Who would have thought a chance meeting could lead to a shared vision – and miraculously to the concrete action of building a primary school for children at economic risk in Kisongo, Tanzania?
January 02, 2017 – Aunt Jean took the Husby family on a safari trip to Tanzania.
January 07, 2017 – Bethany Husby met Emmanuel Boaz who was working in a gift shop at the lodge. The two began a conversation leading to a friendship that led to dental care for Emmanuel as well as the formation of a non-profit to provide education for children in need in Tanzania. Watch the video: How a quick stop to buy a postcard stamp turned into a school.
March 2017 – Emmanuel shared with Bethany his brother-in-law Ojwang’s dream to build a school on his land in Kisongo, a village outside of Arusha, in northern Tanzania.
May 2017 – The Husbys formed Heart To Care Tanzania, a non-profit organization, dedicated to providing education for children in need in Tanzania. Proceeds from a 14-day Plant Sale in the family’s backyard raised over $17,000 for the school.
July 2017 – A fund-raising Chamber Music Concert featuring David Husby, a concert bassoonist, was performed at Peace Lutheran Church in Lauderdale, Minnesota, raising $985.
September 2017 – All funds raised from the plant sale, music concert, and personal donations were used to begin school construction on September 12.
January 08, 2018 – School doors opened for 42 students at Bethany Pre and Primary School, one year after meeting Emmanuel, and four months after the start of construction.
February 2018 – Construction began on a second school building to provide four more classrooms and an office.
June 7, 2018 – Construction began on the Community Center and school kitchen. A second plant sale raised over $21,000 to aid this effort.
June 28, 2019 – Groundbreaking for the Larsen Library began, providing a wonderful source of donated books for the 149 children now in enrollment.
June 22, 2020 – Groundbreaking on the last school building began after a successful May plant sale raised over $49,000 to aid construction. Enrollment grew to 249 children.
June 20, 2020 – Making the school “clean water independent” was accomplished by building a large underground water tank with the capacity of collecting and holding over 82,000 gallons of rainwater.
September 13, 2020 – Sadly, the school’s founding father, Ojung’u Samwell, passed away from leukemia.
November 2021– The Peace Computer Lab with 22 desktop PCs was installed in one of the first-floor rooms of the new school building.
December 2021 – Generous donors helped purchase 97 acres of fertile farmland to grow crops of beans and corn to make the school “food independent,” so the children could continue to be provided with breakfast and lunch on each school day. School enrollment grew to 300 students.
January 2022 – A teachers’ workroom was constructed to handle the increasing enrollment.
January 2022 – Construction of the remaining levels resumed with a goal to finish it this summer.
In 2022, five years after groundbreaking, 384 students are enrolled. The school employs 46 local staff members, including 17 teachers.
Our children currently range from Preschool to Grade 5. We have 5 school buses; we serve morning porridge and noon lunch, and in 2 years we will be able to accommodate all 7 grades.
2022 PLANT SALE GOAL: To raise $150,000 to finish the construction of the 4-story school building and installation of rooftop solar panels to provide reliable electricity for the Peace Computer Lab.
Together, we’ve accomplished nothing short of a miracle. Thank you for being part of it!
