Surprise! A New School Bus

a white 4 x 4 mini bus arrives in Arusha

Well, after 2 years of trying to buy a new bus for Sotwa Wilson School, so that the children of Karim Orphanage wouldn't have to walk to school anymore, it finally became a reality. It came down to the last 3 months of countless emails, phone calls and sleepless nights! Have you ever ordered a bus online? From Japan? And had it delivered to Africa?  Then wired millions of schilling's (thousand's and thousand's of dollars) to someone's bank account and hoped a vehicle would show up in the condition they say it would be in? Actually, I was just a praying that some kind of vehicle with 4 wheels would show up! Then to top it off, I needed it to arrive at a certain time, within a 2 week period, while 4 visitors were there, so they could drive it into the school yard and Surprise  the principal, Mr Shange, with a new school bus! Well, I did all the above with the help of my friend Sabastian and Bridges of Hope.

the mini bus is painted 'school bus yellow' 

It couldn't have gone more perfect! It all started at the end of  March, when I was contacted by 2 teachers from Okotoks, Barb and Crystal, husband Nick and a friend, Mike.They had heard about me and what I did in Tanzania and wanted to go visit Karim Orphanage in July. Because they were teachers, they wanted to do something for the school or for the children's education. I told them the school was in desperate need of a bus, as the bus they had was breaking down and the children were having to walk to school. I told them, with the help of family and friends, I had raised half the money. They said no problem, they would raise the other half. Within weeks, we (Bridges of Hope) had

Nick, Crystal, Barb and Mike deliver the new bus

their trip booked and they were ready to start fundraising. Within 2 months,  they raised more than double their goal! Through donations to Bridges of Hope by their family and friends, they paid for the entire bus, plus left over money for the children's education! Incredible!  They wanted to know if it would be possible to purchase a bus before or while they were there so they could get pictures?  Well, because they raised so much money for something I am so passionate about, I was going to do everything I could, to make this possible for them! My good friend Sabastian, in Arusha, did most of the work!

a happy bunch of school kids with their 'new ride'

He consoled me several times on the phone "Hakuna Matata, Mama! Don't worry, it will all work out!" The bus arrived 1 week before my friends arrived. Sabastian, made the deal, picked up the bus, took it to his garage, painted it yellow and had the school name painted on, cleaned it all up and had it sit in his garage untill it was ready for the big surprise. I emailed and chatted with Mr Shange, the principal of the school, and told him my friends, who are teachers, were coming to visit him and the school on Monday, so to make sure that he and his wife were there to give them a tour. Monday morning,  Crystal, also a principle, rode the old school bus to school with the children. It broke down 3 times on the way and it took almost 2 hours for them to get to school.

a very happy, Mr Shange, checking out his new bus

Well, was this not the perfect day to drive in with a new school bus!  Mr Shange and the children were so overwhelmed with joy, it was unbelievable. I Love surprises! Happiness is truly making others Happy!

*A big thank you to Nick, Barb, Crystal and Mike and all of those who donated to this project.
*A big thank you to my friend, Sabastian, for all your hard work, your time, the awesome paint job, and helping me make this surprise possible! 

by Mama Linda