Educating Africa’s Future Leaders
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| Rich and two Lenume videographers, Sam and Zach, at Hope Ministries |
A while back, videographer Sam Sanchez of Lenume traveled to Zambia with me and a group of Spark investors. One of the videos that we worked on during that trip was our Partnerships that Empower video. Spark had recently raised the funds to invest in a brand new schoolhouse for our partner Hope Ministries, and when we arrived the project was underway. Sam and I set up our video interview for Hope’s founder and Executive Director, Charles Mumba, with the school construction in the background. As Charles talked on camera about the effects of poverty in their community and the great need for educating Zambia’s youth, behind him you could see the hard-working crew mixing cement and laying bricks to build the walls of the new facility. “We have a vision to reach these children….to change their lives.
Today, Sam and our video crew interviewed Charles again at that same site. Only this time, Charles was sitting on the steps of the Shelby Goldstein Schoolhouse, which for the last year and a half, has been the home of Hope Community School, which serves over 300 of Zambia’s poorest children. Today as Charles spoke, behind him stood the beautiful brick posts and the doorways into the seven classrooms that just hours before were filled with eager young learners and dedicated teachers. During Charles’ interview, Zach Rockwood, a second videographer, was getting a wide shot of the scene, capturing the proud Zambian flag flowing in the wind and a mural of the world painted on the side of the building. As I took in the whole scene, I thought about the privilege of investing in a partnership like this that is not only transforming the lives of children but also having a profound impact on an entire community. And I found myself quite moved as I heard Charles’ voice in the background from the interview…“We are investing in Africa’s leaders of tomorrow.”