#74 March 4th , 2026 Kasama

This morning we left Mporokoso by bus at 6:30 AM for a trip to Kasama which is approximately 2.5 hours. Most parts of the road is fairly good but some sections have large potholes. As we approached one, we met a motorcycle who hit the pothole and lost control of his bike and skidded into the ditch. Lucky for him it was soft and muddy and he wore a thick coat and a helmet. We stopped to assist; he was a bit shook up with a few scratches on his hand. Parts of motorcycle were broken and he couldn’t start it. When we left, he was going to get help pushing it up the hill to the next village, from a bunch of children walking to school. The main reason for the trip was to visit the Arch Bishop of Kasama Ignatius Chama. We were welcomed warmly and spent time chatting with him. He is very grateful for the Canadian assistance at the Kawambwa Project schools and interested in the progress made by them, We stopped in at the Mother House of the Sisters of the Child Jesus for lunch and were happy to see our friends again. We stopped at Shop Rite and the Chinese Store to buy some more playing cards, Scrabble, Chess Sets and volley balls.

The return trip was uneventful and we arrived back at the Sisters to find the workers had built the new cement walkway to the convent, which we had asked for. Now the sisters and guests won’t have to worry about slipping in the mud. The glazier finished the windows, the carpenters and painters are busy painting and repairing. Lots of improvements. 

John MacInnis with Glazier and John Gillies

The new walkway to sisters' door.

Painting the kitchen

Fixing windows glass in newly painted kitchen.

WE stopped for squash/pumpkin. Sr Matilda, Josephat, seller.

Cathedral in Kasama.

Betty Jane, Charlotte, John G, Archbishop Ignatius Chama,
 John MI, Winnie, Sr Barbara, Colleen

The roads are washed-out in some places
and also have huge potholes

Josephat, Bike rider, John  and John

# 73 February 3, 2026

Today was work as usual. Winnie’s class is always very popular. Her class made egg salad sandwiches, poached eggs on toast and omelettes. Betty Jane worked with her music students, the older students are becoming mentors and teaching guitar and flute to the other students. Colleen is in the same situation. Her student mentors have totally taken over and are now teaching the grade 8s, all part of the plan. The classrooms and school grounds are beginning to look brighter and refreshed. The blackboard paint is giving the tired blackboards a wonderful new finish. The center square curb, is being refinished to accommodate the visually impaired. 

Chinese Checkers

Charlotte a work

Winnie in the kitchen

Snakes and ladders

Refurbishing the curb.

Charlotte with her 43 Grade 6s.

#72 March 2, 2026 Immigration

 For a change it wasn't raining this morning. After breakfast we all went to our respective tasks. Betty Jane worked with her music crew. One student was able to master playing, "Lord of the Dance" on the flute. Charlotte worked with her 43, Grade 6 students as they did a procedural piece of writing. Winnie and her class made raisin spice cookies and since her measuring cup was missing, they estimated the amounts. Despite this the cookies turned out very tasty. John and John met with the trades people and monitored their progress and assessed their quotes. The painting, other improvement and maintenance are progressing well. Colleen and Charlotte worked with Mr Millar and the students, training them to be mentors. They closed up the session with an enthusiastic game of Steal the Bottle, outside on the playground. It is a game for all ages and it gave the students a good workout. 

Mid-morning we were requested to bring our passports to Sr Auxilia’s office where immigration officers took a copy of them.  A bit later we received a summons to report the Immigration Office about 2 km away. It was bit unsettling, but we were well received with courtesy and gratitude for the work Canada is doing for the children at the two schools.

Mason at work.

E

Electricians at work in henhouse. 

Working on the roof

Making shelves in the classroom.

Installing Facia

Painting the classrooms

Fixing the broken windows.

Big boys playing 'Steal the Bottle'.

The girls playing 'Steal the Bottle'.

Visit to immigration office.
Kennedy Mashowo, Charlotte, Betty Jane, Brian Muyuni,
 John Gillies, Joseph Nawa, ___,Winnie, Sr Deodata,
 Front: Goodson, John MacInnis, Colleen

School Band practice. Very impressive.

All you need is a stick and bottle caps. 

Avocados in the back yard.

# 71, March 1st, 2026. Market

After breakfast we all took a walk to the market. The market sells many goods for very reasonable prices. We bought 5 delicious pineapples for 100 Kwacha =$7.50. CDN. As we browsed, we took note of all the lovely fabrics for wraps which are the main article of dress, (plus a T Shirt or blouse), for most Zambian for women. It is a length of fabric about 2 meters long and is wrapped around the waist without buttons or pins. They are very skilled at keeping them secured. The sisters also wear them over their white habits and manage to stay spotless no matter what job they are doing. Besides acting as a skirt, they have many other uses, they are used to carry a baby on your back, keep warm when the weather is chilly, to sit or kneel on, or use as a shopping bag. They come is many bright and striking patterns. Several of us bought a number of them for about $3.00 CDN a meter. Again, we were fortunate to escape the rain storm. It had rained all night and started up again after we walked back from the market. We also saw edible kaolin clay ball on sale at the market. The ladies assured us they were for eating. 

We saw edible white kaolin clay balls often used for cravings (pica) and detoxification, they are marketed as natural, crunchy, snow-white clay with a creamy, earthy texture, Commonly used for edible cravings (pica), as a detoxifying agent, or for skin/hair care.

Tonight Winnie, Sister Ruth, Sister DeoData and Sister Matilda made pizza for supper. it was delicious. Maybe the sisters can open St Odilia's Pizza and be the first pizza shop in Mporokoso.😉

Sr Deodata, Sr Matilda, Sr Ruth and Winnie
show off their yummy pizza,

Winnie making pizza with Sr Mathida
and Sr DeoData

Some of the patterns we bought

Delicious pineapple

Little fish in the market

Koalin clay balls

The fabric store was a very small tight place.

John Gillies next to Sr Marjory's Uncle.

The tastiest avocado picked from
the tree just outside the window.

# 70 February 28, 2026. Waterfall

The rainy season is happening in earnest. It poured all night and torrential rains all afternoon. The red sandy soil with few rocks, reminds us of PEI and absorbs the rains after a few hours and the puddles disappear. Thunder storms almost every day and black clouds move in rapidly and suddenly it is raining. 

In between the rain storms we travelled by bus to Kapumo waterfalls where a self-educated mechanical and electrical genius Mr. Charles Mubanga Mumba and his family have harnessed the waters of Kapumo Falls in Mporokoso and established a mini hydroelectric power station which meets the electricity needs of their local community. His other innovation also includes a pressure pump which pumps water from Kapumo falls to his fish ponds, gardens and for household needs. He is very proud of the medal presented to him by the Zambian president, Hakainde Hichilema.

We did a walk around of the school grounds to see how the repairs were progressing. The painters have put on a first coat in some classrooms, are building shelves and windows are being repaired. The chicken house is being readied for the 200 meat birds. The grass in the chicken run is slashed and a path cleared to the coop. We are extra careful about long grass since we learned that there are cobras and black mamba snakes in the area.  

Taylor we met at the market today.

New turbines for the waterfalls electric project.
This is Isaac.

Prototype of water wheel made from a tractor wheel.

John MacInnis and Charles the inventor.
Betty Jane in Background

Winnie with the type of hoes used in the fields.

Inside the water turbine house.

Checking out the paint job in classrooms

Fine looking chicken house.