Extra News from The Nchima Trust, a small charitable trust in Malawi

This book was written by Dr & Mrs King. Both have lived and worked in Malawi for many years. Dr King as a surgeon at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Blantyre and Mrs King as a lecturer for the University of Malawi. Read more...

This poem was written by a grateful Nchima Trust student Lister Philmon. Lister came to us to ask for funding. She was a single mother and had no training, we sponsored her to go to Lilongwe Business College. She finishes her training this year and we wish her every sucess with the future.

NCHIMA TRUST, THE HAND THAT HELPS

So small you are
But so enormous is your impact
You furnish hope to hopeless souls
You have polished the future of many
Removing people from gardens to offices
Nchima trust, the hand that helps Malawians

So dedicated are your volunteers in Malawi
Like ants, they work around the clock
Making sure Malawi is transformed
Like saviour, who came from heaven to earth
They too came from UK to Malawi to help us
Nchima trust, the hand that helps Malawians

Teachers you have trained
Making sure education standard is sky-scraping
Medical equipments & hospital blocks you provide
Your hand of help is even there at Medical schools
Thus, rescuing lives of many Malawians in hospitals
Nchima trust, the real source of help to Malawians

You even intervene in Agriculture
Making sure Malawi is food secured
Communities and secondary school you have helped
Even the orphans and disabled benefited from you
Indeed, no one can argue
Nchima trust is the source of help to Malawians

Lister Philmon

Rosalind Richards and Josie Quinn met up with Janet Hanlon and did a tour of as many of the Nchima projects as they could get round.

If you have had previous experience with a charity, or have worked with NGO's and if you are able to travel to meetings in central London four times a year, you could be the person we are looking for.

We pride ourselves on 95% of our funds going to Malawi hence we would like you to be able to travel to board meetings at your own expense. If you are interested, please send your CV to Josie Quinn. Address details on the Contact Us page.

We know you are already interested in Malawi as you are reading this on our web site! We look forward to hearing from you.

Our thanks go to Twyla Tolstad who was our representative in Malawi for the past two years. She and her husband have returned to America. Twyla was a great help to The Nchima Trust and will be sorley missed. Our new representative is Janet Hanlon who has now lived in Malawi for a number of years and we are sure will be a great help to us. Thank you Twyla and thank you Janet for agreeing to take up the work of The Nchima Trust.

We are pleased to report that as usual Ann Scarborough has been inundated with items to be sent to Malawi in the 2004 container. As usual we set out expecting to fill a 20 foot container and find we have enough to fill a 40 foot. The medical equipment is always very well received and during the year Ann gets requests and pleas from hospitals to look out for equipment they are desperate for.

There is the usual crop of teddies, blankets and jumpers our especial thanks this year to all the ladies who live around Junction 17 on the M6 and have spent every spare minute knitting for us. They all belong to a group of 5 churches who between them have sent so many teddies we will be able to give many more orphans some thing of their very own.

		Earlier in the year we had a letter from the priest in charge of Nasulu School. This is a school we built a few years ago near Phalombe in Southern Malawi. They were very distressed that a whirlwind had blown off the school roof. We added replacing it to our ever-growing list.
		However a charity named ARCAID heard about Nasulu school and yesterday I received a cheque from them for Ł500.00 to replace the roof.
		Hopefully we will be able to get work under way very soon.

Although The Nchima trust is a UK based charity we do rely very heavily on help from people in Malawi. Twyla Tolstad has been our right hand lady for the past two years without her we could not manage. She and her husband Phil are based in Blantyre and have just heard they have been recalled back to the USA for up to two years. Our thanks go to her for all her help and we look forward to having her back in Malawi in two years time.

The Thyolo Community Centre is working well see pictures of their chicken project, and seminars held at the centre dealing in life skills. Robyn Outram tells us the centre is running smoothly and the committee of organisers do a marvellous job.

This year we have replaced the fence around the Queen Elizabeth Paediatric ward and re furbished the children's playground. As soon as I get pictures I will post them on the web. At long last we have managed to get Ntulira school and build a new toilet block this has been on our to do list for the last 3 years.

The latest newsletter is on the website for any one who has not received a copy. The next issue will be after Ann has been to Malawi in the New Year. Rosalind Richards the chairman of The Nchima Trust is also going to Malawi this year. This will be her first visit for 3 years.

To everyone who has donated items to The Nchima Trust container, you will be pleased to know it left the UK 2 weeks ago.

It's full of medical equipment, even a dentist chair as requested by one hospital. It's also got on board lots more teddies ever popular with the children, educational supplies, books and not quite the kitchen sink.

Ann Scarborough leaves February 3rd and will spending 2 months in Malawi unloading and distributing all the items. Our thanks go to all her loyal supporters in Malawi who await her arrival. Without them the Nchima Trust could not manage.

[Click here to read about Ann's "Woman of the Year" award for her work with the Nchima Trust - April 2004]

The Nchima Trust would like to thank everyone who has given so generously this year and wish you all a very happy and peaceful Christmas. Click here for a snap shot of 2003 with a big thank you from the warm heart of Africa: Smiling Malawi.

It is with great sadness that Nchima Trust has to announce the death of Sir Melville Crofton MBE. For many years a valued Board Member and Trustee of the Nchima Trust he will be greatly missed. An account of his years in Malawi and his work for Nchima Trust will be added to the web site in the near future. Click here to read the Address given by Bishop Donald Arden at Sir Melville Crofton's funeral service.