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.