Assembly takes place for the Primary School children outdoors at 8 o'clock each morning. Hundreds of children gather together in the assembly area with amazing speed and quietness. We were introduced to them and we were pleased to listen to their singing and for Bishop Christopher to be able to say a few words to them. Some of these children will have walked a very long way to be at the school and will need to retrace their steps that evening. Some of them are very little!
Following the Assembly the visiting group were able to spend a few minutes talking with the teachers from the Primary School introducing ourselves and learning about the school.
After breakfast we were able to visit St Patrick’s clinic and learn of the work that is being done there under what are very difficult circumstances. We had been able to take some medical supplies to the clinic and gave them to the sister in charge of the work there. Sadly some of the medications that we had taken were confiscated going through customs and will need an import license to retrieve.
Bishop Christopher was able to pray with the one in patient of the clinic and we saw a little boy whom we had seen earlier in the headmaster’s office at the school. He had cut himself on a piece of metal and his badly swollen finger was in need of attention which the clinic was right on hand to give.
The Clinic used to have a doctor on site and thus be able to deal with more complex conditions but there is no doctor at present and so many will be sent to Gweru for treatment. It is hoped that when the Hospital Construction Project reaches fruition it will be possible to have a doctor again.
Following the Clinic we visited the Mortuary which had been opened in the last couple of years. Fortunately the Clinic does not experience many fatalities but these new facilities mean that they can deal with the situation properly when it arises. The clean cut lines of the stainless steel mortuary equipment was a sharp contrast to the baby weighing scales hanging from the tree.
Then it was back to the Primary School for a proper tour of the classrooms. We were able to see the children enthusiastically participating in lessons and particularly enjoyed the two Early Child Development classes in which the children sang and danced for us.
This lively, focused and happy school educates 800+ children aged from 5-6 up to secondary school age. It is a huge undertaking and one which will help to ensure the future development of the peoples of the Diocese of Central Zimbabwe but indirectly the whole of the country. For education is such an important platform upon which to change fortunes and lives.
The visit later in the day to the Secondary School could not help but reinforce the importance of the work which St Patrick’s mission is doing. The accommodation available means that the school is 65% girls. There are about 640 boarders in total, with another 160 or so day students. Of these about 100 are in the Sixth form and in these year group there are an equal number of students of each gender.
Competition for places in the school is tough has it has a good reputation and 85% of its students go onto university. Each prospective pupil has to write an essay in order to help the school to access who should get in and who not. Many are unsuccessful in their application.
Whilst we were there the children were sitting public exams –‘O’ and ‘A’ levels but we were able to see the science labs (which reminded me of those old type labs which most of us will remember from our school days with Bunsen burners and fume cupboards). About twenty take each science at ‘A’ level and they all do well. We also saw the computer room where ten desktop computers were in use. Some of which had been donated by the government. The Teacher spoke to us of the need for textbooks aimed at their syllabus are needed in order to be able to help the children to learn the skills for the future which they need and in order for the school to be able to offer ‘A’ level intent access etc is necessary.
We were shocked by the number of books that they had. There was one small room full for all 800+ students and this with the lack of Internet access must hamper the ability of the teachers to teach and the students to learn.
We were also able to see the plans for the new hospital and were really excited to see the new bricks being made to help towards its completion. The Diocesan Mother’s Union is going to build the maternity wing and we saw the great pile of bricks which they had had made and were ready for the burning which would finish them. We saw other bricks being made too from the soil of a termite mound which is very pure. Two men ran up and down enthusiastically with the new bricks whist another dug the soil fro them to use. We were fascinated to watch them as they worked and felt that such enthusiasm must surely help to bring the hospital building project to fruition. Stage one of the building project is well underway with the walls of the wards built. They hope to be ready to roof them in five weeks time and then to move onto the next stages, but it is hard to maintain momentum and to ensure that all that needs to be done is done when you also have a Diocese, a Cathedral or a Parish to run.
The final visit of the day was to the piggery which has group from 3 pigs about five or six years ago to over a hundred now, but the piggery is not self sustaining at the moment in order to be profit making the size of the piggery will need to double.
Bishop Christopher presided at the Eucharist before dinner for the Croydon visitors and the community of St Patrick’s offering all the sights and experiences of the day to God.
Supper and so to bed....
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