Prisca, Joyce and Devota (our trio of Mamas) moved in and set to work. When we arrived the next day they were washing the floors and moving things around as though we hadn't been doing that exact thing 24 hours earlier. Our efforts were clearly not satisfactory enough for their liking. They kept on asking, 'Can we do this?', 'Can we move that?', my response was always 'You live here, you can do whatever you like!'
The last couple of weeks have been demanding and a whole set of new problems have arisen for Upendo to tackle. But overriding all of the challenges is the happiness of the kids. When I turned up last Saturday morning I knew all the hard work of Carly, James and Matthew and the volunteers before me was worth it. The girls were sat outside reading with Devota, Prisca was working away in the kitchen, Joyce was hanging clothes on the line, the two puppies jumped up at me wanting their daily milk delivery, and the boys were playing football with the girls who live opposite, with Eduardi screaming at me that Arsenal were beating Manchester United. I couldn't suppress the massive smile on my face. 'Site' has truly become a 'Home'.
