Local Church Supporting AIDS Orphans in Tanzania

MSQ Jazz Quintet Benefit Concert: Friday, Dec. 14, 8 pm

by Andraya Dolbee

(December 13, 2007) St. Thomas Episcopal Church in Mamaroneck is schooling, feeding and clothing AIDS orphans in a village in Tanzania -- and it is one of the easiest, yet most rewarding projects it has ever undertaken.  

Last May, the Rev. Deborah Tammearu asked her congregation at St. Thomas to imagine that AIDS had wiped out many of Mamaroneck's parents, and that St. Thomas opened its doors to take care of Mamaroneck's children, now orphaned and roaming the streets of our village.  While it may seem daunting to think of a parish raising orphans, or to help a village doing just this so far away, it takes just a small amount of money to offer the Tanzanian children a place in their home community.

 
Tanzanian children supported by Mamaroneck's St. Thomas Church sport their school uniforms.

Once AIDS has struck an African village, orphans left behind are often treated as outcasts. Without school uniforms, they cannot attend school -- without the breakfast served on school mornings, they do not eat.  Through a program called Carpenter's Kids, an international partnership between the Episcopal Diocese of New York and the Anglican Diocese of Central Tanganyika, St. Thomas provides HIV/AIDS orphans a school uniform, which opens the door to school, a cow, which provides milk for breakfast, and the school supplies needed to stay in the educational support system their country offers.

Unlike what it costs to clothe, feed and educate a resident of Mamaroneck, it takes only $50 per child per year for Carpenter's Kids to provide these fundamentals. The programs asks supporters for a minimum commitment of five years so that children get the chance not just to go to school, but to stay in school.

The Carpenter’s Kids program is open to all African HIV/AIDS orphans regardless of religious affiliation or political sentiments in their village; children are chosen to receive help based on their need for help.

Families of St. Thomas are donating funds for the AIDS orphans in Hombolo Makulu, a village in central Tanzania, and are raising money for more cows and a new kindergarten building.

Those wanting to help the effort are invited to a benefit jazz concert at St. Thomas Episcopal Church on Friday, December 14 at 8:00 pm, featuring local jazz quintet, MSQ. The suggested donation is  $10 or $5 for seniors. Information will be available concerning Carpenter's Kids and other ways to help, including gift cards for the holiday season that allow a contribution to be made in the name of a friend or family member.

St. Thomas Episcopal Church is at 168 West Boston Post Road in Mamaroneck Village. For more information, call (914) 698-0300 or see: saintthomasmmrk.org/

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