| Big Canoe helps build a library in Afghanistan |
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"The money for this library came from my village to your village"
By Lisa Schnellinger “Girls school attacked” – that has been a frequent headline in Afghanistan since I first went there in 2002. In that same period, though, “School construction finished” has also been a regular event. When I went back to Afghanistan this summer, my Afghan colleagues and friends implored, “Build more schools. Kill fewer civilians.” If only it were that simple… But we’re trying. In addition to my main work overseas—training local journalists—I have been raising money to support a girls’ school in Afghanistan. Big Canoe residents, especially Barb Maslyk at Bears Oh My!, my family, and other individuals have been generously supporting that effort. More than six years ago, little girls in the Mohammad Agha village of Logar province, southeast of Kabul, wept all day because their school had been attacked and burned overnight. Afghan reporters were on the scene, as part of a training workshop that I was running. The pain of the girls and their families needed no translation. The good news is, those girls and hundreds of others in that village are attending school daily. They walk to a building in a secure location that was constructed with private donations from U.S. citizens, and Japanese government grants. The final construction step was to finish the two-room brick outline of the library—the roof, walls, windows, doors. The estimated cost was about $8,000—which seemed like a fortune to me, selling small items like handmade Afghan soap to raise it. Like many people who spent their childhood as bookish loners, I have a very personal attachment to libraries. Just as important as the space for schoolgirls, though, this particular library will serve as a community center and classroom space for the adult women in the village—to learn to read and write, as well as gaining job skills.
I was determined to get the walls finished, the roof put on, the floors and windows and doors put in—before this fall. We have had two fundraising sale events at Bears Oh My! in Wolfscratch village that raised a big chunk of the cost, and I sold dozens of Pashmina shawls at the Tour of Homes that made up another portion. Everywhere I go to give talks Afghanistan, I bring my soaps and scarves. Now—thanks to the big generosity of a few individuals and the small purchases of a lot of Big Canoe folks, the library roof is on and the windows are in! During my work in Afghanistan this summer, I sorely wanted to go to the village in Logar to see the girls. But security problems made it too risky—anti-foreigner sentiment is high, and there were frequent attacks and kidnappings. Knowing that I couldn’t come there, four people from Logar came to see me in Kabul. These four—village elders and education officials—were familiar with the school and its history, but didn’t know me. Personal relationships are very important in Afghanistan. I was prepared for a multi-hour meeting (as anyone who’s read Three Cups of Tea will understand). I let them set the tone and rhythm—and wished that I could videotape it. These four men were so grateful, so humble and yet also proud that their village has a fine school for its girls. They thanked me with a grace that is all the more elegant for coming from people who have been through all that they have. I explained to them, “The money for this library came from my village to your village. It was not a government grant. I sold Afghan soap and shawls and earned a few dollars at a time. “People in America really want to help, but they are not sure what is the best way. The people in my village trusted me, and they bought this soap and gave me money because they knew that I would send it to someone I trust. And that he would spend it wisely, and that the school would be run by people that HE trusts.” And they said, “Oh! You think like an Afghan.” Next up: furniture and—yes! Books. Watch Smoke Signals Online for announcement of upcoming talks and fundraising events to support the school. |
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