After a year abroad, the question often arises: “What remains?”. David Schellhaas answered this question after his year abroad in 2014, together with friends and family, by founding “Freunde der Endarofta e.V.” The Freunde der Endarofta e.V. aim to improve or even establish the quality of life and learning at educational institutions in Tanzania through their work. However, they do not cover ongoing costs to avoid jeopardizing the independence of these institutions. Instead, they want to contribute to improving the situation through help for self-help. The primary focus, especially for schools, is to keep costs for students as low as possible, enabling every child to have a chance at good education. Some of our projects therefore particularly focus on creating free educational opportunities, so that students from impoverished backgrounds can access free education.
Milestones
2014/15 - Year Abroad in Tanzania
Initiator and co-founder David Schellhaas spends a year working at Endarofta Secondary School in Karatu as part of the Weltwärts program. He takes on various tasks such as teaching and accounting, gaining deep insights into the situation of the students and the organization of Tanzanian schools.
2019 - Founding of the Freunde der Endarofta e.V.
During another visit to the Endarofta Secondary School for several weeks, the foundation for a cooperative partnership on equal footing is laid – The association “Freunde der Endarofta e.V.” is established as a support organization for the Endarofta Secondary School.
2020 - Implementation of the First Project
This year marks the implementation of the first project, albeit different from the original plan: To prevent the closure of the school due to Corona restrictions, the Freunde der Endarofta e.V. support the Endarofta Secondary School in developing a hygiene plan and provide items such as handwashing buckets and disinfectants – ensuring the safe operation of the school.
2021 - Admission of the Ibondo Education Center
The statutes of the Freunde der Endarofta e.V. are being amended. The Ibondo Education Center in Sengerema is being incorporated into the association’s purpose. This school was also visited in 2019. However, the founding of the school only began in 2021. In this year, the water project in Ibondo is also initiated. It provides families and especially their children with fresh, clean drinking water. This eliminates the need to carry water containers over long distances, allowing children to receive basic education even before the school opens.
2022 - Award of the First Scholarship
For the first time, a scholarship is awarded to a student at Endarofta Secondary School. This has been pre-funded by the association, ensuring the student can attend school until graduation.
2024 - Inclusion of Projects in Esilalei and Dareda
The articles of association are being revised again so that “Freunde der Endarofta e.V.” is now a general support association for educational projects in Tanzania. The reason for this is the inclusion of projects that Cornelia Engel had already initiated in the past. In 1998/99, Cornelia Engel completed a social year in Dareda. During her stay, the idea arose to finance the construction of a kindergarten with donation funds, as the children at the time were only taught in a small chapel. Following this project, another kindergarten was built in 2023.
Additionally, in 2024, our first scholarship recipient successfully graduated from secondary school.