“Mr. Barry when & where did you study carpentry,” asks one of the three students. Barry simply answers by saying, “I haven’t study carpentry, I took a ‘Do it Your Self Book’ out of the library, and followed the instructions.”

“Ah! Mr. Barry we would never be able to do that, we would not know where to start.”

Barry replied by saying, “If I can do it you can do it. Come on guys, I will show you how to use the library to find the DIY Book. Then you can make the bench that we need for the library.”

So the four of them got together the next day. They looked up the book and got busy making the bench. What a fantastic bench it is, and it was made by three of the students who never knew they could simply get a book from the library and make something like a bench. They were so very proud of their achievement.

According to Samantha Ludick, one of the principles architects of the library project, “This would not have been possible if it weren’t for the support of the Malawi Project, Universal Aide and a number of others who helped supply the necessary books for the library.”

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Speaking is Suzi Stephens, a co-founder and one of the Directors of the Malawi Project.

“Everyone is insecure at first, and they are afraid they will not have a purpose when they reach the tiny nation of Malawi. It does not take long, however, for them to realize how important their visit is to the people who live in tiny villages scattered across the sub-Saharan landscape.”

Dick Stephens, co-founder of the Project, picks up the story about the Gourleys.

“They had a lot of questions, but neither of us were worried about what they would find when this young couple arrived on their first trip to Africa.”

“They had planned for months, and in their luggage was actually thousands of pencils for the students, along with paper and other school supplies. These things are so badly needed, as the children in the schools often have no pencil or paper with which to take notes. For that matter, people all through the culture often do not have a pencil or paper. You can’t imagine how excited they are when you have bring pencils and paper. The Gourley’s learned this first hand as they traveled around the country on their first trip. Whether it was a school in Senga Bay, a library built for the community by a paratroop battalion, the high security prison in Zomba, or the farm of Mama Kadzamira, Brent and Molly found receptive audiences for all of the things they brought from America. We were pleased to have them in Malawi, and pleased as well with the support and supplies given to them by the Oak Hill Church of Christ in Evansville, Indiana.

In the picture Samantha Ludick, owner of the Cool Runnings Lake Resort, accepts medical supplies from Brent Gourley for use through her Clinic at the Gate. This program gives minor medical aid to hundreds of villagers in the area along Senga Bay. Thousands of village people live in this area, yet none have a motorized vehicle that can transport them to a distant hospital. They come to Ludick for medical help.

For information about how your school group, scout troop, youth group, or just you as an individual can help get school supplies to the children of Malawi, please contact us at: info[at]malawiproject.org

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Ludick sends the following report of a new use for the tractor that had not been considered before the fourth unit arrived in Malawi in November 2009.

“The sun was shinning, and the lake was calm, so we decided to put “My Ferrari” to the test,” Ludick reports. “We had heard about all the things it could do, but being a lake resort trying to maintain our base of operations, while at the same time trying to help a number of villages with multiple needs gives us the chance to try new things with the tractor. On this particular morning we decided to find out if the tractor was really a 4 x 4 when it came to working in the sand. We had already learned a number of other uses for the tractor, but on this day we used it to move up and down the beach and level the sand. It performed beautifully. The villagers looked on with surprise as they saw the small tractor doing so much work in such a short time. It was easy for them to see how much the tractor will mean to the villages all along the beach area. Words cannot express our full appreciation to Tom Rich and Richard Stephens for the work they have put into the development of this tractor.”

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Senga Bay, Malawi … Located in one of the poorest nations on earth the small lake resorts along the beaches of Lake Malawi must work especially hard to maintain enough business to survive. To lose revenue can be serious, and to loose it for a long period of time can be critical. For the Cool Runnings Resort the popular campsite area is located on green, watered lawns, beside well manicured flower gardens. It adds enough to keep overall operations in the black, and is an important part of the revenue stream. Of importance is the fact that it’s owner, Samantha Ludick helps oversee a number of the aid programs carried out by the Malawi Project in the eastern-central lake portion of Malawi. Thus, the health of the lake resort holds a special significance to Project programs.

One of the major programs conducted by Ludick is with one of the V-Tractors from Ag International in Lebanon, Indiana. The tractor has a wide array of uses including farm cooperatives with local villages that have no mechanized equipment.

Recently an unexpected problem arose at the resort, and the V-Tractor was called into use to resolve it. Ludick explains.

“We were faced with a problem in the garden with regards to little black ants, they were everywhere. How could we get rid of them? We were given information about a chemical that is environmentally friendly, but it must have be mixed into a diluted water mix and then sprayed on the land. This was impossible for it would take days to administer through the use of a nap sack. Saidi and Magic, two of my employees, reminded me that “My Ferrari” (our V-Tractor) has a water tank, and it’s 70 gallon capacity should be able to cover half of the garden. The tank could agitate the chemical… hmm why not?”

“First the drivers filled the tank with water. We were amazed how the village tractor could carry as much as 70 gallons (265 liters), but my guys were curious to see how long it would take to fill the tank, and also how it would do when it had to move across the sandy beach fully loaded with water.”

“The men drove to the lake with a watch in hand. They were really putting the tractor to the test. One of them put the water line into the lake, and started to pump. It only took 6 minutes, 24 seconds and the tank was at maximum. Next they made their way across the soft, white sand. The tractor crossed, fully loaded, with ease. It was amazing to watch.”

“Then the chemical was dropped into the tank, hose put into place, and the water stirred up. Then Saidi opened the hose and sprayed the chemical on the lawn. No worries, no fuss. How simple and easy it had been. Another problem solved with the tractor.”

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“It was early when the call came. The person at the other end of the line sounded like he was near panic.” recalls Samantha Ludick of the Cool Runnings Resort in Senga Bay. “This is one of my greatest competitors and they would never admit they needed me, unless of course they were really in trouble.”

The explanation from the other end of the line indicated they were in fact in some difficulty and all of the workers they could put on the problem could not solve it in time. The beach was covered in the mass of debris that was affecting resorts all along the beachfront. They were working at it, but the job could not be resolved in time. Malawi’s Vice President was coming to their facilities for a big, important meeting, and they were up against the deadline, with no way to clear the beach in time for the event.

“They wanted me to send my people, and our V-Tractor to help them clear the beaches,” Ludick notes. “Well, this was no time for us to see them as a competitor. I advised my men about the problem and they were excited with the opportunity to help the largest resort in the area. In just a short time they were dressed in their “cool agriculture” shirts and away they went.”

“It wasn’t long before the V-Tractor, and the wagon it carries behind it, were able to make short order of the beach cleaning project. The tractor saved the day for the resort and made our people heroes.” Samantha concludes. “We not only cleaned up our beach area for our clients we were able to use the tractor to help others. Now this is what it is all about and why the Malawi Project and Ag International made this tractor available to us. We have it in order to help others. That day along the beach the tractor proved its worth and value.”

Click here for previous articles about the V-Tractor or visit the V-Tractor site at www.vtractor.com.

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The women in the bay area collect sand along the lake’s shore (Lake Malawi is the twelfth largest fresh water lake in the world), in order to sell it for well drilling rigs, and for building contractors in the Salima/Senga Bay area. The request was to be able to contract  the V-Tractor to assist them. It seemed the ox presently being used eats too much, and it is sometimes difficult to get them to work when they get overly tired.

Ludick calls in her two  drivers. What they know that the women do not know is the fact the V-Tractor can do far more than just haul the sand. It can go right down to the water’s edge for the sand collection, and then carry it right up the house, or work site, where the sand is needed. On top of that if they will put the sand in the “tipper” wagon the sand can actually be dumped right on the site.

According to Ludick, “It only takes a short time for the women to see the way My Ferrari can help them with their heavy loads in a way no ox can. No food required. No sitting down on the job. No getting tired and trying to go home. It has become the hit of the neighborhood and is helping them support their families. We have a backlog of requests that extends weeks out. Our guys are working 12 to 15 hours a day, and the request list keeps getting longer and longer.”

Ludick received her V-Tractor in November 2009. She also runs the Cool Runnings lakeside resort, and works with the Malawi Project in operating the Clinic at the Gate, a medical care program for people in the villages of Senga Bay, and a number of other programs in the Salima/Senga Bay area that are designed to help the community.

The V-Tractor is the invention of Tom Rich of Agricultural Aid International, Lebanon, Indiana with the help of the Malawi Project, of Indianapolis, Indiana. Four units have been sent to Malawi in recent years, and a fifth is expected to arrive before the end of the year.

- Samantha Ludick and Richard Stephens

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“I quickly put on a pair of rubber gloves and ran to the gate,” reports Samantha Ludick of the Clinic at the Gate, and the Cool Runnings Resort in Senga Bay. “The very sound of his voice indicated it was serious.”

“When I reached the gate I met a young woman named Hawa Admini. She showed me her arm, and started to explain what had happened. It seems that three weeks earlier she was sleeping fine, except for her dream. When she awoke she felt like she had a mountain on her arm. She discovered a lump on her arm. She did nothing for a time thinking it was just the dream, but the lump kept getting bigger and bigger. She had no money to go to the hospital. Finally a neighbor told her to come to the Clinic at the Gate.”

“When I saw the wound I knew I needed to take her to the Salima District Hosptial. I clearned the wound, and gave her a strong painkiller. At the hospital we were faced with the question, ‘Would they have the supplies to care for her?’ I quickly learned they did not. Only if I could source the needed supplies could they help her. I made a list from the doctor of the things he would need.”

“Back at the Clinic at the Gate I gathered up supplies given to me by the Malawi Project, and made some calls to find other needed supplies I did not have. Before long I was able to go back to the hospital with the supplies, much to the delight of the doctor. He noted how hard it is to help people when you do not have the medical supplies to do the job.”

Ludick concludes, “We are so very appreciative of all who help get the supplies to us that are helping people like Hawa.”

To assist us in providing medical supplies to the Clinic at the Gate and others like it, please click here to   contact us.

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Wheelchair Arrives for Bicycle Repairman

    Mukuti Village, Malawi… Ndiche Kosa is from the village of Mukuti 1 in Senga Bay, Malawi. He is a bicycle repairman, and he has been paralyzed from the waist down for as long as he can remember. One can hardly imagine the feeling each time he repairs a bicycle for someone, then watches them ride away free to ride and explore the world while he remains confined by his disability.

    When Samantha Ludick and her staff at the Clinic at the Gate and Cool Runnings Resort on Lake Malawi presented Ndiche with a brand new wheelchair he was all smiles. It was a gift from the Malawi Project and the Free Wheelchair Mission.

    One of the staff members questioned the big smile that seemed to spread across his entire face.

    “Why do you smile so big, it is only a wheelchair,” he asked? It was easy for them to say; they have legs and can get around.

    Ndiche responded, " Today is my happiest day. I have been fixing bicycles for people in my village for many, many years, yet I have never been able to ride a bicycle. If I were to want to go some place I would have to have to wait for my son, brother or neighbor to assist me. Now today THANK YOU to Free Wheelchair Mission, Malawi project and ‘miss Cool’ I will be able to get myself to where ever I wish to go. This makes me very happy, this is why I smile so big. ZIKOMO.”

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Four Nations Touch Lufi Chinesa

    Senga Bay, Malawi… The Free Wheelchair Mission in southern California commits itself to giving wheelchairs to people in third world nations who cannot care for themselves. Contributors from many quarters send funds. At the same time the Malawi Project in central Indiana commits itself to helping to care for people in Malawi who cannot care for themselves. In China the wheelchairs are made and shipped by hands that will never find their way to central Africa. The cost of the wheelchairs are paid by the Free Wheelchair Mission, with part of the transportation cost paid by the Malawi Project in order for the chairs to reach the interior of the African continent. In Malawi the Rotary Club of Lilongwe, the capital city, receives the shipment, and makes preparation for distribution. Samantha Ludick, a Zimbabwean, now residing in Malawi, supplies the transportation and prepares a plan for the distribution of a number of the wheelchairs. Then comes the final chapter.

    America, China, Zimbabwe, Malawi … all come together to make possible a wheelchair for a little girl by the name of Lifi Chinesa, a little girl that almost none of the participants will ever see during their lifetimes. Lifi is only four years old, and comes from the village of Mdalakwanda, under the Tribal authority BB Maganga, but already she is getting too heavy for her mother to carry everywhere they go. Recently when her family received the wheelchair Samatha Ludick issued this report:

    “Lufi’s mum was so excited when she was asked to come to Cool Runnings to collect a wheel chair for Lufi. On arrival I asked how is it that Lufi is unable to walk. She explained to me that on delivery of Lufi her legs were not straight, ‘I could make then straight only if i held them, otherwise they would not be straight. Then when she was of age for walking she could not stand. I tried everything. I asked the doctors and I was told God did not want her to walk. Why I asked and they simply told me because He does not bless every one.”

“I thank you and the help of your friends in America for assisting me with this chair. Lufi is getting heavy to carry and some times difficult since she often cannot sit by herself. I thank you all and I promise to take care of this wheelchair, ZIMKOMO KWAMBIRI.” (Thank you very much).

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So Many Cases of HIV among Malawian Prostitutes

So Many Cases Like 21-Year-Old Dyna

Senga Bay, Malawi… “The gardener came running, explaining that a young woman was at the gate looking for help. He had advised her today was not the day for Clinic at the Gate, unless this was an emergency. He told me she just fell to the ground. ‘Madam, I’m sure it is an emergency.’ I ran to the gate where the young woman lay silent on the ground.”

Reporting is Samantha Ludick, the owner of Cool Running resort on Lake Malawi, and the operator of the Clinic at the Gate, one of the programs being supported by medical supplies from the Malawi Project and its contributors.

“I bent down as the young woman turned her face toward me, eyes filled with pain. Her face held a blank expression. I asked how I could help her. She tried to sit but could not get up because of the pain. ‘What is causing such pain,’ I wondered? She indicated a tennis ball size swelling of the groin area. I knew she needed serious medical attention quickly. I was able to give her pain medicine, thanks to supplies given to us by the Malawi Project. Then with the help of my staff we were able to get her in the back of the pick up truck, then we raced to the Salima District Hospital 29 kilometers to the west.”

Ludick continues the report, “A quick look and the doctor on duty agreed she needed to be admitted and the swelling needed to be opened and drained. We had failed to seek a guardian to come with her so I agreed to find the guardian and bring them back to the hospital. After the surgery I left her in the hospital for what was expected to be a week long stay with a regimentation of antibiotics.”

“When I returned to the house my staff informed me this girl, Dyna (last name withheld), is a single girl with no family. I would have to serve as her guardian. They were sure she had run away from Mangochi.”

“The next day I went to the hospital and found a smiling face as she greeted me with both hands and a really big smile. It was wonderful to see her smile. I sat beside her bed and listened to her tragic story. She told me she was in fact from Mangochi. Both of her parents were dead and a friend of her sister had told her she could get her work in Salima. But when she arrived she learned the friend was a lad of the night. She met a nice man who promised to take care of her. He was a pimp. When she got sick he threw her out. She had a sexually transmitted disease that remained untreated for months. She showed me the sores under her arms and told me how they would not go away. I saw the swollen glands that were as large as marbles. As she talked I saw her face slowly change, her smile fade, and sadness seem to overwhelm her. How would I be able to help this 21-year-old rural girl,” Ludick questioned?

“First things first,” Ludick describes the next steps. “I arranged for a counselor with whom she could confide. Then a HIV test, even though I knew what the result would be. It came back positive, a CD4 count at 118. Now I knew what I was up against. I had to get her on vitamins and that was possible because of a supply sent by the Malawi Project. Next we found her a little room nearby. We gave her food, bedding and other supplies thanks to Malawi Project. We’ll just have to take it a day at a time and see what happens next. There are so many situations like this one. So much sadness. So much need. Dyna is only one case of so many.”

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