This post features student writing.

Today was the first day of our community service here in the town of Maji Moto. We have been given the task of building a school administrative building with the help of local contractors. Today we mixed cement, laid bricks, and shoveled dirt from the earth to the base of the structure, which will become the floor.

My Expectations:

Having done a Putney program last year (community service on the island of Dominica), I had some idea as to what the group was going to do. I was expecting somewhat hot and uncomfortable working conditions, some confusion when talking to the local contractors, and to not make much progress in the build overall. While not making much progress may sound pessimistic, in Dominica, the first few days of work moved much more slowly. In Dominica last year it took a few days for the group and the contractors to meaningfully progress on our construction projects. However, after this brief period, the work picked up and the group had lots to do. At the end of the trip to Dominica we had made, from start to finish, the foundation for the basement of the largest building in the village.

The Reality:

What I had previously thought about the first few days of building not yielding many tangible results was proven wrong here in Tanzania. Despite our group only being 13 strong, with the help of our fundi (“foremen” in Swahili) Peter, Gasper, and Richard, we were able to get a lot done in only one day. As a group we leveled the mounds of dirt within the structure and then proceeded to dig up more dirt from the ground nearby and transfer that back to the structure with the help of Richard. We also mixed some cement to create mortar for the bricks which we then laid to form the walls after some instruction from Gasper and Peter. The sun was out and the painstaking work of digging and transferring buckets of dirt was tough in the heat, but in the end everyone felt a great sense of accomplishment and bonding within the group as well as with our fundi.

— William D.

“Richard’s the best…but that’s not my quote. I really loved how all of the workers were not only trying to teach us what we had to physically do, but they also taught us Swahili. They wanted to teach us how to interact and become a part of their community.”

— Madeline P.