John Ellis - personal statement

I became interested in Mission Morogoro after talking to our vicar at All Saints Evesham who was thinking of going to Tanzania to work with a link he had with a school in the Morogoro area. This was in 2023 and I went to a charity meeting in Kempsey where I became interested in joining the group going out to Tanzania that year. I was made very welcome and my journey began, this being my first visit to Africa.

There were 8 of us including Bishop John and his wife HJ. I was going to learn about what the Charity was doing and to experience Africa. We were made very welcome especially by the Anglican members of the Morogoro diocese. This meant that we travelled for a large amount of our stay to different church communities and included a safari and a visit to an Eco village which was very interesting.

The most interesting was the visit to Berega Hospital and the Clinic at Tunguli. I was amazed at how they coped with everyday problems without what we have in this country especially with the lack of proper hygiene and in Tunguli no running water. This opened my eyes to the needs of these communities and I was determined to add my help to the Charity, so much so that I visited again in 2024 with the group spending more time at the Tunguli Clinic. Among the things I picked up on this visit is the water problem. There are in existence several tanks previously provided by Mission Morogoro, which should collect water during the rainy season. The tanks, pipework and guttering were in disrepair and need attention.

We spent a lot of time listening to the staff and talking to SAWA group to ascertain how this situation could be remedied.

After these two wonderful visits I have experienced the feel of the country and I hope to be more involved in the work of the Charity and to improve the situation in Tunguli.