COOKEVILLE — There are three groups of people in this world: the sayers, the planners and the doers. The sayers pay lip service to a cause, but that is as far as they go. The planners say they will commit to a cause “as soon as their schedule lightens up” or “as soon as they have the money.” And the doers fulfill their promises. Janet Matson, a local occupational therapist, made good on her desire to go to Africa and help those in need.
“I have been interested in Africa and her people for decades,” Matson said. “I lived in New York City in the late ’90s, and there were many venues with which to educate myself regarding Africa and Africans.
“I planned to go to Mali, West Africa, when Hurricane Katrina devastated our country. I found a church in Mississippi on the Internet, contacted them and drove there from Pennsylvania,” she continued. “I sorted, boxed and stacked pallets to ship to the Gulf. I was muscle power, and that was all I needed to be.” But soon her sights on Africa became more honed, and she discovered that her skills would be needed in Tanzania.
“My first journey to Tanzania was with Lutheran World Relief in January 2007. I was a participant in their ‘Woman to Woman’ study tour,” said Matson. She and 17 other women from around the country visited different parts of Tanzania to witness Lutheran World Relief’s sponsored programs.
“It was a nice introduction to a foreign country. I made new friendships that continue to this day.”
Sensing that her work in Africa was not done, she arranged her next trip to Tanzania as an independent volunteer at Amani Children’s Home, a small non-governmental, non-profit organization that houses orphans and street-children on the base of Mt. Kilimanjaro. “Amani” means “peace” in Swahili.
When planning her most recent trip, Matson said, “I knew what area I wanted to revisit in Tanzania, and I looked on the Internet for organizations. I read their missions and their purposes, and I chose to contact Amani. I sent them my resume and asked them if I could be of service. It was exciting and a bit scary to strike out independently. But when I arrived in Moshi, I quickly made new friends.”
But often, spending time in another country for a long period of time does not coincide with life back in the States. Matson spent three weeks with Amani Children’s Home, but luckily, her employer, Quality Home Health, was supportive of her efforts and let her use vacation days for her trip. She also says that she took some days off without pay.
“My friends and family were also very supportive of my time away and took care of my animals for me,” Matson said.
While at Amani, Matson used her skills in occupational therapy with the students of the residence. When she sent an e-mail to see if her skills would be needed, Matson said, “they wrote back, relating the teachers needed help getting the children to be able to maintain attention and to focus during class. The teachers also wanted to know about how to help the children with their handwriting. The children at Amani Home are coming in from the streets and are not used to formal education or having to sit for long periods of time.
“Amani’s main rule is, in order to receive their services, each child must be attending school.”
She taught a two-day occupational therapy seminar to the instructors, teaching them the importance of play and how all children learn through structured play. She also had one-on-one consultation with a student at the home who is autistic.
“He was dropped off at a police station at approximately 2 years old,” Matson said. “He is now 8. He does not speak with words. However, his non-verbal communication is very strong. His ability to adapt to his environment is amazing. The children and staff treat him like family. He performs his daily activities and is independent with many of them. They asked me what I would recommend, and I told them, ‘More of the same!’”
“The Tanzanians are welcoming and loving people,” said Matson. “I was in Moshi, near Mt. Kilimanjaro. The tribes around Moshi are called Chagga. The Chagga people are industrious and entrepreneurial. They are hospitable, and they want to be self-sufficient. It feels like I am going home to a loving family when I visit there.”
While spending time with the Chagga people, Matson learned some life lessons that people can learn in their own homes without ever leaving their hometown.
“One has immense power to change one’s community for the better with the perseverance and spirit of a handful of people. Sometimes, all it takes is one person.”
For more information on Amani Children’s Home in Tanzania, including ways you can help the organization and its child residents, go to www.amanikids.org.
