The Lawrenceville School at Mainsprings

A group of students and chaperones from The Lawrenceville School out of New Jersey recently had the opportunity to visit our campus. This was their third consecutive year to visit. Not only did the group have the opportunity to participate in typical volunteer activities such as Reading Buddies, village night and a village walk, and help out on 

the farm and in the dining halls, but the group was also on campus for Watoto wa Afrika (Children of Africa Day) and they hosted the Olympics once again our kids. Here are a few highlights from their trip!

“Prayer was absolutely the highlight of my day. We all sat together in one big room and the girls took turns singing different worship songs, all with naturally beautiful voices. I hate to sound cliché, but listening to these girls, who all come from different backgrounds that required them to be in a girls home, pray about the health and safety of others and their appreciation about life, was beautifully eye opening. The girls are constantly so keen to learn your name, play a game, and have conversations about your favorite color and their constant energy is so contagious.” – Lily M.

“Mr. Max conducted a fascinating seminar on permaculture and how this special type of agriculture manifests itself at JBFC. Mr. Max taught us that “when the soil cries the people cry,” which is, in my opinion, a very valuable life lesson. We then moved on to our volunteer rotations where I got to farm! I helped water man

go and banana trees, which is more grueling than it actually sounds. My short time working in the hot sun gave me such an appreciation for the men and women who do these strenuous tasks all day every day.” – Cate L.

“As the sun set and the night came to a close, I was sad to leave our host and his family. I felt like I could never repay them for welcoming us into our home, but, as we stood up, they were the one to say “Asante sana” (thank you in Swahili). The fact that someone could do so much for us and then thank us was so amazing to me and showed me their true nature.” – Merrin F.

“Through this trip, I’d had the opportunity to build on many of the relationships that I’d first developed two years ago, and I genuinely enjoy spending time with them more than almost anything else. Their happiness was contagious.” – Linda L.

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This post was written by Mainsprings