Women Shelter Activist

The project
The Pippi House Foundation was founded in 2011 by Aristides Nshange, who saw a great need to care for homeless girls and young women and their children. The foundation runs a women’s shelter, where more than 50 girls and women between the ages of twelve and twenty-six are being taken care of together with their children. They are all given the opportunity to attend school or to get an education depending on their age.

The girls and women came to the shelter to escape poverty, homelessness and other dangerous living conditions. Many of the inhabitants were forced to marry and/or are victims of human trafficking, domestic violence, and physical and/or sexual abuse. All girls and young mothers can get medical assistance, counselling, and advocacy. The hope is that all girl go to school, finish their education, and start vocational training as tailor or hair dresser to support the Pippi House itself, in their own workshop and saloon, or learn any other profession to be able to make a living.

Your work

The start of work is flexible at any time between 9am and 10am. The tasks of the volunteers are diverse and mostly freely selectable. You can start your work day with taking care of the young children, giving a hand at the sewing shop or the hair dresser, or helping to approve the administration work at the Pippi House. At around noon, most of the older girls and women will come back from school, and in the afternoon you can help them with their homework and tutoring. Additionally, they are even open to some educational games you might bring along and introduce to them. You will work together with the director Aristides, the grown up girls, and the young children based on your interests and the needs of the project. Some days you might be asked to give a helping hand with the daily cooking, shopping, or cleaning of the compound.

Some days might not come with a special task to do for you, so you have to be a bit creative and ask where your help is needed. Once in a while, you can take some of the girls on a walk through the neighborhood and listen to their stories and problems. You can help them to prepare for the next market where they will sell their products, or you could even start a fundraising campaign. Since most of the girls were not able to finish school or to attend college, donations are always needed to ensure a better future for the girls after their graduation, since schools and colleges in Tanzania are not for free.

Note

Keep in mind that the girls and women were victims of human trafficking, were raped or experienced other horrible things. Please be confidential about what you are being told by the girls and be sensitive about their background. Don’t ask them anything that could make them feel uncomfortable. The women shelter has to remain a safe space for them!

We offer a wide range of activities at affordable volunteer rates like: 

1. Hiking/Walking tours to waterfalls, through forests and around a lake.
2. Swimming in paradise like hot springs with a glimpse of Mt. Kilimanjaro.
3. Cultural tours to Maasai markets and the possibility to visit different ethnic groups.
4. Coffee plantation tour to learn about the process from the bean to the finished product.
5. Safaris to the national parks of the Northern Circuit (Arusha NP, Lake Manyara NP, Tarangire NP, Serengeti NP, Ngorongoro Conservation Area). 6. Climbing Mount Meru and Mount Kilimanjaro.
7. FREE town tour for all our volunteers!