Who We Are

The seed was sown in June 2006 with the project coordinators, Mary O'Neill and Diane Calisse, partaking in the Dublin Women's mini marathon for the benefit of girl's education in Namitembo. The Parish priest, Father Owen O'Donnell, had brought the problem of gender disparity in the schools to our attention. They are both trained nurses so the detrimental effects of low literacy on health are well known to them. Mary is also trained in the Montessori method of teaching and Diane has just completed an MPH at the Malawi College of Medicine

Father Owen O'Donnell lives and works in Namitembo. His vision is to improve education and training for the whole community and is currently building a trade school and staff houses for vocational training in carpentry, building, bricklaying, technical drawing, computers and tailoring.

Agatha Kalawa is a trained secondary teacher in Namitembo. She likes to work with the youth and is a great role model for girls. Agatha is our community liaison person and a key to the success of this project.