I had been looking forward to Tuesday all week. We headed out to visit a grade school that I'd first heard about last year. This grade school is in a part of Dakar called Guinaw Rail, which is where our friend Abdou (shown above, in front of the school) grew up. Our friend Massamba had lived there as a young man. It's a low-lying area that floods during the rainy season every year; people live there because the conditions make homes affordable to those who have very little. But it's a hard life.
Last year our group of middle-school students, parents and teachers -- the Ludlowe Corps-- filled a crate with school supplies and furniture. We had it shipped to Dakar and gave it to the people of Guinaw Rail as a gift. I knew then that the good people of Guinaw Rail were working hard to make a better life for the community's children. I knew then that they placed great value in education, and sacrificed much to provide it. I knew then that they didn't have a lot to work with. What I didn't know, until I got there on Tuesday, was the great kindness, patience, and wisdom of the community leaders there.
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