Halima is the child of a teen mom who had no high school to attend – and had few options for herself. She has high hopes for her son Nasir though, confident that Amani High School is the bridge to a brighter future for him.

In this remote, rural coastal area – often referred to as “the bush” – where Amani School already brings quality education to a community previously without any school at all, the new High School has finally been built! Construction was completed, down to the plumbing and electrical connections, in the last week of October. Many kids have been dropping out after grade 6 or 7 and many previously had no way to get to the public high school. But starting January 1st, 2022, the Amani Primary School kids will now have a High School* to help build what school administrator Sarah Isaac calls “a bridge to somewhere.”

*LATEST: February 1, 2022. After a delayed start, and some paperwork, we are happy to announce that the high school is now open!

*UPDATE: January 17, 2022. There has been a temporary delay in opening the high school in January as planned, due to a last-minute change of TZ government policy re: new school construction. Follow our Facebook posts for future updates.

Sarah was one of our special guests at the 2021 Virtual Gala. Her parents founded the Amani School – the nearest school had previously been 8km away. After Sarah completed her education, she came back to work at the school, seeing the need for it to thrive and grow for the sake of the community. In a remote area where it’s considered OK for a man to hit a woman if she leaves the house without saying goodbye, or burns dinner, Sarah serves as more than school administrator. She is a positive role model for girls and young women. She models that it’s normal for girls to get a proper education instead of dropping out in primary school, and then either getting married as a teen or working as a maid in the city. She can even show them that an education does not prevent them from getting married one day!

But even in the 14 years since Amani School was founded, things are changing. The local girls are being sent by their parents to Amani School – a sign that the community is changing and developing. “Our hope is that the children will continue in their education and will know Christ as their personal saviour”. Sarah tells us there is a cost to that, though. She told the story of her father, who converted from Islam to Christianity and faced many challenges. Working now in a primarily Muslim community, Sarah understands the challenges that the students can face – especially if they embrace Jesus after seeing His love lived out at Amani school. The team at Amani can demonstrate how a Christian community can be supporting friends. At the Gala, Sarah gave a warm thank you to the donors who support and pray for Amani School – making so many things possible that wouldn’t be, without your support; there’s the new High School opening in January, the Poultry Project, the Primary School, Sports Evangelism, and the Agriculture Project/Teaching Garden.

“The Lord Bless you. It’s not just a job – it’s my way of giving back.”

Sarah Isaac