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Touching the Soul of Communities

Nyaradzayi Mugaragumbo - Gumbonzvanda

Founder and Chair, Rozaria Memorial Trust

Presented at the 25th Anniversary: American Jewish World Service (AJWS)

San Francisco, USA: 16 November, 2010

She was a community woman leader. She was born in 1923. Raised her 11 children amidst

poverty and war, Rozaria was more than a 3rd grade graduate. She was a widow for 27 years of

her life, a deeply spiritual woman who feared her God and served her community. She exuded

and exhibited inner strengthen as she buried child after child to HIV living behind many

orphans, loss and pain. Her son and then her daughter suffered mental illness, she took them

all in her nest, sheltered them from stigma, discrimination and abuse.

Amidst all these tribulations, she was an innovator, a hard worker, a farmer, and entrepreneur.

She managed to send most of her children to primary school. As last child of this amazing

woman, I was the first in my family to go to secondary school and then to college. Her name

was Rozaria Marumisa- Dizha, my late mother. Her story is that of many women in rural and

resource poor communities in Africa and elsewhere. A story of community innovation,

resourcefulness, resilience, social entrepreneurship grounded in faith and core values.

When my mother passed on in 2006, I had an immediate dream, of turning her life experience

into a social justice movement; an initiative that celebrates the invisible sheroes or heroines in

our community. A movement that starts to name, give voice, deeper meaning and visibility tosuch community leaders through practical services. As the world gathered to say goodbye to a

gallant daughter of a nation, I knew that her spirit lives on, and it was only but the re-birth of

her legacy. The gift of knowledge entrusted in all of us can only be celebrated through life

giving actions. A Trust it was to be; established her own name. Rozaria Memorial Trust. A Trust

that will join hands with many other women, mothers and daughters in communities, with

fathers and friends; to heal the wounded, wipe the tear from the eyes of the lonely ones; give

hope for the future and unleash the potential within through education.

In a country devastated by HIV and AIDS, it was apparent that the singular most investment of

the moment was to provide care and support to children living with HIV, their parents, care-

givers and families. A real comprehensive response demanded an equal focus on prevention,

both of HIV transmission and also of family violence. RMT committed to this urgent social

justice issue, providing practical service to communities, and equally raising the voice of such

resource poor communities to inform the changes in policies, behavior, attitude and practice.

I started to share my aspirations with many friends, colleagues and networks. To anyone who

could listen, I would talk about my late mother and the dream of a Trust in her honour.

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Zimbabwe was going through a political and social crisis. Things were escalating. Thats when I

came across AJWS. The magic $2,000 grant was a gift from God. It enabled us to host a district

forum during the 16 days of activism against gender based violence, open a one room office,

apply for a postal box and telephone line! With this gift, a deeply held dream was turned to

reality. It was a life changing moment for me and the people of Murewa.

Today, in partnership with AJWS, merely 4 years later, RMT is reaching 5,000 people in 30

villages in Murewa District, Zimbabwe. We are reaching 450 people living with HIV directly

annually, through 17 HIV support groups, skilled and self organised. We have 135 boys and girls

HIV positive children provided school fees subsidy, while collaborating with seven (7) schools

for a supportive learning environment. Access to treatment, psycho-social support remains a

key focus of our work, as we partner with one district hospital and 2 health care centres.

Quality nutrition lies at the heart of HIV treatment response, therefore we provide livelihoods

support, HIV affected households 449 households have been provided with agricultural

inputs.

Service has to be combined with advocacy and influence if real change is to happen. RMT is amember of Murewa Development Committees, including for women; for health and HIV. We

are called to the tables of decision making, to inform and to advice. RMT is also active in public

policy actions at the national, regional and global levels. Together with other AJWS Grantees

like SAFAIDS, we are able to maximise on the resources we have for greater impact. We have

more partners coming in to support our work like AVERT and the Global Fund for Women.

We have turned a corner, from a dream to an institution. We invite you to walk with us and

many other grantees, so that we can be what we fully want to be a true movement for social

justice in our communities, driven by local innovation, knowledge and action.

We all celebrate together the 25th

anniversary of AJWS. Together we have touched the souls ofcommunities; together we have turned dreams to reality, for today, tomorrow and posterity.

Ruth Messinger, AJWS President and your staff, you have sat in my late mothers round and

grass thatched hut in Murewa, just as you meet with Zimbabwe women leaders here in the

USA, giving a deeper meaning that AJWS is about relating, struggling together and shaping our

world together. AJWS Board and friends, we celebrate your spirit of caring and giving, because

through your deeds you are changing lives and giving voice to many; including a perpetual

voice to my late mother, Rozaria.

About RMT:

Rozaria Memorial Trust (RMT) supports initiatives that promote education, health andentrepreneurship for women and children in resource-poor communities. RMT was

established in 2007 in memory of the lateMbuya Rozaria Dizha, a community woman leaderwhose life embodied the principles of caring, sharing and innovation. For further information

contacthttp://www.rozaria-trust.orgor emailinfo@rozariatrust.org