Since the end of 2019, Upendo Daima Netherlands has a new secretary: Jeanine de Groot. Jeanine introduces herself:
‘A few years ago, I met Ite. With a book “Swahili for Beginners” in hand, she was preparing for a year of volunteering at Upendo Daima in Tanzania. After she returned to the Netherlands, we got back in touch, and Upendo Daima has since then always been a topic of our conversations. It is very special for me to get an insight into Upendo Daima and the work they do to offer street children a future. It feels as if I can get very close to a world that is at the same time so far away from me.
Ite has since returned to Tanzania a few times. I used those trips to go through my children’s clothes and toy closets and asked family and friends to do the same. She went with filled suitcases, and she returned with beautiful stories! At the end of 2019, I was given and seized the opportunity to become a part of the board of Upendo Daima Netherlands. In this way, I hope to also contribute to the work that Upendo Daima performs and to a future that these children deserve too!’