Sewing for Life

Last spring, during our previous visit, the tailoring apprenticeship program at Maison de la Gare was just kicking into action. Kalidou, a talibe not so long ago, had been hired to lead the program, under the supervision of Tailor Baka.  Older talibe in transition were signing up, in hopes of finding a path to an independent life in the future. Lacking skills, education, or family support, independence is often just an elusive  idea. So many of these boys are likely to remain tied to their marabouts, as the daara is the only place they have to lay their heads at night.

When Dad and I arrived at the centre Monday Morning, Kalidou and his team were in action, measuring, cutting and sewing. But, the number of participants had significantly diminished. There is room for 10 apprentices at a time. The apprenticeships are designed to last at least a year, maybe as long as two years. Kalidou had just three apprentices, Souleymane and Elhage began in May, and Ibrahima, who just recently joined the program. I asked him where the others had gone. Omar had actually found regular work as a shopkeeper. And, with his karate skills (he had made his way to green belt in the Maison de la Gare karate program, and he is a skilled fighter) he would be a valued employee, able to guard the store as well as take care of customers. Others had left because they did not have the time. If they still lived in the daara, they would have had to produce a regular begging quota of money to the marabout. So, at their older ages, that means working in the market, doing small odd jobs as porters or lifting heavy materials. It can mean a lot of hanging around the market waiting for work that may or may not come. And, if they are free of their marabout, they still need to do this to earn their rent. And, they all need to eat. Money must be found for that too. 

I asked why they could not sell enough of their output to be able to buy lunch for the boys, pay them a little bit, enough that they don't have to spend their days finding fleeting work to survive. Afterall, once the apprenticeship is complete, they will have the skill to last a lifetime, to sustain themselves and even be able to build families of their own in the future, raising boys who will never see the inside of a forced begging daara. Senegal needs more of these. "There are not enough customers willing to buy". Furthermore, only Kalidou really has sufficient skill yet to generate products efficiently enough as required for a successful business. The others are still learning. They make beautiful things, but it takes them more time and supervision.

Some of my karate friends in Ottawa and I had previously discussed the possibility of the talibes making shopping bags which we could sell for fundraising. I discussed the plan with Kalidou who got to work making samples for me. We eventually settled on a large, colourful shopping bag, together with several smaller grocery bags for fruits and veggies, maybe bread, so plastic bags can be dispensed with. Kalidou suggested some bright, African patterns and then his team got to work.

I posted pictures of the samples on Facebook, asking if my frinds thought such things would sell. I was astonished to receive over a dozen responses almost immediately. The orders were flowing in! I could not wait to tell Kalidou, Elhage and Souleyman of the interest abroad in what they were doing. If we could sell the bags at home and send the money back to sustain the tailoring program, maybe other volunteers could do this too, creating a continuous source of business, even when the orders in Senegal are hard to come by. We showed Norweigan volunteer, Mari the bags. She was very interested and was sure her friends back home would also be. With such an increased revenue source, they could afford to not only keep buying the fabric and supplies needed, maybe a small stipend might also be afforded for the apprentices, just enough to keep them from having to find other work to survive. 

Meanwhile, in order to fill their first international order (for me) of about 20 big grocery bags and many dozens of smaller grocery bags, the tailoring team worked until 1:00am this morning, and they were already hard at work when I arrived at the centre today. Seeing the possibilities for this extra source of revenue, the boys likely won't stop sewing until our departure Sunday. There is a buzz about the possibilities for the tailoring apprenticeship program, and inquiries from talibes are already perking up.

The Day After - What is Next for Them?

When we arrived at the centre the morning after the Ronde de Nuit, I made my way to the Dortoir to see the little runaways we found the night before.  I had not slept much, haunted by thoughts of what must drive little children to choose the dangers and lonliness of life on the run to life in the daara. Messaging Mari, the Norweigan volunteer who was also on the Ronde de Nuit, it seemed she did not sleep either. We were likely kept awake by similar dreams.

Ousemane was in the office with the social worker an an intern from the Mayor's Office, being questionned about his identity and situation. He had indicated the night before that he was 13, and had left his daara about a month earlier. His daara is not far, on the Langue de Barbarie, the tongue of land extending from Mautitania on the other side of the Island of Saint Louis.  His age, daara and Marabout were confimed. When asked why he ran, he said he was beaten often, and he could not handle the conditions anymore. And, the night he ran he did so for fear of what he would face for not having met his 500cfa (about a dollar) begging quota that day. Better to disappear than face the consequences. Ouseman showed the scars from his beating, on his back. From the state of healing, the social worker estimated he had left the daara perhaps two weeks ago, which upon reflection, Ousemane confirmed. When asked more about his marabout, Ousemane said he was most at risk of beatings when his marabout was in a bad mood. Then he followed up, in a morose tone, "he is always in a bad mood". Ousemane is 13 years old, but he looked about 8.

Next, the little Djiby was brought in. He had run away the day before. The night before it was determined he was 7. However, he claims to have been in the daara since 2014. Another time, he says, 5 years in the daara.  How could that be? He does not look more than age 5. His age was eventually noted as 9, beginning in the daara in 2014. Impossible. If he is 7, which is more likely, he would have been sent away from home, to the life of forced begging   and loneliness at the age of 3. Djiby spoke of his father who sells sheep, and his mother, who cooks. First, he says he sees his parents weekly (maybe he wishes he did). Then, he said he has not seen them since 2014. Eventually, it was determined Djiby has seen his parents perhaps twice in the past four years since being sent to the daara. He said his marabout does not beat him, but he missed his home and his parents.

Khaly had already been questionned, I learned. Age 12, he said he was from Dakar, and that his daara was also in Dakar. So, what had he been doing at the bus station in Saint Louis, where he claimed to have been for months? Khaly had left his daara to try to get home. But, he ended up in Louga, likely stowing away on the wrong bus. After a short time in that city he got another ride, taking him even farther from home, to the Gare Routiere in Saint Louis, about a four hour drive from Dakar, in a car driving direct. By bus it is a much longer ride. It could have been worse. By chance, he could have ended up in a foreign country, one with an active slave trade, like Mauritania. Imagine running away, and getting a ride which you hope will take you home, only to find yourself in an unfamiliar place with no idea how to get back. So, you just try to survive. You are just 12 years old. At one point his story changed, a daara in Pekine (a region of Saint Louis) was referred to.  Maybe he had met another runaway from there? But, Khaly had mentionned the name of a daara and a home address. Mamadou Gaye got on the phone immediately with his wide network of daaras and children's welfare groups in Dakar. He confirmed the daara is real, as is the address. Khaly's story was confirmed in a matter of minutes. Tonight, Mamadou Gaye will personally escort Khaly home to Dakar. Unfortunately, he may not remain home for long. Khaly's father is deceased, his mother is a cleaner. It is common for very poor families who cannot support their own to send their boys to daaras.

Graciella, the volunteer from California, and I then spent some time with the three boys, reading to them, and reminding them how to play.

Later the same day, when I was walking back to Maison de la Gare after the afternoon break, half way across the Pont Faidherbe I was astonished ro encounter Ousemane walking in the other direction. He was wearing his new clothes but the bandage had disapeared from his bare foot, and he was limping, moving fast. I called to him and he turned, smiled a little, but carried on. I followed him into Saint Louis until he was met by a "grand talibe", a much older boy, most likely from his daara. Clearly, they knew each other, and Ousemane was expected. They continued on together. I called Maison de la Gare, a bit panicked, while I tried not to lose sight of the pair in the twists and turns of the island streets. I knew they would be heading for the North bridge to la Langue de Barbarie, as I knew Ousemane's daara was there. I finally got through to Maison de la Gare and was disturbed to learn that it had been decided to send the boy back to his daara, and that it had been aranged for Ouseman to be met along the way by the grand talibe from his daara. I dropped my trail and the pair vanished around a corner.  But, knowing the beatings Ouseman is used to, and his fear of reprecussions for running away, I was distressed that he had been sent back, unaccompanied by an adult to intervene on his behalf, protection. I could not let it drop, and I later discovered that perhaps a mistake has been made. The morning social worker had determined the boy wanted to go home, and that his abuses suffered in the daara were grounds to prevent his return. And, it is policy if a child must be returned to his daara to accompany him, to make it known that Maison de la Gare will be watching. But, the afternoon social worker made the decision to send him back - apparently he had not seen the notes in the file detailing the abuse, and did not know of the concerns for the boy's safety or his desire to return home. Perhaps he communicated with the marabout and was reassured. Maison de la Gare is following up today, to try to ensure Ousemane's safety. I certainly will be following up. If that little boy does not have us, then he has no one.

Time to Get to Work - Can All of this Really be Happening?

So many importamt things happened Monday, my mind is having trouble sorting them out after the fact. It is always like this the morning after a Ronde de Nuit.

As Dad and I stepped through the familiar gates of Maison de la Gare it felt like coming home. Familiar faces appeared to welcome us. Kalidou. Elhaje. Soon followed by Issa, Awa, Adama, Abdou, so many more.  Small changes surrounded us too, like always. The bank of five toilets and showers for the talibés was gone. A pile of sand and shovels in its place. They had backed up completely, the rags worn by the kids sometimes get stuffed into the drains, so the boys can come out, clean and naked, pointing out that since they have no clothes, they need new ones. The faucets, used by many dozens of boys each day, were loose, and some of the doors, slammed beyond their capacity to endure, had been falling off. life happens. Some boys now have a bath in the laundry and drinking water area.wers

Unfortunately, the cost of the repairs will be $1800 that Maison de la Gare does not have.  Since the showers have been missing the number of talibes with more serious skin disorders has been increasing in the infirmary. There are many generous donors out there who will want to help the talibes. We'll find it. So, knowing this, we authorized the work to continue and the repairs to be made. 

Kalidou, Elhage and Soulaymane were diligently at work in the Atellier, filling clothing orders and working on new products as part of their tailoring apprenticeship. The number of boys enrolled in this apprenticeship program has diminished, unfortunately. Kalidou says many more want to participate, as they see the possibilities for independance thanks to a reliable trade in the future. But, they still need to live now, and many of them still need to submit begging quotas to the marabouts who still control their lives. So, it seems Maison de la Gare must find a way to help the apprenticeship program become a commercial enterprise, or another source of funding must be found, generating enough revenue to allow the boys time to learn before their productivity gets to a self sustaining point - which could take years. 

I met with Kalidou, who assists Baka (his mentor) with the tailoring program, to discuss the possibility of the boys making grocery and shopping bags that we could take back to Canada and sell to raise funds for the program. I am hoping that we could pay for the bags from Maison de la Gare and them make a profit selling them to raise money to support another Senegalese family who needs our help and whom some of us in Canada have been trying to help since last year. I sketched out three patterns of three different sizes, and Kalidou is going to work on it over the next few days. I look forward to seeing his results.

I also met with Sensei Ignety Ba, who runs the dojo where about 20 talibes are registered as members, and he supervises the karate program at Maison de la Gare, thanks to donors, mainly from my own karate family back in Ottawa at Douvris Martial Arts.  We disscussed the details for the karate tournament I have planned for Maison de la Gare. It will be Friday, all day! The mats have been ordered, five referees have been called, I brought the prizes from Ottawa and they are now here, ready to award to the winners. The morning will be devoted to a tournament with two divisions for the younger kids, featuring Keons and Kata. Then, after a break for lunch and the mosque, the tournament will resume in the afternoon featuring Kumite and Kata for the older boys. Then, a special black belt ceremony to award Boiro, the lead Sempai at Maison de la Gare, his long awaited, and well earned black belt. Sensei at last.

I met with my Godson, Mohammed, the son of a Maison de la Gare teacher. It was a lovely reunion. Dad and I later had dinner at the restaurent where the father of my other Godson, Djiby, works. Of course, we were welcomed as family, as always. 

Then, after midnight, when Dad was asleep, exhausted from spending the day pouring over the accounts with our Maison de la Gare partners, I went out to meet the Ronde de Nuit Team. I met Abou, who took me to pick up two volunteers, Mari from Norway, and Graciella from California, We made our way to the Gare Routiere by taxi where we met the rest of the Ronde de Nuit Team, including Idy and Mamadou Gaye. Then, dividing into two groups, armed with flashlights (and my black belt) we ventured into the back alleys and dark places in search of runaway talibe boys. 

After about 15 minutes of searching under cars, in buses, behind boxes and in dark corners, our flashlights shone on a lumpy small bundle in a back seat of a broken down bus with no glass in its windows. Idy woke the little boy, speaking to him in Wolof. He lifted the boy out through the bus window and we walked to a bench where we sat and talked with the boy. His name is Khaly, 12 years old, and he has been on the run for 2 months.  Then, the other team joined us, accompanied by two more little boys, Ousmane, age 13, and Djiby, age 7, we think. Idy spoke with them all for a while, jotting notes down in the dark, getting a piece of each of their stories.  Mamadou Gaye later told me that it is important to ask questions immediatley, and to pay close attention to how they answer. If they come out with their name, daara, home village right away, it is often the truth. If they take time to consider, it can often be a story, whereby the truth needs to be ferrited out later. 

Now it was about 1:00am, a  taxi was hailed  and I bundled the three tired little boys into the back seat of the car and then climbed in after them. Idy jumped in the front. The rest of the team follwed in another car. The boys had not heard of Maison de la Gare. and had no idea who we were, despite our explanation that we were there to help. Khaly fell asleep beside me, exhausted, Djiby sat slumped morosely, as if accepting his terrible fate, and Ousemane sat rigid by the door, seeming ready to bolt.We soon arrived back at Maison de la Gare and brought the boys to the Dortoir d'Urgence. Each was registered with the guard, they were brought some food, and then shown

 to the beds. They all seemed to relax a bit, anxiety receding. Ousemane scrambled up the ladder to a top bunk and hunkered under his blanket. When I climbed up to tuck him in, he rewarded me with the faintest smile. Khaly and Djiby took bottom bunks and were soon asleep, despite the anxiety and fear they surely must have felt about the strange surroundings and the uncertainty that faced them in the morning. After a final pat on each boy's sleeping back, we left them. I returned to the hotel to be greeted by the night guard. He wished me a good sleep. But, this night sleep would alude me.

A Reminder - How Karate Got Started at Maison de la Gare

We are here again. Africa.  We will see the boys of Maison de la Gare soon.  

Our driver took us on a questionable short cut to the highway on the way to Saint Louis. After passing a burnt-out truck stuck in the sand, Dad and I wondered if we had slid back in time, to before we secured the reliability of SenegalLib Tours' drivers; to when we never knew if the driver had out of the way personal stops and pick ups to make along the way, or if he would take a short cut through the dessert to avoid "shake down" checkpoints, or if the brakes might fail.  But, we were soon back on the familiar road again. 

Friendly, familiar faces greeted us at Maison de la Gare. Our friend, Cheikh, the cobbler up the street, could not wait to tell us how many talibés has been newly repatriated to his village since our last visit - 56 - due to the schools he was instrumental in building. Vendors on the street called out hopefully, "Hey, les Canadiens!" and politely accepted our assertion that I would not be shopping on this trip. They welcomed us warmly anyway.  Allioune, the guard at the front doors, greeted us excitedly, updating us on his family's health.  N'Deye, the host of the restaurent at our hotel, brought us citronella tea to help us relax after our journey. We were welcomed like family at Maison Rose.

The karate tournament we have planned will be a highlight of this trip, Insha'Allah. Ignety Ba, upon confirming my arrival (word gets around) put the wheels in motion to arrange for judges and mats. And there will be more, so much more.   I came across an early picture from Robbie's first trip, when he chose Ignety Ba to hire for the karate program here, and another more recent picture of the two of them. so much has happened in three years! But first, I thought it would be a good idea to remind readers how the karate program at Maison de la Gare came to be. So here, reproduced, is the article my son, Robbie wrote last year, recently published on www.mdgsl.com and www.globalgiving.org.:

By Robbie Hughes, international volunteer, martial artist, high school student

This year's WKC World Karate Championship was all about karate, but it was also about so much more than karate. It was about choosing to be positive in the face of tough challenges and how helping each other makes everyone feel better. I was in Orlando, Florida competing with Team Canada at the WKC Worlds. I am a second degree black belt, and this was my fourth time competing at the Worlds for my country. I was also there to try and raise some money and spread awareness about the situation of the forced begging talibe street kids in Saint Louis, Senegal and how karate is changing their lives for the better. 

A few years ago when I was 13 years old, I visited Africa for the first time to volunteer at Maison de la Gare with my family. I wanted to help, to have something to offer the kids I would be meeting in Senegal. At home in Canada I train and help teach karate. So I thought, what better than to share what I love and what I am good at? I had to convince my Family and Maison de la Gare that starting to teach karate to the talibe kids would be a good idea. They had enough imagination to decide to give it a chance.  So I got busy and gathered over 75 donated karate uniforms from families and dojos in my home town, packed them up, and took them to Senegal. Once at Maison de la Gare, I just started doing karate and the kids were naturally interested. by the end of the first week, all the uniforms we brought were being worn in my daily overflowing classes by kids who wanted to learn karate. Imagine as a forced begging, barefoot street kid how good it must feel being able to wear a clean white Gi, and to be the centre of attention while you learn to take control in your life! Karate was such a success at Maison de la Gare that we decided to hire a local sensei to carry on giving classes upon my return to Canada. 

I have now been to Senegal three times to work with the boys of Maison de la Gare, register kids who show particular talent and dedication into an advanced program at the local dojo, train with them at the dojo, and coach my students to grade for higher belts. I am so proud of how far they have come, and the dedication and passion many of them show for the sport we both love. I am looking forward to my next trip to Senegal to see my karate kids and to work with them again.

Now, at the World Championships I decided to spread the word beyond my home city, to let people know how karate is so important for the kids at Maison de la Gare. I showed a video of the kids training in Africa, outside, under the sun in 40 degree temperatures, never complaining. In the pictures I showed, the karate kids were happy, and determined, and looked like they were giving karate everything they had. All of us who were competing at the Worlds also give karate everything we have. But, we are never alone in pursuing our dreams. our parents and our senseis support us constantly. Parents drive us to hundreds of training practices and dozens of tournaments each year. They cheer us up and convince us to carry on when we are in pain and feel like we have had enough. They do our stinky laundry and pay our coaching fees. They cheer for us at our grading ceremonies, congratulate us when we win, and console us when we do not. And our coaches help us push hard, dig deep to find our best selves, share in our glory and support us in our pain and losses. 

The talibe karate kids have none of this support. They show up to karate classes after 8 to 10 hours of forced begging, having had very little to eat. No parents or coaches encourage them to persevere. They scrub their own gi's by hand and hang them to dry at Maison de la Gare. They feel the same pain and disappointments my teamates and I do, but have only themselves to look to for motivation and determination. When they achieve higher belts and win at tournaments,  parents are never cheering from the sidelines. And yet, they are as passionate about karate and as dedicated as I am. We can learn so much from these amazing kids. I certainly have. The Maison de la Gare karate kids have taught me that no matter how tough lives challenges become, it is always possible to take back some control and choose to be happy. And, there is always room for doing what you love.

Sometimes we can help make a difference for other people who face challenges outside their control, and sometimes we can fight for a little more control in our own lives. And, when things happen outside our control, how we choose to react is always within our control - we can choose to be happy. We can do what we love.

Helping Hands Across the Ocean

I am on my way to Saint Louis again; this time its me and my Dad. Our luggage is packed, as usual, with many donated karate gi's, and supplies for Maison de la Gare.  Our own belongings are squished into tiny carry-ons - I learn to pack lighter with each trip I take. This time I have had to make space in our baggage allowance for a few extra special items.

There are two large trophies packed safely into my luggage, The Douvris Karate Cup, and The Douvris Young Guns Karate Cup. These will be the Grand Champion prizes for the senior and junior divisions at the Maison de la Gare karate tournament I will be hosting this week. And, Douvris Martial Arts has donated medals for the competitors. The karate kids of Maison de la Gare will be invited to compete, to demonstrate their skills and passion for karate, and to vie for gold, silver and bronze medals. The junior and senior overall champions will have their names engraved on the trophies, their glory permanently displayed. Robbie envisions these trophies having layers added over time as future competitors names are added...The Senegalese Stanley Cup of Karate.  In this case, The Douvris Cup.

The Douvris Young Guns Karate Cup was conceived to honour the efforts of junior members of the Douvris Tournament Team to support the Maison de la Gare karate kids. Robbie Hughes first founded the Maison de la Gare karate program three and a half years ago. Since then, others in our Douvris dojo family have gotten involved, sponsoring kids to enrol at the dojo in Saint Louis, sponsoring tournaments, and contributing to the supplementary nutrition program.  

For the past two years, two young Douvris students, Kaylie and Keagan Goosen, have saved their allowance all year long, saving enough money to sponsor a child to join the dojo each year.  They were inspired by Robbie's dedication to the Maison de la Gare karate kids. The story of the forced begging street kids touched them, calling them to take action themselves. Recently, Kaylie requested donations to Maison de la Gare instead of birthday gifts for herself at her birthday party. As a result, enough money was raised to help sponsor this special karate tournament this week. 

Kaylie, Keagan and Robbie's contributions, and their commitment  to helping the kids of Maison de la Gare benefit from the opportunity to practice karate and do what they love, is continuing to inspire others to give. This week, the three of them together made a presentation to the Douvris Tournament Team to encourage them to request donations for Maison de la Gare in place of some birthday or Christmas gifts. And, Keagan challenged his "Young Guns" teammates to save their allowance to help others, as he and his sister did. Their passion is already spreading; another girl will be asking for donations for the karate kids of Maison de la Gare in place of birthday gifts at her party this week too. 

I am excited to share the story of the commitment and support of the young Douvris karateka with the young Maison de la Gare karateka. I know this peer support will feel as special to the kids of Maison de la Gare as it does to me. Hands reaching out across the ocean, the sharing of a special passion among children from two different worlds. Different, but the same.