Amazing News!!

I am very happy and proud to say that we have officially fundraised the full amount we need for the reading room project!!!! Thank you to everyone who donated and a special thank you to our grant coordinator, Chawa, without whom this project would not be possible. We are so grateful for every dollar donated! Now that the fundraising is complete, I will receive a list with the names of everyone who donated, so I can personally write to each of you to say thank you. But until then, let me just say once again how thrilled and grateful we all are!

It’s going to take a few weeks to physically get the money in my account, but we’re going to use that time to get organized and set up a game plan so we can hit the ground running.

This week I interviewed a teacher named Lloyd. He works at the primary school and has been living in my community for 10 years. Lloyd is an avid reader and was nice enough to sit down with me and talk about the important impact he thinks the reading room could have on the village. 

Name: Lloyd M.

Age: 33

Profession: Teacher – Standard 6 (10 – 11 year olds)

T: Why do you like to read?

L: I started reading for a hobby, but with time I realized that it makes my mind work well, it keeps my brain active. I first started to read for pleasure during my first year in college in 2003.

T: What kinds of books do you like to read?

L: I like to read motivational books, books that help you grow as a person. There’s a book called Secret, I re-read it a lot. It has seven goals you should look into as a human. It’s half religious, half secular. The book is about guiding you to grow as a human being.

T: Do you read fiction?

L: (laughs) Sometimes, when I’m really bored.

T: Where do you get your books?

L: I bought some, some I borrow. The motivational books I buy, the fiction books I borrow.

T: Why didn’t you read as a child?

L: I hated reading. I just studied. Maybe it’s because when you don’t have anyone to show you that reading is important, you don’t do it. But eventually, I realized that reading makes my mind active, it helps me solve problems better, it improves my vocabulary.

T: Do you have a favorite book?

L: A Hand to Guide Me by Denzel Washington. He compiled the accomplishments of different people like Anton Fischer and Bill Clinton. It’s really inspiring.

T: Why do you think Gobojango needs a reading room?

L: Reading is not only about personally benefiting. The more you know, the more you can contribute. If we don’t read, as a community, we are not growing, because we do not learn anything new. We can become scholars. People can learn from others, maybe even become authors one day. I also think it could benefit schools. We don’t have a library at the primary school, so we could take our students to the reading room to acquire more information. You can find new role models through books. The teachers could benefit too! If we confine ourselves to what we know, we will not learn.

Lloyd was one of the teachers who helped with the world map project too

The time I've spent on this project has given me a lot of wonderful opportunities to learn more about the passions and interests of the people I work with on a daily basis. Most of all, it has shown me how generous and eager to help the people in my life are - both in Botswana and abroad. Everything from my Aunt Meg offering to bring books with her when she came to visit, to a school teacher spending an hour and a half with me as we struggled to scan the documents needed for the grant proposal. The Village Development Committee has offered to mobilize volunteers to help with painting and clearing out the old fence. Friends and neighbours regularly ask for updates on the project and tell me they're rooting for us. It's hard to put into words how grateful I feel, but I have six months left in my service and I plan to do everything I can to make this project a success.