Skills Development Graduation

One of the great things that has happened during the past months is a Skills Development class that was offered at Chigodi to 11 young women from the community. This six month class included teaching in English, Bible knowledge, home economics, sewing, tailoring, knitting, cooking, agriculture, and business management. The young women were tested in all these areas the beginning of December and graduation was held December 15. It was a great time for all involved, an accomplishment for the young women and for the Center.

Guest of Honor inspects the garden

The graduation was done in grand Malawian fashion. This meant, first, the selection of a guest of honor. The staff voted to invite Dr. Silas Ncozana, who eagerly accepted. The rest of the guest list included synod officials, Chigodi church officials, village headmen, and family members of the graduates. This numbered about 60 people. Then there needed to be a meal for them and gifts for the honorees and distinguished students. Displays of the students’ work had to be arranged, for the guests to see their accomplishments. Certificates were prepared for presentation by the guest of honor. These included photos of the graduates and lamination for protection of the important document. Then the hall had to be decorated and seating arranged to honor all in attendance. All of this was made possible by a generous donor from Scotland.

Graduation day dawned cloudy. We prayed that the festivities would be completed before the rains arrived, since the displays were spread throughout the campus. God answered. When the guest of honor arrived, the skies were dark, but the rains held off until all the displays were seen and the group was gathered in the hall. The displays included the garden, cultivated with organic fertilizer, the open air kitchen with a safe, 3 “burner” mud

stove, then a trip to the hostel, and extended

classroom to see the home making display and the foods and clothing produced by the graduates. This tour took about an hour. At every station, the guest of honor asked questions and offered encouragement to the graduates who were presenting their projects.

The students then gathered to march into the hall and the graduation exercises began. That is when the heavens opened and the rains came, but we were all safely inside, dry and secure. The weather did not dampen the spirits of the participants. Poems, skits, presentations and speeches filled the room that had been the student’s classroom and was now the assembly hall. Clapping and cheering and singing accompanied each presentation. The room erupted when the students were called forward to receive their certificates. When the top

student was named, it seemed that the rafters shook. They were all so proud of one another’s accomplishments. The teachers beamed with pride.

When it was my turn to speak, I found my voice full of emotion. Yes, I was touched by the work and accomplishments of these young women who now had new skills to benefit their families and to expand their hopes for the future. But I was also overwhelmed at the progress of Chigodi Women’s Center in just a little over a year. God had done amazing things to bring about this program, to give new life and new hope to the Center as well as to the participants. This time last year the Center had been closed – no programs, no money, not even water. Now we were graduating a class of students, equipped for a future and a hope (Jer. 29:11). This was a graduation, as all are, of beginnings and promise, not just for the graduates but also for the Center. God had done a wonderful work. I could only praise him for that.

The graduates

Hilda, the top student