Today was project dedication/celebration day. After breakfast we went to Banjika School where we were greeted by the students, their parents, school board members and village officials. A temporary sign was posted on the classroom wall that will be replaced by a permanent one when the rooms are complete. We had lunch of rice, beans, meat, and fruit. Since it was a celebration we all had colas. Colas are only reserved for celebrations and special days. The students and teachers exchanged gifts and many speeches were given by members of our group and members of the Karatu community. Our students entertained the crowd with an Ensworth cheer and a Tanzanian song. They were joined by the Banjika students for the second verse to sing together. After the ceremony, many tears were shed by both groups of students as they said good-bye. Many memories have been made but more importantly many relationships have been developed that won't end just because we are going home. Email addresses were exchanged and plans were made to stay in touch.
Dinner tonight was a total surprise to the girls. We grilled out hamburgers and hot dogs, had potato salad and macaroni & cheese and ice cream. It was a great dinner for our last night in Karatu. We ended the night with a candle passing ceremony where we reflected on the trip and talked about how we are going to take what we learned from this trip to improve our communities around Nashville.
Happy 4th of July! We are proud to be Americans.
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