History and Background

HISTORY AND BACKGROUND
Marilynn Orphans Projects Foundation Tanzania (MOP) was founded by Raphael Mwaji. Mr. Mwaji, from Zambia, completed university seminary training in Zambia after being influenced as a youngster by U.S. Christian missionaries. He has dedicated his life to the welfare of others. He started MOP in Zambia to provide educational assistance to orphans and empowerment assistance to widows. As the AIDS epidemic raged through Eastern Africa, people in Tanzania who knew of his work in Zambia asked him to come and begin his work there. In 2005 Tanzania had 2,500,000 orphans out of a population of about 36 million. Raphael left behind three teenage sons in Zambia to work his farm and to continue in their schools in Zambia. He, his wife Aisha, and his youngest son, Joseph, moved to the outskirts of Dar Es Salaam to begin the work in 2005. MOP is in the process of building two schools. The school in Majohe has 120 students already. Thirty-five percent of the students are orphans. The other 65% of the students are paying students. The paying students along with a few generous donations and some government grants, help to keep the school operating. The school is not finished and much more needs to be done. The second school is in the Province of Mbeya in eastern Tanzania.

Raphael and the MOP board members draw no salary. They are self-supporting through their own jobs or assistance from other people.

Why Volunteer?

Help those who are in need.
Build peace between nations.
Find what living is really about.
Take your teenagers to teach them values.
Add meaning to your life.
Make international friends.
Enjoy working with children.
Have fun!

What Will I Be Doing?

Teach the children in one of the MOP schools. Train MOP teachers in special areas that you know. Bring an instrument and teach music and songs. Help build a school with your construction skills. Bring tools for construction. Meet with leaders to discuss their problems and offer advice. Offer some health care class or checkups to the children and widows. Buy books to stock a school library. Help a widow make a business plan. Connect a micro-lending officer with a widow who wants to start a business and become independent.

Besides the many things you can do in Tanzania for the orphans and widows, you can do things for them from home. You can raise funds to buy school supplies or build school facilities. You can send school supplies and study-aids for the children. You can offer technical assistance to MOP such as accounting, computer technology, communication, training manuals on relevant topics to their lives, recruit volunteers, answer questions they have, educate them about resources they can use, and many other things. Find micro-lending institutions that are interested in business development and funding with the MOP widows. Bring awareness to your neighborhood of the plight of the orphans and widows in Tanzania. Change the world!

Live in an African Home