Mama's dough for her indescribable rolls. This container is about 2.5' wide.
Mattresses waiting for installation in the new hall.
January 24, 2009 - The day before the dedication.
The under-stage drapes sewn a few days before needed by the gracious and swift-needled Claudia Dreiling, Marilyn Love and Carol Nagy. Thanks guys for the 11th hour help!
Mattresses distributed and ready to be placed on the fold down bed. Those green rectangles are chalkboards and each chalkboard panel is hinged and swings down to become a bed.
Volunteer Leigh Wunderlin walking on the freshly painted hall floor. You can see the fold-down beds in the background.
The kids weren't allowed in the hall on Saturday while the newly painted floor was drying. However, they crowded the windows to watch the testing of the new sound/dvd/projection system.
John, Sr. Franchesca, and Nkwele check out the new keyboard.
John playing the new keyboard
On Saturday we were testing all the new equipment in preparation for the dedication ceremony the following day. The concrete foundation pour celebration video is playing on teh big screen.
Volunteer Melonie Anderson cleaning the collapsible beds and placing the mattresses.
Sat Jan 24 - Rome sweeping the never-ending supply of dust off the stage while Perry paints the final coat on the risers
The stage, screen, sound equipment, keyboard, drapes, etc are all being put in place before the big day.
The girls toilets in place with the supporting concrete curing.
The girls toilets from the front. A couple of days after this picture brick steps were installed to make it easier to get in and out of the toilets.
The boys' toilets, with one of the school cows relaxing in the drainage field. I heard a few minutes after taking this phote that the cow had a hurt leg that became apparent earlier that morning. Hope it is recoverd by now!
Full row of boys' toilets
The third septic tank awaiting sealing. That sealing took place on Monday, Jan 26. Also, concrete block walls were built so that the toilets could only be approached from withing the girls' dorm compound.
Girls washing traditional skirts in preparation for a dance performed at the dedication ceremony.
Sat Jan 24 - there was a flurry of activity on the last day before the dedication ceremony, to get the courtyard built as well as the walkway to the hall. The walkway was completed by days' end. You can see above in lined-out form. Izzy, Emily, and Perry really worked hard to get this done.
Landscaping installed by the front door of the hall.
Sat Jan 24 - NTJA-PELI Hall
Sat Jan 24 - a view from the water tower, courtyard pavers are hard at work.
Sat Jan 24 - the school grounds are cleaned and trimmed in time for the following day's celebration.
Sat Jan 24 - Courtyard paving continues.
Sat Jan 24 - Emmanuel's (and others') house
Sat Jan 24 - some girls sporting their new, very short, school-required haircut.
? and Tukelo prepping the ground for the courtyard
Sat Jan 24 - Martha Wiggin testing the new sound system.
Sat Jan 24 - the new stage.
Sat Jan 24 - more equipment adjusting
Sat Jan 24 - Volunteer Craig Savio checks out the stage.
Sat Jan 24 - Tshabo and John play with new equipment.
Sat Jan 24 - John uses the new equipment
Sat Jan 24 - paver work in full swing. Leigh and Kyle Wunderlin are working hard.
The hall sign that is above the main entry way. The hand-carved sign did not turn out well, so plan B involved ordering letters in the U.S. - deliver via a volunteer to St Theresa (thanks Sue!) and then coat the letters in sandstone mortar. Clever idea Rome, and it looks great!
Sat Jan 24 - talking to Izzy, Tukelo, Perry and Emily about how to get the walkway done faster (basically, don't make it perfect, make it functional)
Tshabo practicing his rap.
Wed Jan 7 - sealing the girls' toilet
Sun Jan 25 - the final timelapse photo
Sun Jan 25 - Rome and Ann at dedication ceremony
Sun Jan 25 - The students wait for the ceremony to begin.
Sun Jan 25 - Awaiting the start of the dedication ceremony.
Sun Jan 25 - The processional lines up and awaits the procession.
Sun Jan 25 - two attendees from the broader community.
Sun Jan 25 - the volunteers await the start of the processional.
Sun Jan 25 - ditto
Sun Jan 25 - the woman in red was on the organizing committee for the hall the school had decided it needed in 2007. The fact that our group showed up and built it with them strikes many there as the hand of god at work.
Sun Jan 25 - the choir singing during the processional. You can see the new hall in the distance.
Sun Jan 25 - more singing.
Sun Jan 25 - Mass takes place at the start of the dedication ceremony.
Sun Jan 25 - traditional chanting and dancing act. Unfortunately my camera died before the dancing began. It was a most unique dance. The girls have bunches of bottlecaps strung together beneath their skirts on top of their derriers. The dance entailed moving in such a way as to flip up the backs of the skirts and jingle the bottle caps. It was cute and original.
Sat Dec 27, 2008
Sat Dec 27
Sat Dec 27 - Back wal prior to sealing
Sealing of back wall begins - Ivan and Thabang are on the ladders
? and Tabiso
Sealing finished for the day as we ran out of paint. The full job was completed a few days later.
?, Lebohang & Ts'abo with one of the new basketballs!
Lesotho rainbow
Sun, Dec 28 -- The new building from partway up the hill
Sun Dec 28 - the new hall is the white roof. I wonder how long it will be before it shows up on Google Earth?
Sunday, Dec 28, 2008
Stage prep
Kyle and Mzwandile
Sun Dec 28 - Inaugural fire in the new burn pit
Sun Dec 28 - 1 of 2 new portable basketball hoops!
Sun Dec 28 - Cat on a cold tin roof. This little black and white guy (on top of chimney) was busy looking for Tumi.
Mon Dec 29 - Machaka, Kyle and Ellen seal the sandstone trim
Machaka, Kyle & Ellen again. If you haven't heard Machaka sing, you must. She and her singing are beautiful.
Leigh and Tavi seal sandstone
Tukelo (another amazing singer) pushes a record number of blocks in the wheelbarrow
Emmanuel imitates Rome's pronounciation of 'perfect'. Ha!
Was this the cow that broke the wall of the third girls' bathroom pit??
The cows are nonplussed by the new toilets. BTW, the boys say they'll only use the blue ones. Apparently orange is a 'girls' color.
Girls toilets awaiting installation
The girls' septic tank
Tavi, Emily and Tukelo working on the boys' septic tank
Mama and her one-of-a-kind and oh-so-delicious rolls!
Leigh, Jackie and Emmanuel set stage markers
Moonkay (sp?)
Tumo
Jess headed back to the septic tanks
Ed joins Emily and the kids in the girls septic tank
Matela & Jessica
The finished boys' septic tank
Tues Dec 30 - First stage beam set in place
Jackie helps make the glue-lam beam
Olga finishes sealing the back wall
Thabang - the mixer man.
The church's nativity scene
Tsabo was racing Emily to see who could complete a whole row the fastest. Emily won by 10 seconds (very close when whole race took 42 minutes)
Lebohang sets a block
The girls finish sealing the outside of the back wall
Machaka
Bricklayers hard at work
Leigh and Catherine work on the stage
Kyle paints on glue in preparation for laying and screwing down the plywood on the stage
Tavi sets forms for floor pour
Ed and the kids
Ed, Tavi and Nkweli work on forms
Bricklaying, floor prep and stage building all going on at once
Bricklayers make progress
Kyle, Mzwandile & Leigh
The brickwork on the north wall is complete, along with rock landscaping at the edge. All that's needed now are the sandstone trim pieces at the windows and corners.
Bricklaying continues on the west wall, also the front of the building.
Volunteer Anna and her stage skirt crew. Due to the warped beams, Anna's group had to shim out the skirt boards to get a nice, flat front.
Dapper Emmanuel
Tsabo dramatizes.
A great shirt!
The stage crew, Anna, Elizabeth, Patrick and ?, enjoy their snack.
Stage in evening light
Sealing the girls septic tank. Soon the porta-potties will be added on top.
The pit crew!
Bricklayers prepare for building sign, to be bricked in above the front door.
Wed January 7, 2009
Making progress on the floor! As of 1/7/09 there were just 25 squares to go.
Tanya works with Moonkay(sp?) and Mzwandile to build two more houses
Tanya Kamila
Anna Leavitt
Kelly Ong
Thom Hubert
Aina Williams
Week 7 volunteers
Rome! Our fearless leader
Lee Lee laying brick.
Wiring for the new school building
Paula with the wheel barrow
Paula working on the burn pit
Moses and Paula examine the sewer.
I'll follow you up the mountain
Volunteers & some local moms
Hiking up the hill behind the school
Paula on top of Lesotho
Lee Lee, Tshabo and Greg
The kids loved Paula
Greg and Tshabo
Natural cave
Tshabo's grandmother outside her hut
Lesotho church - 2 hour mass
Detra and Paula xmas eve
Shops in Maputsoe
A staple
Dec 7, 2008
Dec 9, 2008
Laying the rebar mat onto which the floor will be poured
Dec 10, 2008
Dec 11, 2008
Some kind of giant caterpillar?
Who does tricks?
Nice look, Thabang!
Dec 12, 2008
Irrigation work
Rocks painted red to mark irrigation line location
Irrigation sprinkler with protective brick
Irrigation trenches filled in
Driving School
Coke bottler in Maputsoe
Garment Factory in Maputsoe. If you've ever shopped at Old Navy and your tag said Made In Lesotho, it may have come from here.
The bridge between Maputsoe, Lesotho and Ficksburg, South Africa
Caitlin
The Donga (Sesotho for ravine)
Pied Piper
Holy Names High School and St Theresa Mission
The Dam This is one of Lesotho's largest revenue generators, as they sell water to South Africa
Dec 14, 2008
Preparing to pour floor sections
As soon as the bricklaying is done, the hoop will be mounted!
The hall's front doors
The asbestos tanks are down! Hooray!!
Funny
The ladies at the school canteen
The school shepherd
Dec 15
Izzy & Caitlin
Butterflies galore
One of the new water tanks outside the back of the hall
The east end of the building is bricked in and the window frames are mounted
Tumi in a baby version of the kid's vests. Not happy.
Dec 16 2008
The moon
Framing the front door
Tsabo
