Volunteer Articles

Eyes from Ethiopia

By Sue Avison February 2009

Ethiopia, a landlocked country in Eastern Africa which is slightly less than twice the size of Texas, has a poverty stricken economy with over 80 million people striving to survive. It is a nation that is well known for its droughts and famines and its long civil conflict and a border war with Eritrea.

Despite all this, Kate Macpherson, a photographer from Wellington New Zealand had a desire to visit Ethiopia. Ten years ago Kate had spent 5 months on the African continent and fell in love with it but never got to Ethiopia. So with the support of Global Volunteer Network (GVN) she decided she could combine her desire to see a new country, her dream to volunteer and her passion for photography and perhaps along the way make a difference in the lives of others.

Kate chose GVN because it suited her time frame and her budget. GVN partners with the Mercy Home in Addis Ababa and Kate liked what the programme was about; helping the kids who had come off the streets and helping to facilitate the start of their education.

The Mercy Home is a Christian based organisation but volunteers from all backgrounds are encouraged to apply. The programme involves tutoring children after school with a focus on conversational English, grammar, science, and mathematics. Additionally, volunteers with musical and computer skills are needed to instruct the children in these areas. Volunteers need to be able to develop new and creative projects, which was exactly what Kate was looking for.

Kate was determined to make her volunteering count. With the generous support of Kodak, Kate took ten, point and shoot digital cameras with her. "I'm not the first person to do this. It has been done a few times before but it was a way for me to try and raise the money for the Mercy Home using my skills," Kate said. "I planned on the fundraiser before I left and I got sponsors… I knew what I wanted to do even without having visited the home."

In hindsight, Kate felt she was a little naïve and didn't really know what she was going into. "I used to think you just go in and make a difference doing whatever, but it has to be planned and thought out. Our way is not their way and just going in and helping off your own bat is not always a good idea," said Kate. "When you go into a third world country you need to go and spend time fitting in, finding out how things work. It's the living it. It's the small cultural differences that are quite significant. You don't know about them and no one explains them until you are there."

With a minimal grasp of Amharic, Kate admitted language was a bit of a barrier and they used gesturing a lot. She had the help of a translator who knew a little English and between the two of them they managed to convey her suggestions. "The kids were so quick at picking up ideas. I was astounded by them," Kate said. "We would go through a de brief of all the photos and I often thought the message wasn't getting through, but then at the next session of photography, some of the bright kids had totally switched on and had picked it up. They listened to feedback and would alter their images next time, so they progressively got better. I was so impressed by the quality of the photography. In their environment there is not a natural inclination to be expressive. It's quite a structured and academic based home, so this was very new for them."

When Kate wasn't teaching photography she taught them conversation English and spelling. With no formal teaching skills, only her own education and the fact that she spoke English, Kate found the children easy to teach. She admitted she winged it a bit but once she had met the children and figured out what they knew, she developed her own programme for them. "It didn't really put me out of my comfort zone. They couldn't wait to learn and would say; we don't want another break".

The Mercy Home gives these children an opportunity to have an education they might otherwise miss out on. The Home's mission is to rescue children off the streets and give them a better life. Yet despite the challenges these children face on a daily basis, Kate found them a real delight. "They were just wonderful children with bright smiles all the time. They embraced life. They were an inspiration really. They were a lesson on how to live. Life was great. They had nothing and just enjoyed each day. These kids with nothing just lived their lives moment to moment with a big smile on their face."

Kate has set up a website where you can view and purchase the photos taken by the children. She called it 'Eyes from Ethiopia'. Having already raised $NZ1600.00, Kate hopes to increase this total. A local museum is holding an exhibition of the children's photos later in the year. Visit http://www.eyesfromethiopia.com/ to see just how talented these children are and read their profiles. These children have big dreams and are so inspiring.