Gripping the pencil tightly, Michael tries to copy the letter ‘A’ from the blackboard. He frowns as he struggles to command the pencil to form the unfamiliar shape. Seeing the boy’s worried look, teacher Shyam Devani comes over to help. He holds his hand, then guides the pencil over the paper. “There,” Shyam says once they’ve written a whole page of letters. “I knew you could do it.” Michael smiles with satisfaction, proud he’s made progress thanks to his gentle and patient new teacher.
Just two years Michael’s senior, Shyam, 19, is a volunteer at the St Dymphna’s special needs school in Arusha, Tanzania, while Michael, 17, is an autistic orphan who’s learning to look after himself and his autistic little brother.
Rejected by their community because of their autism, he and his 13-year-old brother Paulo were left to fend for themselves when both their parents died last year. If not for the tireless work of the volunteers at St Dymphna’s, where they now live, the pair may have ended up alone and on the streets. Now they are learning life and vocational skills and how to read and write, so they can earn a living.
Shyam, a former head boy of Dubai’s Jumeirah English Speaking school, took Michael and Paulo under his wing and says teaching them taught him a lot about life and happiness. “I’d read online about the special needs school and I was keen to help improve the lives of the children there,’’ he says. “What really overwhelmed me when I went there was seeing the sheer joy and happiness on the faces of the brothers. Despite their condition and all that they had endured, they always had a smile on their faces.’’
A resident of Arabian Ranches, Dubai, Shyam could have taken a degree in Accounting and Maths at Cardiff University after completing his International Baccalaureate Diploma last year. But he decided to take a gap year this summer and, after raising more than Dh12,850 from his family and friends for charity by climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, he decided to work at the orphanage. “My family is from East Africa and we have a home in Nairobi. We came here eight years ago,” he explains. “I wanted to have a different experience on my gap year – one that was away from home – and that is why I chose Tanzania. I wanted to build my character by exposing myself to the challenges of doing two difficult things in the same month – climbing a tall mountain and living and working with a charitable organisation. I know that I am lucky and I wanted to help others.’’
Shyam climbed Mount Kilimanjaro on his own after training for a month once he’d finished his final exams. He hit the gym every day, working on a programme to build up his overall endurance and stamina. “Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro without family or friends was really difficult,’’ he admits. It was an act of self discipline that involved braving biting cold, extremely difficult terrain and surviving on just the bare necessities. “Many people have either been turned down for the trip due to poor health or given up close to the peak because their endurance gives in. It was very difficult, but I persevered. Standing on the summit gave me great confidence in myself and it also prepared me for the work at St Dymphna’s.”
After returning to base camp, he made his way to the school in the foothills of the mountain. “I decided to stay there doing whatever I could to make a difference to the lives of these special children,’’ he says.
There are 40 students with hearing, speech, and learning disabilities at the orphanage. Many are mentally challenged or have Down’s syndrome, autism and other such conditions.
The students are split into two age-based groups – one from age 3-13 and another from 14-23. They’re given basic teaching in languages, maths, science and art in the mornings, and the older students learn practical jobs such as sewing and beading in the afternoons.
One of the first things that struck Shyam was the positivity the students exuded. Although they were struggling with their conditions, they were keen to overcome them and learn new skills. “Here in Dubai, we have all the luxuries, yet we still find reasons to complain. The kids there had very little to survive, and yet their faces were always beaming with happiness.”
In Tanzania, poor parents cannot afford to educate their special needs children, and nearly 90 per cent had to stay at home. That changed when the school, started by trained special needs teacher Mary Kaswende, opened in 2002 and offered free food, clothing and teaching. It was a lifesaver for Michael and Paulo. “Their smiling faces stood out, even from the rest of the 40 children,” says Shyam. “They were so happy to be at the school.
“Initially, it was very difficult to get through to the children due to their various special needs and the language barrier. Michael was extremely shy and unresponsive to my English classes. But after the fourth day, he began to warm up to me, and he started seeking my help in learning the English alphabet. Amazingly, in just a couple of weeks he could pronounce all the letters in English, in the correct order, and he could even write them down on a piece of paper too. The more confident he got, the more he wanted to learn and before I left he could count up to 20 in English.’’
Witnessing Michael’s progress was a huge motivator for Shyam. “I know that by learning these skills, and becoming more confident with someone like me, who he most likely regarded a stranger, he will benefit in the long run, as these skills will help him find a job to sustain himself and his brother. Both Michael and Paulo were so affectionate and it was a touching experience to have known them,” Shyam says. “They enjoyed the time that they spent in school with me. They were eager to learn and seemed to be pleased every time I congratulated them when they performed a task correctly. I decided that I wanted to continue to contribute regularly to this school, even after leaving Tanzania.’’
In the three weeks that Shyam spent at the orphanage, he endeavoured to make the best use of the funds he had raised prior to his visit. And after observing closely and making sure that he understood the real needs of the school, he was well-placed to do just that. “I met with the office bearers of the school,” he says. “We discussed what the school’s most pressing needs were and decided to contribute the money towards those causes.
“One of the first things I did was make arrangements to replace the worn out and dangerous tyres of the school van that ferries the children to and from the school – it was in really bad shape and posed a danger to the children’s lives. I also arranged for a brand new battery to be installed in the van, so it is now much more reliable.’’
Shyam recalls how he enjoyed accompanying the driver to the children’s homes so he could get a better idea of their life and families. “It gave me a new perspective on their lives and how they coped with their condition,’’ he says.
Shyam also shopped for school supplies in the local market, buying a few lunch benches and tables for the school. He also bought 80 textbooks and donated enough stationery, puzzles and games to last the students at the school for two years.
Apart from offering financial aid to the school and buying supplies, Shyam also helped to dig a well near the school so the students would have potable water close by all year round. “The school had no running water. It received water some five days a week, and when they were short they had to purchase it from water tankers that came from the town. I was proud that I was able to help dig the well. We also cleared the drainage system so the rain water could run back to the well and funded a tank for storage. Now this will ensure running water at all times, and a store for water in the summer months. This will improve hygiene enormously, provide water for cooking and drinking and also save the cost of sourcing water from the town in times of emergency.
After a life-changing experience, Shyam reflects by saying, “climbing to the peak tested my personal endurance, and my stay at the special needs orphanage made me humble and more giving. I have learnt from this experience that if you are determined and willing to go the extra mile, you can always make a difference. I plan to go back as often as I can – I want to keep up with Michael and Paulo.”
