Another Decade of Hope and Healing
I love accompanying donors, volunteers and new employees to Tanzania to see our programs there. The place and the people have had such an impact on my life, so I love seeing the same thing happen to others. I invite you to read our new Operation Manager’s reflections on her experience there last month!
Jenny Williamson
I joined the Courage team just about 9 months ago as the Operations Manager for domestic operations. I’ve known about Courage Worldwide for much longer, having heard story after story from my mother-in-law, the CEO, regarding her journey and the journey of the girls Courage Worldwide has helped. When Jenny shared with me that I would be joining her on her trip to Tanzania this summer, my honest first reaction was out of anxiety. I tend to be a nervous traveler and, especially being so far away from home and for so long, was increasingly anxious about what all I would see and do while in Tanzania.
I definitely did not need to worry so much.
I’ve been to quite a few places, but there was something uniquely special about Tanzania. The bright colors, the sounds, and the environment were all overwhelmingly beautiful. I was daily reminded I was on a unique adventure–one I wanted to soak up every minute of.
Our main goals in visiting Tanzania for two weeks were to connect with our international team for some business meetings and to focus in with a smaller group of the team on creating a clearer vision and mission for the next 5 years of Courage. Participating in these meetings and dreaming sessions didn’t leave us an endless amount of time with the girls, but we did prioritize visiting to say hello and see the newly constructed dormitory addition at our Moshi location.
I had heard of the famous hospitality and warm greetings the girls show to visitors but wasn’t prepared for the wells of joy pouring from their songs, their smiles, and their dances. The knowledge of their life experiences contrasted with their bright eyes and easy laughter was, at times, almost too much to hold onto.
I will never be able to sit in their exact experience and share that unique pain but, as we all have, I know pain of my own. And I know it takes immense strength to walk through the journey of not just processing the pain but loosening its control on you and allowing yourself to experience joy again. I knew that when I looked in the face of each girl I hugged or said “hamjambo” to or laughed with, I was looking at strength.
It became increasingly apparent over the course of our trip that every person on the Courage team is an intense advocate for the girls we serve.
Every conversation and every meeting centered on ensuring our services, our purpose, even our food at the café, was the absolute best to reflect the best back to the girls. There was great care taken in analyzing the smallest of details in our organization—all to guarantee the girls would receive the best care, the care they deserved.
As our core team worked to clarify our organization’s mission and vision, I found myself considering our new vision statement over and over: “Every child survivor would have the support necessary to begin their journey of hope and healing.” Something about crafting these words for Courage, knowing they would spark another decade of hope and healing for those who are hurting, brought me to a place of needing those words for myself.
I came to Africa on my own unique journey of needing hope and healing, wrestling with my own pain and struggles and doubts. I came home from Africa with a renewed heart, trusting that people truly exist who desire to provide the support necessary for helping begin someone’s journey of hope and healing.
I am deeply grateful to be a part of a team with people like this.
I can tell you with confidence that as someone who was simply a Courage supporter and is now an employee, your support, prayers, and financial giving truly is providing hope and healing to the girls who call Courage House home. These children are being raised with new hope and a new promise for their future. Generational trauma is being broken. I am grateful to have seen firsthand the ways Courage Worldwide is changing the world, one child at a time.
Katie Williamson
Operations Manager, Courage Worldwide
P.S. Have you restocked your Courage Coffee? We’ve just gotten a new shipment in from Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania and with your purchase, it is freshly roasted in Modesto, California at Clayton Tea & Coffee. If you haven’t tasted our Hope Blend, it’s a must-try. Not only are you drinking some of the best coffee in the world, you directly support our programs here at Courage Worldwide!