THE SOUL & IMPACT OF BEAUTIFUL MOMS NOW

RIFT VALLEY CHILDREN’S VILLAGE -- MAMA INDIA HOWELL

India Howell is a beautiful mom to 99 children. Many of them orphans or severely at risk. They live together at the Rift Valley Children’s Village, founded by Howell, in the Karatu region of northern Tanzania, in 1998.

Nestled among coffee plantations, the Rift Valley Children’s Village surrounded by purple Jacaranda trees. It’s a beautiful backdrop as the children play.

Howell named many of the children when she welcomed them into her family. Natalie, for example, is named for India Howell’s mother. When Natalie arrived the RVCV, she was 14 months old, yet was the size of a 6 month old, due to neglect. She has flourished in her years with Mama India, as all the children who come here do.

Howell spent her own early childhood in Farmington, CT, then schooled in Switzerland and Vermont. She had a successful eclectic career, running several companies in New York, working as a top consultant in Boston, and running a turkey farm in Maine.

When a friend invited Howell to hike Mt. Kilimanjaro, she became smitten with the country and the people of Tanzania. She quit her corporate life and got a job working for a local safari company and serving as manager of the lodge.

One day her night watchman (askari) left and abandoned his young son on Howell’s doorstep. She adopted him. When word got out that she was taking in castaways, more children came.  

Howell had an epiphany. And with that she began to build a children’s centered village. She hired tribespeople from nearby villages to help her to care for her 99 kids, including cooks, cleaners, drivers, and maintenance workers. She actually lowered the local unemployment rate by 5%. She also invited volunteers come from the US to come and help, including Amy Johnson, of Amy Travels Blog, who took some of the photos in this Daily Fix post.

The RVCV staff works with local village leaders to identify orphaned and at risk children in the surrounding community.

When they arrive at RVCV, many children are suffering from malnutrition, weakened immune systems, and emotional scars. But once they start getting loved and cared for by Mama India and her team, almost immediately, the healing process begins.

Each house in RCVC houses 12 children, along with 2 Tanzanian housemothers, one Tanzanian student teacher, and two international volunteers.

RVCV currently has 6 children’s houses and 2 young men’s houses, where older boys returning from secondary school stay while on school vacations.

Life at RVCV is structured, yet relaxed. Whether they are playing, doing their homework, or learning new skills, the children receive the individual attention and unconditional love that allows them to thrive.

For years none were turned away. Today, at her current limit of 99, there is a waiting list.

In 2003, Howell founded Tanzania Children’s Fund (TCF) to help raise the funds and provide the structure necessary to raise, educate and care for her many children living at RVCV.

Howell needs to raise funds every year to support the more than $1 million operating budget that sustains RVCV. She travels to the US twice a year to shake the trees. John Platt’s Draw A Lion program contributes. You can purchase artwork made by the children here.

In addition to RCVC, TCF operates a large microloan program to empower impoverished villagers to become self sufficient through the building of their own small businesses. It also is helping to restore and equip local schools. And, it provides clothing, food, medical care, and education to at-risk children living with their families in nearby villages.

UBUNTU EDUCATION FUND

Ubuntu Education Fund (UEF) celebrates and supports mothers every day.

A nonprofit organization, UEF provides comprehensive household stability, health, and education services to 2,000 orphaned and vulnerable children living in the townships of Port Elizabeth, South Africa.

Ubuntu’s 2,300 square-meter state-of-the-art headquarters, the Ubuntu Centre, is located in the heart of Port Elizabeth’s townships and houses the region’s first pediatric clinic, academic classrooms, cutting-edge computer lab, barista training center, and a rooftop garden.

Over 17 years, UEF has redefined the discourse on community development by demonstrating that a child's birthplace doesn't have to determine her future.

UEF’s child-centred “cradle to career” approach has inspired a new conversation among the most prominent voices in the sector, including the Stanford Social Innovation Review, the World Economic Forum, and the Clinton Global Initiative, prompting a visit from President Bill Clinton to the Ubuntu Centre.

Committed to placing local leaders at the center of their own development, Ubuntu Education Fund is a true community institution -- 95% of Ubuntu’s staff comes from the local community.

We join UEF in honoring mothers, like Portia, who face the many challenges of living with HIV/AIDS. During her pregnancy, Portia was overwhelmed with apprehension and questions: Will my baby be born HIV-positive? How will I keep her healthy?

Thanks to support from UEF, Portia received the medical, social, and emotional support all mothers need and deserve. UEF provided her with life-saving HIV treatment, doctor appointments, nutritional counseling, and ultrasounds in each trimester.  

When her daughter Olothando was born, Ubuntu gave her a healthy start with HIV inhibitors and routine check-ups to ensure that she was virus-free.

As a new mother, Portia continued to receive support, including breastfeeding workshops, parenting classes, and packages of essential baby supplies. UEF celebrate Mother’s Day year-round with the success of its Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission Program, which ensures that 100% of HIV-positive mothers, like Portia, give birth to healthy, HIV-negative babies.

Read more about Beautiful Moms in 10 Exceptionally Beautiful Gifts For Beautiful Moms Now, Moms Are Such Beautiful Animals 10 Beautiful & Delicious Floral Recipes for Mother’s Day Now, Azuma Makoto: The Art of Mother Earth, Hang Out With Beautiful Sheep Moms & Lambs Now, Beautiful Ideas & Images: Beautiful Moms.

And check out more beautiful things happening now in BN Arts/Design, Nature/Science, Food/Drink, Place/Time, Mind/Body, and Soul/Impact Daily Fix posts

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IMAGE CREDITS:

1. Image: by Amy Johnson, of Amy Travel Blog. One of the children from the village posing in front of the Jacaranda trees. Rift Valley Children’s Village. Karatu, Tanzania.
2. Image: by Amy Johnson, of Amy Travel Blog. Once one of the children had their photo taken the rest wanted a turn as well! Rift Valley Children’s Village. Karatu, Tanzania.
3. Image: by Jay Sidebotham, of Jay’s Sabbatical Travel Blog. Frances holding a young girl named Natalie. Rift Valley Children’s Village. Karatu, Tanzania.
4. Image: Courtesy of Jessie in Swaziland. Yoga. Karatu, Tanzania.
5. Image: Courtesy of Tanzanian Children’s Fund. Rift Valley Children’s Village. Karatu, Tanzania.
6. Image: Courtesy of Tanzanian Children’s Fund. Rift Valley Children’s Village. Karatu, Tanzania.
7. Image: Courtesy of Tanzanian Children’s Fund. Rift Valley Children’s Village. Karatu, Tanzania.
8. Image: Courtesy of Tanzanian Children’s Fund. Christmas Season. Rift Valley Children’s Village. Karatu, Tanzania.
9. Image: Courtesy of Tanzanian Children’s Fund. Rift Valley Children’s Village. Karatu, Tanzania.
10. Image: Courtesy of Tanzanian Children’s Fund. Rift Valley Children’s Village. Karatu, Tanzania.
11. Image: Courtesy of Tanzanian Children’s Fund. Rift Valley Children’s Village. Karatu, Tanzania.
12. Image: by Meg Petratis. Peggy Bacon & India Howell holding Esau & Jacob. Rift Valley Children’s Village. Karatu, Tanzania.
13. Images: Courtesy of John Platt, of How to Draw a Lion. Students Art Work. Rift Valley Children’s Village. Karatu, Tanzania.
14. Image: Courtesy of Tanzanian Children’s Fund. Rift Valley Children’s Village. Karatu, Tanzania.
15. Image: by Aris Vrakas. Red Hair Girl Portrait, Zwide Township, Port Elizabeth. Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
16. Image: by Aris Vrakas. African Ubuntu Education Fund Students Using Apple Computers at the Ubuntu Centre. Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
17. Image: by Aris Vrakas. Dancing Girl Portrait, Zwide Township, Port Elizabeth. Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
18. Image: by Clinton Foundation. President Clinton Speaks with Zethu Ngceza at the Ubuntu Center. Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
19. Image: by Aris Vrakas. Two African girls smiling. South Africa soccer shirt. Zwide township, Port Elizabeth. Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
20. Image: Courtesy of Ubuntu Education Fund. Portia & child. Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
21. Image: Courtesy of Ubuntu Education Fund. Portia & child. Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
22. Image: Courtesy of Ubuntu Education Fund. Portia & children. Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
23. Image: Courtesy of Ubuntu Education Fund. Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
24. Image: Courtesy of Tanzanian Children’s Fund. Rift Valley Children’s Village. Karatu, Tanzania.
25. Image: by BN App - Download now!
26. Image: Courtesy of Tanzanian Children’s Fund. Rift Valley Children’s Village. Karatu, Tanzania.