We’ve done it! 2 Homes for 2 Families

2 families, skilled tradesmen, Habitat staff, the Salvation Army,  volunteers from the US and Canada, Rick, Mike, Steve, Jim, Anne, Peggy, Ann-Marie, Brenda, AJ, Katie, and a whole community in Lusaka work together with the support of Habitat for Humanity Global Village Program

We’ve done it! 2 Homes for 2 Families We are excited to hear we will be building 2 homes. The families have been living in tents made of scrap materials, unsafe and broken down. Our day starts at 7 AM, we arrive by bus into the township greeted by kids pouring out on the streets waving and smiling at us. We meet the families who are overwhelmed with happiness. We work side by side with the local tradesmen who are young, energetic and very skilled. They teach us how to mix the mortar, lay the bricks, and take time to do it well and make it Shine! The tools are basic, wheelbarrows, trowels, wire, levels, shovels, a hammer, a small saw. Tools we didn’t have were made on the spot, pieces of wood to smooth a floor, make a ladder & lay a foundation for a concrete slab. We work hard and we work fast, with great camaraderie by all at the end of Day One we had 4 walls built up to a height we could not see over! And there was always time to stop and make new friends, play a game of soccer, throw a frisbee, blow some bubbles, even do a little Yoga. We are amazed at how pleasant, open, caring and polite our Zambian friends are who have virtually nothing. A little boy happily playing with a badly broken plastic truck, a little girl proudly combing the hair of a dolls head. Our families express their gratitude, never believing they would live in a house made of bricks, having a proper roof so they no longer have to stand up in the middle of the night during the rainy season. They now have a place to lie down and be warm and dry. We are all grateful and fortunate to be a part of this build.

We also visited Bfwana school and clinic to bring them medical and school supplies given to us by family and friends back home. And we were donated handsewn dolls made by a group of ladies from Wellington, Ontario. Simply known locally as ‘the teddy bear ladies’.  We gave them to the Zambia Italian orthopedic hospital.

Day 7 – 2 Homes for 2 Families are completed!