Background
Statement from the Founding Director of Vana Trust:
Nyasha Gwatidzo
Background on why we set up Vana Trust-Africa project
Most people often ask me why I set up Vana Trust when there so
many charities already doing such wonderful work.
In the 1990s the media was full of the plight of African
children affected by AIDS/HIV and poverty and whether there is a
link between the two.
I was busy setting up my own business and was much more of an
observer of the news, but I felt a need within myself to do
something to help. For those who know me they would know how
passionately I feel about children and I see them very much as our
future. I also feel that this charity is one way for me giving back
to society - hence the strapline ’contributing to the
community’.
I started talking to friends and family about this. My own
family in Africa was dying leaving children in very difficult
situations. My mother became a real campaigner about how we could
help. We started with her just taking old clothes to support these
children.
I then thought why not set up a small charity to help a local
primary school, which my mother went to herself as a child. I
visited this school and met with the headteacher. I also met with
one of my aunts who is a volunteer for Red Cross who lives in the
local community.
I spent some time in this village and could feel the
hopelessness and helplessness in the community. People seemed to be
in a basic survival mode, living in conditions of serious poverty.
Many people had experienced bereavement, but were unable to fully
express their grief, as this would exert additional pressure on
their extended families. Feelings of loss and anger were therefore
suppressed and not worked through.
Vana Trust as a charity was born soon after this visit, in my
sitting room with those friends and family I had been talking to
for years. We wanted to exist formally so we could fund raise
properly, and send the money raised straight to the children who
needed it. We made further links directly with headteachers and
realised that the school’s could make this possible through their
administration. We decided that we could best help by finacially
supporting the children affected so that they could attend school
and get an education.
The story so far is that Vana Trust was registered as a charity
in July 2004 for the relief of poverty, sickness and distress, the
advancement of education and the preservation and protection of
good health of children and young people in Africa and UK.
This started with a pilot scheme in a Zimbabwe village school
called St David’s School – Nyandoro. The head teacher helped us
identify a group of 60 children who were not able to fund costs of
attending school such as the school buildings fund and uniforms.
These children were either orphans or their parents were affected
by HIV/AIDS and were not able to pay the school. Due to the success
of this pilot we want to consolidate this project by making a long
term commitment to these children and continue our links with the
local teachers and Red Cross volunteers.
With this pilot now moving into phase two we are developing a
plan to expand our fund raising to enable us to fund/sponsor more
children in more schools in Southern Africa.
Background to why we set up Vana Organic Therapeutic Farm
In the year 2000, I read an article about how working the earth,
for example gardening, healed adults with emotional and mental
health difficulties, and I thought this idea might work for
children. This was my own experience of taking out some children in
London to my personal allotment. I thought children and young
people with emotional and behavioural difficulties might be helped
with this form of therapy.
In July 2003 I moved from London to a house with seven acres on
the border of Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire. I visited the nearby
Bridewell Therapeutic Organic Garden, which was set up by Paul
Tompkinson. Following this I really formulated my idea that a
therapeutic farm was a worthwhile project in relation to
children. About this time, Bridewell appointed Jenny Tricker
and Sue Taylor, who were seconded by Oxfordshire Mental Health
Team, as development workers. These two workers helped me to
develop the idea of a therapeutic project using the agricultural
field at the back of my house. We met every six weeks until June
2005.
Through these meetings we decided to set up an organic
therapeutic farm project under the Vana Trust charity. We amended
the aims and objectives to include the farm project, and this was
granted by The Charity Commission.
I really like the link between the two projects within Vana
Trust because it is all about supporting disadvantaged children and
their families and they do say charity begins at
home!!