Nancy Arbogast, fundraising chair with TEMBO.Ashley Fraser/The Globe and Mail
The organizer: Nancy Arbogast and volunteers
The pitch: Raising $230,000 annually
The cause: To support educational programs for girls in Tanzania
Shortly after Nancy Arbogast retired from teaching in 2015, she began searching for a new challenge.
She was scanning a newsletter for retired teachers when she came across a notice about TEMBO, an Ottawa-based charity that provides educational support for girls in Tanzania.
“I had looked throughout my career for opportunities to teach overseas and never been able to find the right opportunity,” Ms. Arbogast, 69, recalled from her home in Ottawa.
TEMBO – Tanzania Education and Micro-Business Opportunity – was started 20 years ago by a pair of Canadians and it works with partners in the Longido District in northern Tanzania. The charity helps girls attend secondary school which is often out of reach for most families in the area. TEMBO has sponsored 500 students in total and it’s currently providing financial support to 173 girls.
The organization also runs three-week English courses, which is the language of instruction in high school, while elementary school is taught in Swahili. It also offers enriched academic courses, mentoring programs, microbusiness opportunities and it operates a learning centre where local residents can access computers and a library.
Ms. Arbogast has made three trips to Tanzania to teach English. “I was absolutely blown away by the intense concentration of the girls,” she said. “I’m used to teaching in high school where you’ve got to motivate students. Those girls were so keen.”
She’s become a volunteer director of TEMBO and chairs the fundraising efforts. TEMBO’s annual budget is around $230,000 which covers the cost of the programs and a small staff in Tanzania (everyone on the Canadian side are volunteers). This spring the group raised $13,000 from a cycling event called TEMBO 500 Challenge and it has further fundraising events later this year.
Ms. Arbogast is planning another trip to Tanzania in October and whenever she goes she’s amazed at the impact the program is having. Some of the girls have started their own businesses or gone on to higher education, and most say their education has given them the confidence to speak up and be heard.
“Every time I go back, I’m inspired,” she said.