Read for Rose Celebrates its Second Anniversary

By Annabel Mumba
Annabel Mumba is AEP’s Donor Relations Coordinator in Zambia. She is a Scholarship Fund recipient, high school graduate, and one of our latest Success Stories.

Teacher Febby (r) and her assistant, Annie.

The past year brought many highs and many lows to AEP’s Read for Rose Special Education Program. It is difficult to “celebrate” during a pandemic, but we are very proud of the achievements of our Special Education Manager, Febby Choombe, and her assistant, Annie Nyambe. AEP opened the doors to Read for Rose on March 21st, 2019 and we wanted to take this opportunity to share a year in review as we honor the two year anniversary of this amazing program. (For more background information, visit our Programs page.)

Febby explains, “The pandemic hit and we had to adapt in so many ways to try and see how best we could continue to reach out to our students. At first, when the decision was made to close schools, I was worried knowing very well that the children at Read for Rose were the most vulnerable population in our society.” Initially, many of Febby’s students showed up at the doorstep of her home curious as to why the educational resource center was closed. They didn’t understand the dangers of COVID-19.

In the beginning, Febby took it upon herself to share with the students what the pandemic was and what it could do. “The kids had no idea of what was going on. They were told school was closed and they had to wear masks and not leave their homes. The biggest challenge was that parents and guardians did not know how to communicate to their children about what was going on. So, I visited their homes to explain why they had to stay home and were not allowed at the centre. I also explained why they had to wear masks, wash their hands often and use hand sanitizer, too. It was not an easy thing to do, but eventually they understood and adapted to the new normal.”

Catherine’s family received a food distribution during the pandemic.

During the pandemic, students received printed educational packs that included assignments and tests to help them stay on track. This was especially helpful to Joshua, a Read for Rose student who was in an exam class this year and expected to pass the exam without any formal schooling.

“I remember when I first came to Read for Rose, I had trouble reading even the smallest words. Teacher Febby and Annie helped me so much. I wrote my grade exam last year and I am happy that I passed. I was worried how I was going to perform, especially when schools closed, but Read for Rose was there for me and they made sure I was ready and excelled. This made my parents very happy, too.” Joshua said with pride.

The AEP Leadership Team met with Febby on a consistent basis during the pandemic. When Zambia’s Minister of Health announced the first lockdown, she knew the families of the special education students would need assistance. Food had become very expensive and our families experienced many economic hardships so a food distribution helped these families stay home and shelter in place. “We were worried that our students would start going into the streets to help their families look for food through piece works and end up getting sick, so the food that was given to them helped them stay in their homes safe and sound,“ Annie shared. In addition to food, AEP distributed face masks, hand sanitizer and menstrual health and hygiene products to the older students, too.

The Read for Rose Special Education Program has achieved many goals this year with its learners. Most notably, the students can now effectively communicate with each other. “The fact that these little ones are able to initiate conversations with each other, with me and Teacher Febby, is amazing and helps us see the impact of this program in just two years!” exclaimed Annie.

Another notable activity that has happened this past year was the program receiving a grant to purchase tablets and internet bundles from Action Africa. “The news of Read for Rose Special Education Program receiving a grant from Action Africa was the best news that I received this year amidst the pandemic. These tablets have proved to be very helpful, if not more than helpful, to the way that we teach them. And, the students seem to learn better, too, because we have downloaded apps that are specific for those subjects that we teach. We are currently orienting them on how to use the tablet, how to turn it on, access their apps (these apps vary from student to student depending on the special need of that student) and how to take care of the tablet,” Febby shared excitedly.

The Program is slowly transitioning its operations back to normal by meeting in small, socially distanced groups. The Read for Rose Program students come in at 9AM and leave by 2PM, Monday to Friday. This allows them to catch up on their learning, have a hot meal and to help them feel like they are not alone. Home visits and weekly health check-in calls have continued to make sure that these students and their families are informed and safe.

“The most striking thing about this organization is the determination to want to make these kids’ lives successful and help them to become better, too. My daughter has been in the program for two years and the progress is overwhelming. She teaches me at home how to communicate with her even in the most basic way. This is a dream come true,” said Gertrude, Catherine’s mother.

Happy 2nd Anniversary Read for Rose and thank you, Febby and Annie, for making such a profound difference in these students’ lives!