The Wondem Foundation participated in the 2016 Wild Geese Golden Goose competition with the story below, “Great Little boy from Amsterdam Improves life of Ethiopian Children.”
Great Little boy from Amsterdam improves life of Ethiopian children
Wondem was a cheerful and helpful boy from Amsterdam. He visited Ethiopia five times. The poverty he saw there deeply saddened him; poor children without food or clothing. He immediately wanted to give away his own clothes and shoes. He did so, and then asked, “Dad, how can I earn money for these children?” He said that when he grew up, he wanted to establish his own foundation to give the poorest children in Ethiopia a better future.
Wondem was unable to realize this dream. On February 11, 2009, he passed away suddenly, at the age of only 12. Through the Wondem Foundation, we, Tefera and Etetu Zerfu, are making our son Wondem’s dream come true. We do this with the help of many volunteers and our partners, the most important of whom is Wilde Ganzen (Wild Geese). We also donate all the tips we receive on Mondays at our Ethiopian restaurant in Addis Ababa in Amsterdam to the Wondem Foundation.
The Wondem Foundation has already completed six projects in Ethiopia. The first projects involved the construction of a school library and two laboratory classrooms. Thanks to improved study opportunities and practical lessons, students achieve higher grades and pass the CITO test more often.
Schoolgirls often stay home during their periods. As a result, they miss one week of school each month and their grades lag behind. The Wondem Foundation distributes sanitary pads at school so they don’t have to stay home during their periods. As a result, the dropout rate has decreased from 47% to 1%.
The Wondem Foundation has installed water pumps for good drinking water and sanitation facilities in and around the schools in the villages of Mezezo and Kobastil. Children and residents are now less likely to fall victim to infectious diseases.
Because as many as 30% of pregnant women experience complications, such as the death of the baby or mother, the Wondem Foundation built a health center. Women can go there for advice, examinations, and treatment. As a result, there have been no more deaths, and every complication has been resolved. In gratitude, parents often name their child Wondem.
When we visit Wondem’s grave, we are naturally saddened by his passing, but we draw comfort, courage, and meaning from knowing that we now have, as it were, many children named Wondem and that we are giving even more children a better future. We are proud of our son Wondem, who set everything in motion. He is a Great Little boy from Amsterdam. And Wondem can be proud of us for realizing his dream with great dedication and enthusiasm. In Ethiopia, his name and legacy will live on forever.
Wondem Foundation
Tefera Zerfu, Chair
06 – 40 72 52 28
addis.ababa@online.nl
www.wondemfoundation.org