The Move to STEKA

Lydia Hogg
May 26, 2017
2 min read

Coming to Malawi, I never imagined I'd move projects. I planned my year to be in one place, a place that I'd never want to leave. Sadly, this year hasn't been exactly what I was expecting. Malawi has been the most incredible country and I have so much love for the people and culture, however, there are lots about our project in Palm Beach that I have not mentioned in my other blogs.

I'm not a quitter, I don't just quit things because it gets a bit tough or I don't like it. I try and I try to make things work and stick them out as long as I can. However, there's only so much you can take of something before it completely breaks you. Leaving Bolera Palms School was one of the hardest decisions I've ever had to make. The guilt and the worry about leaving my children, my class, and feeling as though I let down my closest friends, is not something I'd purposefully put myself through unless I absolutely had to. I decided I had to look after myself, my well being and my mental health had to come first in the situation.

On the 22nd April, Hannah and I packed up all our bags and travelled to Blantyre, where our new home was waiting for us, STEKA. We were so overwhelmed by the incredible welcome of prayers and singing that we received, it brought us to tears.

We have been volunteering at STEKA now for nearly a month, and we are both so happy. We work from 8 am - 12 pm in STEKA Nursery, where we teach different themes and phonics, together with the help of two other Malawian teachers. In the afternoons, we work with the older children, lots of them who are our age, with their homework and revision. We have our own room in the house with an ensuite bathroom and share a double bed. It can get very noisy at times with children knocking on our door and the space we have is quite small, but we love it.

STEKA is an incredible place. It is a home for step children who have been forced to leave their homes, street kids and orphans. Many of the children have suffered physical and sexual abuse, and struggle with their behaviour, but STEKA is a safe place for them to grow and live happily. Godknows and Helen Maseko are the father and mother of this big, wonderful family, and I thank them with all my heart for letting Hannah and I be a part of it.

Thank you for taking the time to read my blog, and I wish you all well.

Sending love from Malawi and my new home in the city,

Lydia