February/March 2025
Dear Friends,
Greetings from rainy Arusha. It had been very hot in Arusha and then it began to rain. Perhaps the long rainy season has begun, but Tanzanian farmers are hesitant to confirm this since the traditional seasons have changed so much. Hopefully, the rains have begun and all can plant!
We now have 14 pre-secondary students who have settled into Emusoi and are working hard with their studies. I am always so pleased to see the change in the girls as they begin to feel at home here. Girls come to us scared, shy, hesitant, lacking self-confidence. But after a month or so, you begin to see changes. There are more smiles and laughter. The students begin greeting you as they pass, trying out their newly learned English. They begin to look smarter with nicely washed uniform blouses and skirts. A real transformation happens in front of our eyes.
I am writing to you to thank you for your February donations which have helped to bring about these changes. Girls often come to us looking very thin and even ill. When they are here at the Center, they eat three times a day not like at home where they might get just one meal. The girls begin to put on weight, and they get a chance to see a doctor.
We had a special request this month. The Headmistress (a Pallottine Sister) of one of the schools which our students attend asked our help for a girl who was a relative of hers. The girl’s mother is mentally disabled and her father abandoned the family. The girl’s maternal aunt begged a friend living in Arusha to take this girl so she could finish primary school. She finished last year in September and then went to live with her grandmother in the village. There she helped out with chores and helped take care of her infant sister.
This girl had passed her primary school exams and should have begun secondary school this year, but there was no one who could support her in school. The Headmistress knows that we offer a pre-secondary course and she asked if we could take her outside of our usual procedures. She is not one of our target population but we agreed to help because of our relationship with the Sister and her school and because of the girl’s difficult situation. The Headmistress said that her school will help this girl next year and hopefully they will sponsor her for her high school studies.
The situation of mentally disturbed people here in Tanzania is quite hard. There are not many doctors trained to help nor are there many hospitals for them. Villagers often consider them possessed by evil spirits. Those suffering from such illnesses often are homeless and they are taken advantage of, especially women. So, we were glad to be able to help Eunice. She has joined in with her other classmates and is beginning to feel at home here.
We are all thanking you for your generosity which keeps us going. Your gift gives our girls food to eat and a chance to get medical treatment. It gives Eunice a chance to go to school and in the future the ability to help her mother and her young sister. Your generosity brings about positive change in the lives of these young girls and their families and their communities. It is a wonderful way to heal our broken world with all the war and death and destruction!
You and your families are all remembered in our prayers every day. Please pray for us, too.
With peace,
Sr. Mary
Note: All donations should be sent via Maryknoll Sisters, Box 311, Maryknoll, NY 10545-0311. Checks need to be issued in the name of “Maryknoll Sisters”, with “Emusoi Center” written on the memo line. Please include a note designating the gift for Emusoi Center, Arusha, Tanzania. You will receive an acknowledgement from Maryknoll which can be used for tax purposes. I will also send you a thank you from here. If you do not hear from me, let me know about your donation. It will take 2 months or so for me to get news of your donation. You can also contribute electronically; use this link: https://www.maryknollsisters.org/support-us/donate-now/ Write “Emusoi Center/Sr. Mary Vertucci” in comment/intention field. If any of you would like to receive this newsletter by email, just write me at emusoicenter@gmail.com and let me know. Thank you.