In seven years, The School of St Jude has grown from three students to 1300 and continues to grow fast. Every year at least another 150 students have their dreams fulfilled by being able to wear a St Jude's hat.
Because of the huge demand, a child has a less than 1% chance of gaining a child sponsorship and so the school has to have a one child per family policy.
With every 25 new children sponsored there is a massive amount of infrastructure that has to be put into place so that they can be officially enrolled at the school. Child sponsorship helps to cover the running costs of the school such as salaries, stationary, electricity, water, textbooks and uniforms. However, with every class of new sponsored child comes infrastructure costs that outside donations are sought to cover. New desks, chairs, bus, playground, computers, a teacher, a cook, a driver, another cleaner etc etc. It is a wonderful headache to have but it takes a lot of money and time to prepare for a new class of students (let alone 6-8 new classes which usually enrol each year!)
Every student needs 20 exercise books on average, as well as text books and stationery.
Providing 3 meals a day is no easy feat!
You can imagine the amount of meat we have to buy for 1300 students and 350 staff for one meal.
Feeding so many students every weeks, needs a lot of grains and with an increasing number of students, the need for a good water supply and water storage becomes greater.
Fitting out the school with enough computers to have regular computer classes has been a worthwhile, but expensive project. The students will leave school having an important skill, which will greatly increase their employment opportunities.
Donations help our students and staff go on excursions, like to the national parks to see the famous African wildlife.
Donations help us run cultural days and World AIDS day, as well as supplying materials for extra curricular classes.
In 2008, another School of St Jude opened with a student number of 500 students. This meant that we built over 20 new classrooms, 500 desks and chairs 3 staff rooms, 3 computer labs, an administration, a hall, playground, Art room, Music room and lined electricity!
The new hall under construction.
Also in 2008, weekly boarding houses opened at both campuses, which enabled hundreds of local people to gain employment as they successfully built over 300 bunk beds, 20 matrons beds and obviously the houses. This was funded through our Boarding School Appeal, where individuals from around the world generously sponsored packages such as a classroom, a bedroom and even beds and mosquito nets!
Our school account often hits $1000 and so we are constantly living on the edge. We really need your donation and support no matter how small as even $2 can help buy food for a day for one of the students.
It has been proven that average people coming together CAN make a difference!
