Another part of our programs in Malawi are continuing education for uneducated men and women in rural villages. I attended a class of about fifty women (and one man!) who were learning how to read and write, both in Chichewa (the local language) and English.
They practiced writing the names of local crops on the chalkboard and cheered each time a fellow classmate would spell it correctly. They each stood up and greeted me in simple English and practiced simple mathematics on the board.
In addition to these basic skills, women are given training on how to start small businesses (like raising and selling pigs, for example) so that they can utilize their newfound literacy and earn extra money for their families.
One woman stood up and told me in Chichewa that she was sixty-five years old and learning how to read and write for the first time and that her first day of school was the best and proudest in her life.
I was both humbled and inspired, yet again.
I live in Virginia but I don’t stay put for very long. I’m a nonprofit worker extraordinaire, and I love to climb mountains and travel to places no one else wants to go.
