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Published by The Small Things, 2021-12-03 09:16:10

Annual Report 2021

Another challenging year, but thanks to our donors there's light at the end of the tunnel!

ANNUALREPORT

FY2020-2021

LETTERFROMTHEFOUNDER

About Morethan Atleast

5-10% 50% 80%

oforphanagekidswerereunied ofchildrenarenowreturning ofresidentialchildrenare
withtheirfamilies,beforeTST’s tolivewithfamilybyage5, expectedtobereunied
bythetimetheyenter
FamilyPreservation withthesupportofthe
Program program secondaryschool

MISSIONSTATEMENT

COMMUNITYSERVICES CommunityServices

Inourexperience,noparentwantstheirchildtogointocare.Kidsareoften
placedintoorphanagesinTanzaniaduetoextremepoverty,orthebeliefthatit’s
theonlywayfortheirchildtoreceiveaqualityeducation.AtTheSmallThings
weknowthisisn'ttrue-thebestplaceforachildiswiththeirfamily,andour
communityservicesenablefamiliestoprovidethebestfortheirchildren

withoutplacingthemintocare.

DaycareandPreschool

Forstrugglingfamilies-andsinglemothersinparticular-thelackofaffordable
childcarecancauseaspiralintopoverty.Withoutasafeplacefortheirchildto
goduringtheday,theyareunabletowork,andprovideamuch-neededincome
forthefamily.TheDavidCenter-ourdaycareandpreschool-providesasafe
spaceandhighqualitypre-primaryeducationforyoungchildreninthearea
from6monthsoldthroughtoschoolenrollment.Witharangeofrates-from
subsidisedscholarshipsforstrugglingfamiliesthroughtofullcostpaymentsfor
thosewhocanaffordit-theDavidCenterisaccessibletoallfamiliesinthe

community.

Wehaveenrolled107studentsandprovided26scholarshipssince2019.

VICOBA(VillageCommunityBank) COMMUNITYSERVICES

Lackofdesire,enthusiasm andmotivationusuallyisn’ttheissuewhenwe
comeacrossafamilythatneedssupport.Theresimplyisn’tthecapital
availabletokickstartasustainableliving.OurVillageCommunityBanking
(VICOBA)groupsprovideacombinationofasavingsschemeandlow-interest
loanstoprovideinitialfundingforbusinessprojects.Thismoneyispooled
togetherbymembers,andgroupsareoperateddemocraticallywithinthe

community.

Inthepastyearwehavesupported438families,containing796children,in
20VICOBAgroups.We’vedevelopeddistributionpartnershipswithSolar

SistersandMiniMotostoves,andlentoutover$30,000.

LibraryandTutoring

TST’scommunitylibraryprovidesawelcomingspacewhereweprovide
computerandEnglishclassestovocationalstudentsandadults.Thelibrary
alsohostsspecialeventsincludingdebates,artclasses,andeventhe
occasionaldancepractice!Intheweekend,thespaceistransformedinto
classroomsforourtutoringprogram,whereover100studentsfrom the

communityreceivefreeassistancewithextrastudy.

FAMILYPRESERVATION VocationalStudio

Itcanbeverydifficultforteenagersoryoungadultswhodropoutofschool
orbecomepregnantinTanzania.Strictrulesaroundformaleducationmeant
thattheyareleftwithfew optionstocreateasustainablefuture.Our
VocationalStudioprogram aimstobridgethisgap,providingyoungadults
withskillsinmetalwork,jewelry,soapmakingandsewing,whilealsotraining

themtoturntheseskillsintoasustainablebusinessandincome.

Reunification FAMILYPRESERVATION

WewerethrilledtorecentlyreachamajormilestoneinourReunification
program-morethan50%ofthechildrenwhohaveeverlivedinourcare
havereturnedtolivewithafamilymemberorhavebeenfosteredwithin
thecommunity.Ourreunifiedkidsarealldoingsowellathome,andwe

loveseeingthematourquarterlyReunifiedKids’Days!

BusinessDevelopment

ThroughTST’sFamilyPreservationprogram,familiesdevelopsustainable
businesses,enablingthemtokeeptheirchildrenoutofresidentialcare,ortake
themhomeoncetheyareoldenough.Ourholisticapproachtoworkingwith
thesefamilieshasshowngreatsuccess-atypicalstartingincomeisusually
wellunder$1perday,andmostareearningfivetotentimesthisamountwhen

theygraduatefromtheprogram.

CHILDREN[SVILLAGE

StudentTeacherProgram

TST’sstudentteacherprogramenablesimpoverishedyoungadultswithhigh
potentialtheopportunitytostudyatuniversity.Afteraperiodofone,twoor
threeyears,duringwhichtheymentorourresidentialchildrenandassistat
ourpartnerschool,wethencoveranequivalentperiodofuniversity
educationinasubjectoftheirchoice.Thisisawin-winforbothTSTandour

studentteachers,whohavegoneontothriveinhighereducation.

ResidentialCare CHILDREN’SVILLAGE

Whilelivingwithfamilyisourgoalforallchildren,itisn’talwaysasafeor
feasiblesolution,especiallyforchildrenwithtraumaticpastsandthosewith
specialneeds.HappyFamilyChildren’sVillage(HFCV)isTheSmallThings
residentialfacility-ahandfulofloving,family-stylehomesembeddedinthe
NkoarangainthefoothillsofMtMeru,operatingusinginternationalbest
practicesfororphanedandvulnerablechildren.BuiltinmemoryofAmir
Visram(thefatherofthefounderofHappyFamilyOrganics),HFCVservesas
atemporaryhomeduringfamilycrises,andalong-term homeforthe
approximately20% ofchildrenwhocan'tbesafelyreunified.Childrenare
referredtoourcarebylocalsocialwelfareforavarietyofreasons-withthe
mostcommonbeingabuse,neglect,andthedeathoftheirmotherin
childbirth.Weareabletoreunifyabouthalfwithfamilymembersbeforeage

5,and80%bysecondaryschool.

CASESTUDIES Residential-Evance

EvancearrivedatHappyFamilyChildren’sVillagerecently,afterhismother
passedaway.Withnoextendedfamilyavailabletocareforhim,our
last-resortresidentialcarewasthesafest(andonly)optionavailable.Evance
hasfittedinwellwiththeotherchildren,andlovesthestabilityandcare
providedathisnew home.Sincehehadneverhadconsistentformal
education before now,after six months ofintensive one-on-one
homeschoolingwithoureducationteam,wewerethrilledwhenEvancewas
recentlyacceptedintoafantasticvocationalschool,startingJanuary2022.

CaseStudies CASESTUDIES
Reunification-Precious

Preciouscameintocareatonlytwodaysold,afterhermothertragicallydied
inchildbirth,leavinghergrievingfatherunabletocareforanewbornbaby.
Afterbuildingstabilityandworkingwithouroutreachteamforsometime,
wewerethrilledwhenPrecious’fatherremarriedandwasabletotakeher
homeinlate2020.Shelovesbeinghomewithherfamily,andisdoingwell

inschool!

Microfinance-CharlesandMamaCharles

It’ssaidthatahandupisbetterthanahandout,andwhileweagreewiththis
atTST,wealsoknowthatsometimesneitherisnecessary.Withtheright
structureinplace,acommunitycansupporteachotherandcreatesustainable
businessestogether.BeforejoiningoneofTST’sVillageCommunityBanking
(VICOBA)groups,Charleswasscrapingby,withasmallshedandtwogoatsas
hisonlycapital.WiththesupportofhisVICOBAgroupthroughsavingsand
accesstoshort-termloans,Charlesexpandedhisshedandincreasedhisherd
to7goats.Withhisextraincome,hesupportshisparentswiththeirbasic

needs-notonlybreakingthecycleofpoverty,butgivingbacktohisfamily.

CASESTUDIES FrancisFamily

AtTheSmallThings,wedoeverythingthatwecantokeepkidsathome
withtheirfamily,toprovideafamily-stylehomewhennootherisavailable,
andtoreunifykidswiththeirfamiliesassoonassafelypossible.Thoughwe
understandwhychildrendosometimesrequireresidentialcare,itdoesn’t

makeushappywhenkidsarereferredbylocalsocialservices,andwalk
throughthegateofHappyFamilyChildren’sVillageforthefirsttime.

TheFrancisfamilywerenoexception.Ndetaulwa,Pendo,Gloryand
HappinesswerereferredtoTSTinearly2019afterlocalsocialwelfare
becameawarethattheirhomelifewasunsafe.Thoughtheirparentsloved
themimmensely,illnesspreventedthemfromcaringfortheirchildrenand

keepingthemsafeathome.

Itwasn’teasyforthekidsinitially,withthetransitionintoanunfamiliarplace
withouttheirparentscausingsomeunderstandablestruggles,butwiththe
helpofourchildwelfareteamandmamas(childcarestaff)theyadjusted

quickly.Thetwoyoungest–NdetaulwaandPendo–enteredourTST
daycareandquicklystartedpickingupEnglish,whileGloryandHappiness

attendedthelocalgovernmentprimaryschoolinNkoaranga.

Ashardaswetrythough,weknowthatlifeatTSTisn’tenough,andour
teamhaveworkedtirelesslytofindandremovethebarrierskeepingthe

Franciskidsfromtheirfamily.Whileourusualfocusisonsupporting
familiestobecomeself-sustainable,itisn’tviableinthiscase,soourteam

havefocusedthenextbestoutcome.Monthlysupportwithmedical
expensesandfoodhavegreatlyimprovedthequalityoflifefortheFrancis

kids’parentsandtwooldersiblingswhoremainedathome.

Butoneobstacleremained.Whileit’sunlikelyduetootherfactorsthatthe
Franciskidscanreturnhomefull-timefortheforeseeablefuture,asafeand

healthyhousewastheonlybarrierpreventingshorttermvisitswiththeir
parentsintheschoolbreaks–avitalconnectionwithcommunityandfamily

thatwepromotewithallofourresidentialchildren.Buildinghousesisn’t
somethingthatwenormallydothroughourprograms,butouroutreach
team–whoareallfromthelocalarea–knewsomethinghadtobedone.

AftercollectingdonationsfromTSTstaff,whichwerethenmatchedfroma
specialfund,andwiththegeneroussupportofvolunteerAdianaRoss

andhernonprofitProjectRose,enoughmoneywasgatheredtobuymaterialsfor
asafeandstudyhouse–thevitallastpieceofthepuzzle.WithTSTstaff
providinglabor,incollaborationwithalocalfundi(builder),thehomeisnearing
completion,andtheFranciskidswillfinallyreturntospendtimewiththeirfamily

duringschoolbreaks

Thereisnoone-size-fits-allsolutiontothechallengesfacedbymanyfamilies
livinginthecommunitiesinwhichwework.Uniquechallengesrequire
innovativesolutions,andwe’regratefultohavestaffthatgoaboveandbeyond
theirdutytodobestforthechildreninourcare.Andwe’regratefulforthe
familiesthatweworkwith,who–withalittlesupport–worksohardtoprovide

thebestfuturefortheirchildren.

CASESTUDIES

FAMILIESANDFUTURESCOALITION RankedoverallchallengesfacingOVCcareorganizationsinArumeru

44%trainingandtoolkits,33%specialistsupport,15%operationalcapacity,8%insufficientfunding

AtTheSmallThings,webelievethatthecurrentsystemforcaringfor FAMILIESANDFUTURESCOALITION
orphanedandvulnerablechildren(OVCs)inTanzaniaisbroken.Anew
modelisneededtounitethefracturedorganizationalecosystem,keepor
returnmorechildrenhome,improvequalityofcare,andempower
grassrootsorganizations.OursolutiontothisistheFamiliesandFutures
Coalition-acoalitionoforganisationsworkingtogethertodemocratize
anddecolonizeaccesstohighqualitytrainingsandpracticalsupport,in
ordertohelpgrassrootsorganisationsimprovetheirqualityofcareand
movetowardfamily-firstmodels.Developmentofthecoalitioniswell
underway,withtwoinitialconferencesheldinthepastyear-withover
50nonprofitsrepresented-andtheimplementationofourpilothub
facilityplannedforactiveuseinearly2022.Thehubwilbebasedatour
partnerschool,SilverleafAcademy,withavarietyoflocalorganizations

showcasingtheirprograms.

Visitwww.familiesandfutures.orgtolearnmore.

PlansforArumeruregionalpilothubatSilverleafAcademy,starting2022

LocalMarketTour

SOCIALIMPACTTOURS CoffeeTour PotteryTour
Frombeantocup,we’llguide InTengeruwewillvisitagroup
youthroughthetraditional
methodsofcoffeecultivation oflocalpotterswhocreate
ontheslopesofMt.Meru.We beautifulandfunctionalpieces

willpick,process,winnow, oflocallyminedclay.You’ll
grind,roastanddrinktogether, learntopreparetheclay,turn
andyoucantakeabaghome itonafoot-poweredwheel,
andfireitinatraditionalkilnto
asamementoofyourtime.
takehomewithyou.

WaterfallHike SwahiliCookingClass

SocialImpactTours

NotriptoTanzaniaiscompletewithoutanunderstandingoflegendary
Tanzanianhospitality–buthowtoexperiencethisinanethicaland
respectfulmanner?OurSocialImpactToursaredesignedtohave
minimalimpactonourvillage,workandclients,whileallowingyouto
seewhatwedowithyourowneyesandprovidingincomeforthe

organization.

JewelryMaking
Class
SOCIALIMPACTTOURS

FamilyFarmVisit

Ecotour LakeDuluti
Learnallaboutthefloraand Canoeand/orhikearoundthebeautiful
faunaofMt.Meru,including LakeDuluti,withunbeatableviewsof
traditionaluseofmedicinal
plants.Thenhelpplantnew Mt.Meruandanincrediblevarietyof
seedlingsatoursite,toreduce birdsandreptiles.Yourguidecanalso
erosionoftheslopeswhere
tellyouabouthowthelakeand
welive,andtoprovide mountainfitintolocallegend.
necessarynutrition.

VOLUNTEERING Volunteering

Weloveourvolunteers!Ifyouareinterestedinspendingaminimum ofsix
weeksatTheSmallThings,pleasegetintouch.Wewillhelpyoutodevelopa
planforyourstaybasedonyourskillsandexperience.Mostvolunteersworkin
ourpreschoolandcommunityeducationprograms,andoncapacitybuilding
withourstaff.Ifyouhaveaspecialistskill,wemaybeabletoaccommodateyou
forashorterperiodoftime.Weparticularlyencourageteachers,medical
personnel,artists,yogis,therapists,andanyoneelsewithskillsapplicabletoour

work.Karibusana(youarewelcome!)

ServiceLearningTrips

Wewelcomeschool,church,andcommunitygroupswhoareinterestedin
visitingTheSmallThingstoseefirst-handethicalcommunitydevelopmentin
action.Wecanworkwithyoutotailoraprogramthatmeetsyourinterestsand
needs.Pleasenotethatcontactwithourresidentialchildrenwillbelimitedin

mostcases.

InternshipsandFellowships

Workingonaprofessionaldevelopmentproject?Weworkwith
InternsandFellowsforaminimumoftwomonthstoturnexisting

skillsintolastingchangewithinthecommunity.

Sponsorship SPONOSRSHIP&WISHLIST

JointheTSTsponsorfamily!Supportachild,includingeducation,housing,
food,clothingandmore,andstartbuildingatwo-wayfriendshiptoday.Our
sponsorsreceiveregularupdatesontheirchild,includingschoolresults,
letters,drawings,andphotos,andalsogainaccesstoourclosedFacebook
groupwherewepostweeklyupdatesaboutlifehereinTanzania.Sponsorships
startatjust$15permonth.Fullysponsoringachildathomecosts$75per

month,andfullysponsoringaresidentialchildcosts$200permonth.

WishList

BelowarelistedsomeofTST’sdreamprojectsandwaystomakeadifference

-Computerlabexpansion($500each)
-Largechickeneggincubator($500)
-Playground($2,500fullrepairandrefit)

-Solarforhouses($5,000each)
-Solarforoffice($10,000)

-Newvanforofficeandoutreach($10,000)
-Salaryforcoalitionpsychological,operations,
andfamilypreservationspecialists($10,000/yeareach)
-Afterschoolenrichmentprogramsandorganization

capacitybuilding($15,000/yeareach)
-Volunteerhousingoverhaul($20,000)

-Children’slibrary($40,000)
-Fourthhousewithsinglerooms($50,000)

BekkaRossRussell MarthaAyo(MamaPendo) RehemaMussa
Founder&ExecutiveDirector ChildWelfareManager ManagingDirector

TEAM ReubenPallangyo JoshLowry LuciaKimonge JumanneJohn
SocialEnterprise Communications EducationCoordinator SeniorEducation

Coordinator Coordinator Coordinator

InternationalBoard:JasonSmith(Chair),RichardFurter(ViceChair),Poulomi
Bhattacharya(Treasurer),DorothyGoldberg,KristinaAlexander,MikiRussell,Wendy
Bond,DelphineMendezdeLeon,LizJones,RayHarding,HenryBarda,LisaNkonoki

TanzanianBoard:PresidentIsmaelManan,SecretaryElidaimaAyo,MarthaAyo

MeettheTeam

AllprogramsareledandmanagedbyouramazingTanzanianstaff

CharlesAyo SofiaMungure SylvesterAnthony ReubenSamwel
Visitor&Volunteer
OutreachManager OperationsCoordinator FinanceCoordinator
Coordinator

VickyKisanga EmmanuelMungure OgguNanyaro MeshackMungure TEAM
ChildWelfare FamilyPreservation CoalitionCoordinator AccountingOfficer
Coodinator
Coordinator

TheSmallThingsIncisaUS501(c)3organizationunderFEIN45-2466306,
workinginpartnershipwithTheSmallThingsUK(UKcharitynumber1157470).

TheSmallThingsTanzaniaisregisteredunderTIN#125-148-831and
#NGO/00007641.






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